Cantabria opens the call for local development agents with 900,000 euros

The Minister of Industry, Employment, Innovation, and Trade, Eduardo C. Arasti Barca, signed on October 20 the Order IND/53/2026, which calls for 2026 subsidies for local entities for advisory actions on self-employment, viable entrepreneurship, and the dynamization of local economic development. The regulation is published in the Official Gazette of Cantabria number 206, dated October 27, 2026, with a credit of 900,000 euros and an application submission period of barely ten business days. On that same day, the summary of the call appeared, with identification number BDNS 933591.

Financing and amounts

The funds come from budget application 13.00.241M.461 of the General Budgets of the Autonomous Community for 2026, approved by Law 2/2024, of December 23. The grants may also be co-financed by the Ministry of Labor and Social Economy through the State Public Employment Service.

The amounts are fixed as follows:

• 30,000 euros for each local development agent linked to the subsidized activity.
• 90,000 euros as the maximum amount per beneficiary entity.
• Eligible period: from January 1, 2027, to December 31, 2027.
• Advance payment of 100% of the grant after the award, without guarantees.

The procedure is resolved through competitive bidding, and the processing is the responsibility of the Employment Promotion Service of the Cantabrian Employment Service, while the resolution is the responsibility of the Directorate of this body, with a maximum period of three months from the end of the application period. After this time has elapsed without notification, the application may be understood as rejected.

Requirements: Cantabria Emprendedora point and three years of seniority

City councils and supra-municipal local entities—regions, associations, and other groupings—located in Cantabria that are accredited, as of the date of publication of the summary, as an attention point for Cantabria Emprendedora, in accordance with Order HAC/19/2013, of May 2, may apply for the grants. They must also comply with Article 13 of Law 38/2003, of November 17, General Subsidies Law, and Article 12 of Cantabria Law 10/2006, of July 17, and prove that they are up to date with the State Tax Administration Agency, Social Security, and the regional Administration.

The technicians to be financed must meet three conditions:

• A minimum seniority of three years as a local development agent in the requesting entity as of the date of the application.
• Full-time contract.
• Hold a technical position as a local development agent or employment and local development agent, whether as contractual staff or a civil servant.

Each entity may submit a single application and will have five business days to correct any defects. The primary final recipients of the program are individuals registered as job seekers with the Cantabrian Employment Service and entrepreneurs in the region.

Administrative urgency and scoring scale

The call declares urgent processing under Article 33 of Law 39/2015, of October 1, which reduces the deadlines of the ordinary procedure by half, except for those regarding the submission of applications and appeals. The BOC justifies this measure based on the need to 100% finance the processed files using the 2026 budget and the promotion of entrepreneurship as a lever for local economic development.

The assessment applies the formula 0.2A + 0.25B + 0.25C + 0.2D + 0.1E, with the following criteria:

• A (20%): percentage of registered unemployment of the local entity relative to the regional total as of December 31 of the previous year.
• B (25%): having been a beneficiary of Decree 95/2024, of November 28, regarding direct grants for hiring employment and local development agents.
• C (25%): the municipality being listed as at risk of depopulation according to Annex I of Order PRE/1/2025, of January 2.
• D (20%): weight of the entity’s population aged 16 to 64 relative to that of Cantabria.
• E (10%): having established a permanent delegated employment office through a current legal instrument with the Cantabrian Employment Service.

The regulatory bases are Order IND/41/2025, of August 25, published in BOC number 167 of September 1, 2025. The call takes effect the day following the publication of its summary.

The call arrives with a very tight schedule: those aspiring to finance their local development technicians throughout 2027 must submit their electronic application in just two weeks, using the official form available on the electronic headquarters of the Government of Cantabria, and assume the maintenance of the registration in Cantabria Emprendedora throughout the entire execution period.

Source: Official Gazette of Cantabria, number 206, of October 27, 2026, section 6. Grants and Aid, pp. 55098-55112 (official reference: CVE-2026-8310 and summary CVE-2026-8316).