To gain access to the service catalogue offered by Portuguese TEF-Health partners, SME applicants will be assessed based on the following criteria:

• Be legally incorporated and established in one country associated with the Digital Europe Programme. The complete fulfilment shall be evidenced by an official declaration issued by the authorities of the SME's headquarters address, together with information about the ultimate beneficiaries of the SME's shareholding. It is recommended that the declaration be in English or translated into English by a certified translator.
• Be an SME according to the EU definition (Commission Recommendation 2003/361/EC). The fulfilment shall be evidenced by an official declaration from the national authorities of the SME's headquarters address, or by using the Model declaration on the qualification of an enterprise as an SME (Official Journal of the European Union 2003/C 118/03).
• To benefit from state aid in the form of discounts under Article 28 GBER Regulations, the SME must present a declaration of honour that it has not received over €220,000 in state aid during the previous 3 fiscal years, and be legally incorporated and established in Portugal.
• To benefit from state aid in the form of discounts under EU Regulation n°1407/2013 (de-minimis), the SME must present an official declaration issued by the Portuguese Agência para o Desenvolvimento e Coesão (AD&C) according to the SircaMinimis rules, and be legally incorporated and established in Portugal.
• AI and robotics solutions must be at a minimum Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of 4 (self-declared by the SME).
• The applicant must self-declare that the solution was not, and is not, supported by another Portuguese testbed.

To apply for a TEF-Health service discount, fill in the application webform on the TEF-Health Platform (https://tef.charite.de). Detailed instructions are available at https://tef.charite.de/docs/call/applicant/.

The application process is divided into four phases:

1. Phase 1 — Application to TEF-Health
2. Phase 2 — Eligibility Assessment (see Eligibility)
3. Phase 3 — Evaluation (see Evaluation schema)
4. Phase 4 — Application approval to gain access to the Portuguese TEF-Health services catalogue.

Expert evaluators assess each application using the criteria below:

Each criterion is scored from 1 to 7 (1 — Very Poor, 2 — Poor, 3 — Below expectations, 5 — Above expectations, 6 — Good, 7 — Very Good). Level 4 is not used, to promote clear results. Criterion (5) is scored only with 1 (Very Poor) or 7 (Very Good).

Final score:

Evaluation = Weight(1)·Score(1) + … + Weight(6)·Score(6)

Applications that meet the eligibility criteria and achieve an overall threshold of 5.0 out of 7 are selected and gain access to services offered by Portuguese TEF-Health partners. The number of applicants that may receive state aid is determined by the available project budget.

Candidates that reach Phase 4 benefit from the following roadmap:

1. Matchmaking phase(s) with Portuguese TEF-Health service providers.
2. Access to services not currently provided in the market.
3. Access to service quotations from Portuguese TEF-Health providers.
4. Signature of an adhesion agreement (signature takes place only if the service provider has implementation capacity for the requested period; a first-come-first-served rule applies otherwise).
5. TEF-Health services implementation process.
6. Product/pilot evaluation report after service implementation.
7. A final product/pilot with TRL between 5 and 9, depending on entry TRL.

Selected candidates that reach the signature of the adhesion agreement may benefit from:

• Access to AI and robotics experts from best-in-class organizations in Europe, with validation of AI and robotics-based innovation through qualified service offerings.
• For companies with Portuguese VAT number — state aid as discount fees on the services, under either:
  • Innovation aid for SMEs (Article 28 GBER Regulations), not exceeding €220,000 per company over 3 financial years; or
  • De Minimis aid (Commission Regulation (EU) N° 1407/2013), not exceeding €300,000 per company over 3 financial years.

How many solutions will be approved by 29 May 2026?

A maximum of 100 solutions will benefit from TEF-Health services.

What is a solution in TEF-Health?

Solutions are new digital products or services developed using AI and/or robotic technologies, which are subject to testing and experimentation services provided by TEF-Health.

Can SMEs apply with multiple solutions?

Yes. An SME may benefit from TEF-Health services for one or more solutions. Each solution requires an individual application.

If I am not a Portuguese-based organization, can I still apply?

Yes — as long as the eligibility criteria are respected. However, only companies with a Portuguese VAT number are eligible to receive discounts as state aid under Article 28 GBER.

Does IP remain with the SME?

The contract between the TEF-Health service provider and the SME is governed by private law and reflects the terms decided between the parties, ensuring unrestricted, non-discriminatory and competitive access to the services.

Where can I find the complete list of services and prices?

All services are listed at tefhealth.eu.

What is the required Technology Readiness Level (TRL)?

Your solution must have a minimum entry TRL of 4 (self-assessed). Solutions are also evaluated on their ability to increase TRL after implementation of TEF-Health services.

Will funding be provided?

No funding is provided. Services have an indicative market price; discounts may apply on top, granted as state aid. If the discount does not cover the full service fee, the company pays the remaining balance.

If a company has already received €220,000 in state aid, can it still participate?

Yes — the company can apply and benefit from the services, but the service fees will not be supported by state aid; the company pays the full amount.