It should be started by drawing up a business plan or a feasibility study. These documents serve as the basis for identifying the investment effectiveness of the project. The future prospects of the project and its profitability depend on how accurately the analysis has been conducted. At the stage of the feasibility study, you can determine the source of financing: banks, private funds, co-investors, own funds.

At the stage of preliminary analysis of prospects of the project implementation, it is necessary to carefully evaluate the potential sales market and promising trends that will be relevant in a few years, when the enterprise is commissioned.

A poor feasibility study or a poor-quality business plan means risks, costs and a possible denial of the bank to provide credit financing even for a potentially attractive investment project.

Next, go to the section “Investor’s Personal Account” register and submit an application to support the investment project or to select a land plot.

The Investor’s Personal Account is an electronic service for joint work of investors with regional authorities on the implementation of investment projects.

For new projects

If an investor begins the implementation of an investment project in the Nizhny Novgorod Region, he/she can use the Personal Account to:

• Submit an application (the investor can submit an application for the support of the investment project according to the Regulation of Support of Investment Projects)

• Find out the result of consideration of his/her application (to track the status of the filed application and to receive feedback from authorities on the results of its processing)

• Get access to the project (after the application is approved, the project will be taken for support, and additional functions of the Personal Account will become available to the investor)

For supported projects

If the investor is already the initiator of projects supported by the “one-stop shop” principle, he/she will be able to:

• See information about all supported projects

• Learn the contact details of the team members supporting the project

• Monitor the implementation of action plans developed for each type of investment project support

• Ask questions and discuss their solution in a general chat with members of the support team

• Involve the regional head of the relevant branch ministry in solving "unsolvable problems"

• Assess the effectiveness of the support team by each question or problem posed

• Store and retrieve all project documents directly in the Personal Account in a specially created section

The Development Corporation of the Nizhniy Novgorod Region can help the investor in this matter. It will present options for investment sites in accordance with technical specifications of the project.

The investor can also select the site independently – using an interactive map. This is a bilingual map of the region, which displays general information about the region, data on investment sites, infrastructure and existing investment projects by municipalities.

Today, the database of promising investment sites contains about 500 brownfields and greenfields.

The procedure and terms for the registration of rights to a land plot depend on the ownership of the land and the current urban development situation in the territory.

• If the site is privately owned, it is enough for the investor to buy the selected territory from the owner

• If the site is in municipal ownership, the investor must contact the administration of the respective municipality

• If the land plot is owned by the region (or the ownership of this territory is not demarcated), to begin the registration procedure it is necessary to apply to the Council for Land and Property Relations under the Nizhny Novgorod Region Government

Find the list of documents to file and application (with filling instructions) and file the application in electronic form on the website of the Ministry of Property and Land Relations of the Nizhny Novgorod Region. Based on results of consideration of the application, the council makes a decision on the feasibility of implementation a particular investment project on the land plot selected by the investor and determines the procedure for allocating the land: through participation in tenders or without tenders. In addition, an action plan for the provision of a land plot to the investor should be approved with the indication of terms and responsible persons.

According to the law, a plot can be provided by the Council without bidding for placement of social and cultural facilities or the implementation of large-scale investment projects.

According to the Land Code of the Russian Federation, the land is leased to the investor for the period of construction of the facility (3-5 years). After commissioning of the facility, the land plot can be bought out or registered as a long-term leasehold (up to 49 years).

Approaching the design stage, the investor should have a complete understanding of the points of connection to the gas, electricity, water and wastewater networks.

The investor should receive information on the cost of utility networks at the stage of selecting a site, since the connection costs are a rather significant share in the total volume of investments.

The investor (owner or tenant of the land plot) needs to contact the utility company to obtain technical conditions for connecting to the networks and enter into a technological connection agreement. The technical specifications contain information about the scheme and cost of connection, as well as estimated dates for the completion of network laying.

Calculation of the connection costs is made according to the tariffs approved by the Regional Tariff Service

• The technical conditions for connecting to gas pipelines are issued by Gazprom

• Matters related to the water supply and disposal are resolved at the municipal level, and the technical conditions will be issued by local authorities

• Technical conditions for connecting to the power grids depend on the owner of the grid located in the vicinity of the land plot.

Nizhny Novgorod Region Development Corporation has administrative resources and is able to communicate with utility companies. It will assist the investor in the preliminary study of the possibility and estimated cost of connecting to utility networks, and after the investor makes the final choice of the land, it will support the project in cooperation with infrastructure companies.

Foreign citizens who came to the Russian Federation from visa-free countries work with legal entities and individual entrepreneurs according to a patent. This document can be issued if the person indicated the purpose of his/her visit to the country as “employment”. If the employment is based on the patent, the employers do not need to obtain a quota. However, when individuals come to the Russian Federation from countries that required a visa, the quota must be obtained.

Applications for the employment of foreign specialists are accepted with mandatory registration of the employer and generating an order in the automated information complex “Migration Quotas” (it is free for entrepreneurs).

Before making an application, you should settle the matter of reporting to the federal tax service of the Nizhny Novgorod Region, the Fund of Social Insurance of the Russian Federation and submit information on a special assessment of working conditions (or certification of jobs) to the Labor Inspectorate of the Nizhny Novgorod Region.

The applications are accepted by the Department of Labor and Employment of the Nizhny Novgorod Region

(Nizhny Novgorod, , Varvarskaya str., 32, room 723, tel.: +7 (831) 214-01-23 (ext. 380). See full information here.

In the Nizhny Novgorod Region, according to the law No. 180-Z “On State Support of Investment Activities in the Nizhny Novgorod Region”, a project may be assigned the priority status. In this case, the investor can obtain financial or non-financial support.

Financial support includes income and property tax benefits and partial reimbursement of loan interest.

The amount of the income tax benefit depends on the share of revenues received from the implementation of the priority investment project in the Nizhny Novgorod Region in the total amount of revenues from the sale of goods (works, services).

IMPORTANT!
The investor can obtain tax benefits and preferences, if he/she decide to place the enterprise in one of the three acting TADs in the region’s territory – in Volodarsk, Reshetikha or Sarov. TAD residents can be exempt from land and property taxes and apply a reduced income tax rate during 10 years (5% during the first 5 years and 10% during the next 5 years).

Catalogue "Catalogue of state support measures for investment activity in the Nizhny Novgorod Region"

1. HOW TO BECOME A SEZ RESIDENT ?

- Who can apply for the status of a SEZ resident?

A commercial organization or an individual entrepreneur are able to apply for the resident status of an industrial-production special economic zone, registered in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation on the territory of the municipality where the SEZ is located (city of Dzerzhinsk) and implementing (planning to implement) industrial production or logistics activities (according to article 9, 10 of the Federal law of July 22, 2005 No.116-FZ "On special economic zones in the Russian Federation"). Also, it is possible to implement technical and innovative activities by the decision of the Expert Council.

- What is the minimum investment for a resident of the SEZ "Kulibin"?

The minimum investment for a resident of the SEZ "Kulibin" – RUB 120 million. During the first 3 years RUB 40 million also must be invested (according to article 12 paragraph 3 of the Federal law of July 22, 2005 No.116-FZ "On special economic zones in the Russian Federation").

- What is the procedure for obtaining the resident status of the SEZ "Kulibin"?

The steps for obtaining a resident status (according to article 9, 12, 13, 14 paragraph 4 of the Federal law of July 22, 2005 No.116-FZ "On special economic zones in the Russian Federation").

- Is it allowed to implement entrepreneurial activities outside the SEZ territory being a SEZ resident?

The SEZ resident status excludes the possibility of setting up branches and representatives outside the special economic zone (according to article 10, paragraph 4 of the Federal law of July 22, 2005 No.116-FZ "On special economic zones in the Russian Federation"). Individual entrepreneurs and commercial organizations that are not residents of the SEZ are able to implemententrepreneurial activities in the territory of the special economic zone (according to article 10, paragraph 3 of the Federal law of July 22, 2005 No.116-FZ "On special economic zones in the Russian Federation").

- What types of activities are permissible on the SEZ?

The allowed activities (according to article 10 of the Federal law of July 22, 2005 No.116-FZ "On special economic zones in the Russian Federation"): 

• industrial activities;
• logistics, warehousing;
• technical and innovative activities (by The Expert Council decision)

The prohibited activities:

• production of excisable goods (excluding cars and motorcycles);
• mining

- Is it possible to implement R&D activities on the SEZ "Kulibin"?

It is allowed to implement R&D activities on the territory of SEZ "Kulibin" (according to article 10 of the Federal law of July 22, 2005 No.116-FZ "On special economic zones in the Russian Federation"). Technopark H₂O is a particular space for all activities within the territory of the SEZ. The infrastructure of the Technopark H₂O will include: a modern laboratory complex, center for collective use, innovation and technology center and coworking. The rooms can be leased for required period for a resident. Building area – 7 458 sq.m. The residents of the Technopark H₂O will be provided with the same benefits as the SEZ "Kulibin" residents.

- What are the conditions for terminating the SEZ resident status?