Skip to content

50% OFFfirst report

Gov Owed
Open nowDevolved-nation fundingVerified 6 Nov 2026

Acumen

InterTradeIreland (cross-border trade and business development body)

Check if you qualifyFree to check · no sign-up · full report £19.95

Worth

Up to £17,250

Deadline

Rolling - no fixed deadline

Type of funding

Grant

Where

Northern Ireland

What it is

A grant towards the cost of a sales person to win customers across the border in Ireland: up to £17,250 for a full-time hire over 12 months, or up to £9,200 for a part-time or contract resource. For established NI manufacturers and tradable-service businesses with at least 18 to 24 months of sales.

Checked 6 Nov 2026 on intertradeireland.com: open on a rolling basis by enquiry, no closing date published. Up to £17,250 (full-time sales hire, 12 months) or £9,200 (part-time, 6 to 12 months), claimed quarterly in arrears. Needs 18 to 24 months of sales history and under 40% of sales already in the cross-border market. Retail, wholesale, hospitality, tourism, primary agriculture and professional services are generally excluded.

Official source

Who can apply

A summary of the main rules, not the full list. InterTradeIreland (cross-border trade and business development body) decides who is eligible, so read their guidance before you apply. The free scan checks these against your own business.

  • An SME with fewer than 250 staff
  • At least 18 months of sales history
  • Business based in Northern Ireland
  • You're taking on a sales person
  • Selling, or planning to sell, into Ireland, with under 40% of sales there now

You cannot apply if

  • Retail, hospitality, primary agriculture and professional services are generally excluded
Read the full rules at the official source

How to apply, in brief

The business submits InterTradeIreland's trade enquiry form or calls 028 3083 4188; the Acumen team then works with the business on the diagnostic and application.

  1. 1Check the eligibility criteria
  2. 2Send an enquiry
  3. 3Complete the export diagnostic
  4. 4Apply, then recruit
  5. 5Claim quarterly

The full guide, with what to do at each step, the official link for it and a draft to work from, is part of the £19.95 report.

Common questions

Is Acumen open for applications?
Yes. It is open for applications, with no fixed deadline.
How much is Acumen worth?
Up to £17,250. It is a grant, and the funder decides what each applicant receives.
Who runs Acumen, and where is it available?
InterTradeIreland (cross-border trade and business development body) runs it. It is available in Northern Ireland.
How do I apply for Acumen?
The business submits InterTradeIreland's trade enquiry form or calls 028 3083 4188; the Acumen team then works with the business on the diagnostic and application.

Does your business qualify?

Eligibility rules are where schemes get fiddly. Gov Owed checks your business against Acumen — and every other UK scheme we track — in about two minutes, free. The £19.95 report then explains exactly why you qualify, drafts your answers and walks you through the real application step by step.

Check my business

No sign-up to scan · keep 100% of anything you win · re-runs free for 12 months

Related schemes

Small Business Rate Relief (Northern Ireland)

Department of Finance NI, administered by Land & Property Services (LPS)

NI Small Business Loan Fund III

Invest Northern Ireland (Access to Finance); fund managed by Ulster Community Finance Ltd with Enterprise Northern Ireland

up to £125,000

AWS Activate (cloud credits)

Amazon Web Services

up to £158,000

Google Ad Grants (nonprofits)

Google for Nonprofits

up to £94,800
Browse all schemes

Information, not financial advice; eligibility is decided by the funder. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Schemes change — confirm details on the official page before applying.