Kitakyushu City's Business Succession and M&A Subsidy: Up to JPY 500,000, Rolling Applications Until February 26, 2027The city pays up to half of expert fees when a company is handed to a successor
Kitakyushu City accepts applications on a rolling basis from May 1, 2026 to February 26, 2027 for the FY2026 Business Succession and M&A Promotion Subsidy, which covers part of what small and medium-sized businesses in the city pay to experts for succession or M&A. The subsidy is up to one-half of eligible costs, capped at JPY 500,000 per applicant, and only the selling (handing-over) side qualifies. Acceptance may end during the year if the budget runs out.
- ○Applies: You are a small or medium-sized business handing over (selling) the company
- ○Applies: Your head office and sites are in the city and the successor will continue the business in the city
- ×Does not apply: You have unpaid city taxes
- ×Does not apply: You are applying as the buyer (the side taking over)
Key points
- Eligible: small and medium-sized businesses under the SME Basic Act with their head office and business sites in Kitakyushu, where the successor plans to continue the business in the city. Requirements include no unpaid city taxes and not being a deemed large enterprise. Only the handing-over side qualifies
- Eligible costs: business analysis and improvement consulting, business valuation, advice on inheritance and asset succession, and drafting a succession plan. For M&A: intermediary and FA fees and valuation fees
- Consumption tax, transfer fees, and retainer or advisory fees are excluded
- Subsidy rate: up to one-half of eligible costs (fractions under JPY 1,000 dropped), capped at JPY 500,000 per applicant
- Applications accepted on a rolling basis from May 1, 2026 to February 26, 2027. Acceptance may end during the year depending on the budget
What to do in practice
- Before hiring an expert, check the city's guide for eligible cost types and application steps
- Keep quotes, contracts and other documents that support the costs
- Confirm in advance with your advisers how the subsidy is treated for accounting and tax
When you hand a company to a child or someone else, or sell it to another company, you pay experts for advice. Kitakyushu City helps with up to half of that cost, at most JPY 500,000. You can apply any time until February 26 next year, but it ends early if the money runs out.
- Payment to experts (eligible costs)
- JPY 1,200,000
- One-half of that
- JPY 600,000
- Cap
- JPY 500,000
- Subsidy amount
- JPY 500,000
Points
- Up to half of the expert fees, at most JPY 500,000, can be covered
- The side handing over the company can apply
- You can apply any time, but it ends when the budget runs out
What the words mean
- Business succession
- Handing a company's work and management to the next person
- M&A
- Selling a company to another company, or combining companies
- City of Kitakyushu: Kitakyushu City: FY2026 Business Succession and M&A Promotion Subsidy (applications open May 1)
This article summarizes and explains materials published by government agencies and is not advice on any individual case. Rules can change, so for actual procedures and decisions always check the latest original materials and consult professionals such as tax accountants or labor and social security attorneys. English, Simplified Chinese and Traditional Chinese versions are translations prepared from the Japanese articles for convenience. If anything differs, the Japanese text and the original source take precedence.