Business and consumer surveys - FPA

The European Commission is launching a call for proposals under the Joint Harmonised EU Programme of Business and Consumer Surveys (BCS), seeking beneficiaries to carry out business and consumer surveys in EU Member States and candidate countries, specifically Albania, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, and Turkey. This initiative aims to gather vital economic data, enabling comparisons of business cycles, which is essential for managing economic and monetary union (EMU).

The initiative involves formalizing cooperation through Framework Partnership Agreements (FPAs) for a period from May 2026 to April 2028. The total budget allocated for this call is €6,100,000, with applications accepted until September 24, 2025. An information session was conducted on May 22, 2025, to guide potential applicants on administrative and financial aspects and the EU Funding & Tenders portal. Resources from this session, including presentations, are available online.

Eligible applicants primarily include research institutes, universities, and survey companies with relevant expertise. The application process is a single-stage submission, and specific documentation includes proposal formats, budget tables, and a call document that outlines various conditions for admissibility, eligible countries, evaluation criteria, and legal and financial frameworks.

The BCS programme has been operational since 1961, emphasizing the need for timely, methodologically rigorous, and comparable economic data collection across various sectors to inform EU policy decisions. Applicants are encouraged to utilize collaboration opportunities and can reach out via an official contact email for assistance regarding the call. Overall, this initiative is set to significantly contribute to rigorous economic surveillance and policy-making within the EU and its neighboring countries.

The European Commission is launching a call for proposals under the Joint Harmonised EU Programme of Business and Consumer Surveys (BCS). The call, titled BCS-2025-FPA, aims to select beneficiaries for carrying out business and consumer surveys in all EU Member States and the candidate countries Albania, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, and Turkey. The BCS program is designed to gather information on the state of the economies in the EU and candidate countries, enabling comparison of their business cycles for economic and monetary union (EMU) management purposes.

The cooperation between the Commission and future beneficiaries will be formalized through Framework Partnership Agreements (FPAs) spanning from May 2026 to April 2028 (2 years). The call is open for submission with a deadline of 24 September 2025, 17:00:00 Brussels time. The total budget allocated to this topic is EUR 6,100,000.

An information session was held on 22 May 2025, to inform potential applicants of the administrative and financial aspects of the call, guide them through the EU Funding & Tenders portal, and demonstrate proposal submission. The recording and supporting documents from the session are available online, including presentations on administrative and financial aspects, guidance on using the Funding & Tenders Portal, a presentation on proposal submission, and a Detailed Budget Table template.

The call conditions include:

1. Admissibility Conditions: Proposal page limit and layout are described in the call document and Part B of the Application Form available in the Submission System.

2. Eligible Countries are described in the call document.

3. Other Eligible Conditions: Not applicable.

4. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion: Not applicable.

5. Evaluation and award: Submission and evaluation processes: Not applicable.

6. Evaluation and award: Award criteria, scoring and thresholds are described in the call document.

7. Evaluation and award: Indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement: Not applicable.

8. Legal and financial set-up of the grants are described in the call document.

The documents related to the call include:

*  BCS List of participating countries

*  BCS Unit cost grid validation procedure

*  Decision on unit costs for BCS personnel costs

*  Call document

*  Application form templates: Standard application form (BCS) Part A and part B available in the Submission System, Detailed Budget Table (BCS), Request for Unit Cost Grid Validation (BCS), Survey Methodology Description (BCS Business), Survey Methodology Description (BCS Consumer)

*  Model Grant Agreements (MGA): BCS FPA, BCS MGA

*  Additional documents: BCS Regulation 1997/2241, EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509, Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment, EU Grants AGA Annotated Model Grant Agreement, Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual, Funding & Tenders Portal Terms and Conditions, Funding & Tenders Portal Privacy Statement.

Applicants can search for partners to collaborate on this topic. LEARs, Account Administrators, or self-registrants can publish partner requests for open and forthcoming topics, as well as any user having an active public Person profile.

To access the Electronic Submission Service, applicants should click on the submission button next to the type of action and the type of model grant agreement that corresponds to their proposal. After confirming their choice, they will be linked to the correct entry point. Existing draft proposals can be accessed by logging into the Funding & Tenders Portal and selecting the My Proposals page.

For help related to this call, applicants can contact ECFIN-BCS-CALL-QUESTIONS@ec.europa.eu. Additional support resources include the Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ, the IT Helpdesk, and the Online Manual.

In summary, this EU call for proposals seeks to establish Framework Partnership Agreements with organizations capable of conducting business and consumer surveys within the EU member states and candidate countries. The goal is to gather economic data to facilitate comparison of business cycles and support economic and monetary union management. The call provides detailed guidelines on eligibility, proposal submission, evaluation criteria, and necessary documentation, with a deadline for submissions set on September 24, 2025. The European Commission provides support through information sessions, online resources, and a dedicated contact email to assist applicants in preparing their proposals.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types are not explicitly stated in the provided text. However, the call is for carrying out business and consumer surveys, suggesting that eligible applicants could include research institutes, universities, survey companies, or other organizations with expertise in conducting such surveys. The recommendation to all relevant actors within the operational and financial management of the grant to attend the info session suggests that a variety of organizations could be eligible.

Funding Type: The funding type is a grant, specifically for Framework Partnership Agreements (FPA).

Consortium Requirement: The text does not explicitly state whether a consortium is required or if single applicants are allowed. However, the partner search announcements suggest that collaboration is possible, but it is not clear if it is mandatory.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The geographic eligibility includes all EU Member States and the candidate countries Albania, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, and Turkey.

Target Sector: The target sector is economics and specifically related to business and consumer surveys. The program aims to gather information on the state of the economies in the EU and candidate countries to compare their business cycles for economic and monetary union (EMU) management purposes.

Mentioned Countries: Albania, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, Turkey, and all EU Member States.

Project Stage: The project stage is not explicitly mentioned, but it appears to be focused on the implementation and execution of established survey methodologies rather than early-stage research or development. The call is for carrying out surveys, implying that the methodology is already defined.

Funding Amount: The total budget for the topic is EUR 6,100,000. The indicative number of grants is not specified in the provided text.

Application Type: The application type is an open call with a single-stage submission process.

Nature of Support: The beneficiaries will receive money in the form of a grant.

Application Stages: The application process is a single-stage process.

Success Rates: The success rates are not mentioned in the provided text.

Co-funding Requirement: The text does not explicitly mention whether co-funding is required.

Summary:

This is a call for proposals from the European Commission under the Joint Harmonised EU Programme of Business and Consumer Surveys (BCS). The call aims to select beneficiaries who will carry out business and consumer surveys in all EU Member States and the candidate countries Albania, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, and Turkey. The goal of the BCS program is to gather data on the economies of these countries to facilitate comparison of their business cycles for economic and monetary union (EMU) management. The selected beneficiaries will enter into Framework Partnership Agreements (FPA) with the Commission for a two-year period from May 2026 to April 2028. The total budget allocated to this call is EUR 6,100,000. The application process is a single-stage submission, with a deadline of September 24, 2025. An information session was held on May 22, 2025, to inform potential applicants about the administrative and financial aspects of the call and to provide guidance on using the EU Funding & Tenders Portal. Applicants are advised to consult the call document and other supporting documents available on the Funding & Tenders Portal for detailed information on eligibility criteria, evaluation process, and application requirements. The call targets organizations with expertise in conducting business and consumer surveys, such as research institutes, universities, and survey companies.