Call for proposals to support the development of innovative medical countermeasures for chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear threats (HERA) - Reusable respiratory personal protective equipment (PPE)

The EU4Health Programme has announced a call for proposals under the EU4H HERA Action Grants 2025, specifically focusing on innovative medical countermeasures for chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) threats, with an emphasis on reusable respiratory personal protective equipment (PPE). The identifier for this specific call is EU4H-2025-HERA-PJ-1-b, which opens on September 4, 2025, and closes on December 4, 2025, at 17:00 Brussels time. A total budget of €1,000,000 is allocated for this topic, which is part of a broader initiative that includes multiple related topics with varying budget amounts.

Eligible applicants are likely to include research institutions, universities, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), large enterprises, and other organizations with the necessary financial and operational capacity to execute the proposed activities. The selection criteria emphasize having stable funding and significant operational capabilities. The application process involves a single-stage submission, meaning proposals must be comprehensive and submitted in one round.

The funding provided under this grant is categorized as direct financial support covering eligible costs, with co-funding expected from applicants ranging from 20% to 40% of total eligible costs, though exceptional cases could see the EU contribution rise to 80%. The proposal aims to enhance the EU's preparedness for health emergencies by developing medical countermeasures that address significant gaps identified in previous public health responses.

The objective of the call is to promote research and development efforts, involving end-users and security practitioners to ensure that developed solutions meet real-world operational requirements and market readiness. The actions supported span advanced research, development, validation, demonstration, and commercialization, aiming to bridge gaps in health security.

Specific eligibility criteria, submission procedures, and application forms are detailed in the call documentation, which includes templates for proposals, model grant agreements, and further resources that guide applicants through the submission process. The initiative seeks to invigorate the EU’s capability to combat CBRN threats and improve access to effective medical countermeasures, addressing both immediate public health needs and innovation sustainability.

This is a call for proposals under the EU4Health Programme (EU4H) named EU4H HERA Action Grants 2025 (EU4H-2025-HERA-PJ). It aims to support the development of innovative medical countermeasures for chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) threats, with a particular focus on reusable respiratory personal protective equipment (PPE) and protection suits. The type of action is EU4H Project Grants (EU4H-PJG), utilizing an EU4H Action Grant Budget-Based [EU4H-AG] model grant agreement.

The call is open for submission with a single-stage deadline model. The opening date for submissions is September 4, 2025, and the deadline for submissions is December 4, 2025, at 17:00:00 Brussels time.

The expected impact of this action is to increase the preparedness of the Union to respond to CBRN threats and improve the availability of medical countermeasures against these threats, advancing one or more medical countermeasures against CBRN threats along the steps towards regulatory approval and market readiness. For PPE, the focus is specifically on reusable respiratory PPE and protection suits.

The expected outcome involves bridging the gap between advanced research, innovation, market access, and deployment through: advanced research and development (R&D) to support the development of medical countermeasures; involving end-users and security practitioners to bring research products closer to market readiness; and supporting research into market readiness or facilitating tech and entrepreneurial skills development.

The objective of the call is to improve the Union’s readiness to respond to intentional health threats, including cross-border ones, by supporting the development of medical countermeasures to biological, chemical, and radio-nuclear agents for which there are currently no or only limited treatment options.

The scope of the action focuses on supporting advanced research on threat-agnostic medical countermeasures against CBRN agents and platform approaches to treat injuries from CBRN agents.

The call document and additional documents provide detailed information on the conditions, rules, and procedures of the call.

The admissibility conditions are described in section 5 of the call document. Proposal page limits and layout are described in Part B of the Application Form available in the Submission System. Eligible countries are described in section 6 of the call document, with other eligible conditions also in section 6. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion criteria are detailed in section 7 of the call document. The submission and evaluation processes are described in section 8 of the call document and the Online Manual. Award criteria, scoring, and thresholds are described in section 9 of the call document. The indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement is described in section 4 of the call document. The legal and financial set-up of the grants is described in section 10 of the call document.

The call document, application form templates (Standard application form (EU4H) and Detailed budget table (EU4H)), and Model Grant Agreements (EU4Health Programme General MGA) are available. Additional documents include the EU4Health Work Programme 2025, EU4Health Regulation 2021/522, EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509, EU Grants AGA Annotated Model Grant Agreement, Guidance on How to handle security-sensitive projects, Guidance note on Potential misuse of research, and STEP Regulation 2024/795.

The budget overview for the year 2025 includes the following topics:

EU4H-2025-HERA-PJ-1-a EU4H-PJG EU4H Project Grants with a budget of 18,000,000 EUR.
EU4H-2025-HERA-PJ-1-b EU4H-PJG EU4H Project Grants with a budget of 1,000,000 EUR.
EU4H-2025-HERA-PJ-1-c EU4H-PJG EU4H Project Grants with a budget of 1,000,000 EUR.
EU4H-2025-HERA-PJ-2 EU4H-PJG EU4H Project Grants with a budget of 10,000,000 EUR.

All topics follow a single-stage submission process, open on September 4, 2025, and closing on December 4, 2025.

There are currently no partner search announcements listed. LEARs, Account Administrators, and self-registrants can publish partner requests for open and forthcoming topics after logging into the Portal, as well as any user having an active public Person profile.

To start the submission process, applicants should access the Electronic Submission Service by clicking the submission button next to the appropriate type of action and model grant agreement. Applicants must confirm their choice, as it cannot be changed in the submission system. Existing draft proposals can be accessed by logging into the Funding & Tenders Portal and selecting the My Proposals page in the My Area section.

For help related to this call, applicants can contact HaDEA-HP-CALLS@ec.europa.eu. Additional resources include the Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ for submission of proposals, the IT Helpdesk for technical questions, and the Online Manual for a step-by-step guide through the Portal processes.

In summary, this EU funding opportunity aims to bolster the European Union's ability to counter CBRN threats by supporting research and development of medical countermeasures, particularly focusing on reusable respiratory PPE and protective suits. It encourages an end-to-end approach, linking research to market readiness, and seeks to improve the EU's overall preparedness for intentional health emergencies. The call provides funding through project grants and outlines specific conditions, eligibility criteria, and application procedures, with detailed guidance available through various documents and support services.

Eligible Applicant Types: The eligible applicant types are not explicitly mentioned in the provided text. However, based on the nature of the EU4Health Programme and the focus on research and development, it can be inferred that eligible applicants may include research institutions, universities, SMEs, large enterprises, and other organizations involved in the development of medical countermeasures. End users and security practitioners are also mentioned as potential participants.

Funding Type: The funding type is primarily a grant, specifically an EU4H Project Grant (EU4H-PJG) under the EU4Health Programme. The type of Model Grant Agreement (MGA) is EU4H Action Grant Budget-Based [EU4H-AG].

Consortium Requirement: The text does not explicitly state whether a single applicant or a consortium is required. Further details would be available in the call document.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The eligible countries are described in section 6 of the call document, but the specific geographic eligibility is not detailed in the provided text. Given that it is an EU4Health Programme, it is likely that EU member states and associated countries are eligible.

Target Sector: The target sector is health, specifically focusing on the development of innovative medical countermeasures for chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) threats. This includes personal protective equipment (PPE) such as reusable respiratory PPE and protection suits. The program also targets research and development, innovation, market access, and entrepreneurial skills development within the health security domain.

Mentioned Countries: No specific countries are mentioned in the provided text. The focus is on the European Union's preparedness and response to cross-border health threats.

Project Stage: The project stage ranges from advanced research and development to market readiness and deployment. The program aims to bridge the gap between research, innovation, and market access, supporting activities from early-stage R&D to tech and entrepreneurial skills development.

Funding Amount: The funding amounts vary depending on the specific topic.
EU4H-2025-HERA-PJ-1-a has a budget of €18,000,000.
EU4H-2025-HERA-PJ-1-b and EU4H-2025-HERA-PJ-1-c each have a budget of €1,000,000.
EU4H-2025-HERA-PJ-2 has a budget of €10,000,000.

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 grants to support their projects.

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 opportunity is a call for proposals under the EU4Health Programme, specifically the EU4H HERA Action Grants 2025. It aims to enhance the European Union's preparedness and response capabilities to chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) threats by supporting the development of innovative medical countermeasures. The call focuses on bridging the gap between advanced research, innovation, market access, and deployment.

The program supports a range of activities, including advanced research and development, involvement of end-users and security practitioners, and the facilitation of tech and entrepreneurial skills development. The objective is to improve the Union’s readiness to respond to intentional health threats, including cross-border ones, by supporting the development of medical countermeasures to CBRN agents for which there are currently no or only limited treatment options.

The scope of the call includes advanced research on threat-agnostic medical countermeasures against CBRN agents and platform approaches to treat injuries from CBRN agents. A specific focus is placed on personal protective equipment (PPE), particularly reusable respiratory PPE and protection suits.

The call is structured into several topics with varying budget allocations: EU4H-2025-HERA-PJ-1-a (€18,000,000), EU4H-2025-HERA-PJ-1-b (€1,000,000), EU4H-2025-HERA-PJ-1-c (€1,000,000), and EU4H-2025-HERA-PJ-2 (€10,000,000). The submission process is single-stage, with the opening date for submissions being September 4, 2025, and the deadline for submissions being December 4, 2025, at 17:00 Brussels time.

Applicants are advised to carefully review the call document and related materials, including the application form templates, model grant agreements, and guidance documents, to ensure their proposals meet the admissibility conditions, eligibility criteria, and evaluation requirements. The electronic submission service is available through the Funding & Tenders Portal, and support is available via email and an IT helpdesk.