ERC Starting Grant

The ERC Starting Grant 2027 supports outstanding Principal Investigators establishing independent research teams across all scientific domains, with the call opening on 22 July 2026 and closing on 14 October 2026. Applicants must hold a PhD defended between 1 January 2017 and 31 December 2026 (ten-year window for the 2027 call), may request documented extensions, must be hosted by a legal entity in an EU Member State or Associated Country and commit at least 50% of their working time to the project. Grants provide up to €1,500,000 for up to 60 months plus up to €1,000,000 additional funding (up to €2,000,000 in specific relocation cases), and applications are submitted electronically via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal with a mandatory host institution support letter.

What it funds

Scope

High‑risk, high‑reward single‑investigator research projects that go beyond what a regular ERC grant can support (larger scale, longer timeframe, higher ambition or scope). The grant is for frontier, interdisciplinary research with the goal of opening new scientific directions or achieving transformational advances.

Funding and duration:Lump sum grants up to €7 000 000 for a minimum of 48 months and up to 84 months. Funding covers direct and indirect costs; applicants must justify the budget request ¹.

1. 1Focus: exceptionally ambitious single‑PI projects that could not be delivered under a regular ERC grant
2. 2Who can apply: any nationality, researchers at any career stage with an outstanding track record; the PI must host the project in an EU Member State or Horizon Europe Associated Country
3. 3Host institution: any legal entity established in an EU Member State or an Associated Country (universities, research organisations, undertakings, international European research organisations)

Footnotes

1. 1See ERC Work Programme 2026 and the ERC Information for Applicants for full rules on eligibility, budget justification and the lump‑sum model ERC Work Programme 2026.

Overview

The ERC Starting Grant supports outstanding early-career Principal Investigators (PIs) who are starting or have recently started their own independent research team or programme and who can demonstrate the potential for research independence and the capacity to carry out ground‑breaking frontier research. The call is published under the ERC Work Programme 2027 and is implemented through the EU Funding & Tenders Portal electronic submission service. Typical opening and deadline dates for the 2027 call were: opening 22 July 2026 and deadline 14 October 2026; the submission model is single-stage and evaluation is two-step (Step 1 written assessment; Step 2 full proposal plus interview). Indicative call budget and expected number of grants in 2027: €594.1 million and around 373 expected grants.

Scope, grant size and PI profile

Objectives:The Starting Grant aims to help excellent Principal Investigators set up or consolidate their independent research team or programme to carry out frontier research. A Starting Grant PI should have already shown evidence of research independence (for example an important publication as main author or a publication without the PhD supervisor). A researcher may be PI of only one ERC Starting Grant during their career. Maximum grant amounts and duration: Starting Grants may be awarded up to a maximum of €1 500 000 for a period of up to 60 months. The maximum EU contribution is reduced pro rata temporis for proposals with shorter duration. Additional funding of up to €1 000 000 can be requested when further eligible costs are necessary to carry out the proposed work. Applicants relocating to the EU or an Associated Country from elsewhere to take up an ERC Starting (or Consolidator/Advanced) Grant may request additional funding up to €2 000 000, subject to the specific conditions described in the ERC Work Programme. Eligibility window: PIs are eligible for Starting Grants if they have defended their PhD in the ten-year period preceding 1 January 2027 (successful PhD defence between 1 January 2017 and 31 December 2026 inclusive). The eligibility period may be extended for well-documented circumstances (maternity/paternity, long-term illness, clinical training, national service, major disasters, seeking asylum, gender-based violence, disability).

Eligible Applicant Types:Individual researchers (Principal Investigators) applying on behalf of a Host Institution. Eligible Host Institutions: any legal entity, public or private, including universities, research organisations, private research centres, undertakings and international European research organisations established in an EU Member State or an Associated Country. Principal Investigators: open to researchers of any nationality, residing anywhere in the world at the time of application, provided the research will be carried out in a Host Institution established in an EU Member State or an Associated Country. Note: additional team members may be hosted by other legal entities, including entities outside the EU/Associated Countries, subject to restrictions in the ERC Work Programme.

Funding Type:Grant. For Starting Grants the funding model is an actual-cost budget-based grant reimbursing eligible direct costs at 100% plus a flat-rate 25% for indirect costs (excluding direct eligible costs for subcontracting and internally invoiced goods and services). The Starting Grant maximum EU contribution is €1 500 000 for up to 60 months (reduced pro rata temporis for shorter duration). Additional funding (separate ceiling) may be requested and is assessed during evaluation.

Consortium Requirement:Single-applicant scheme (the application is submitted by the Principal Investigator on behalf of a single Host Institution). The Host Institution is the applicant legal entity/beneficiary; additional team members can be hosted by other institutions where they add scientific value, but the grant is not a multi-beneficiary consortium in the ERC Starting Grant scheme.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility):Host Institutions must be established in an EU Member State or an Associated Country. Principal Investigators may be of any nationality and may reside anywhere in the world at the time of application; PIs funded by ERC must carry out their research in an EU Member State or Associated Country. Note: special provisions and additional funding apply to Principal Investigators relocating to the EU/Associated Countries from non-associated third countries.

Target Sector:All research fields and disciplines are eligible. ERC Starting Grants are bottom-up and support frontier research across Physical Sciences & Engineering, Life Sciences, Social Sciences & Humanities and interdisciplinary work.

Mentioned Countries:The call applies to Host Institutions established in EU Member States and Horizon Europe Associated Countries (no specific country list required in the call text; the Work Programme and portal list Associated Countries). Principal Investigators may be based anywhere worldwide at the time of application.

Project Stage:Frontier research at the individual PI-led team level. Expected maturity: early independent research programme/team-level research — emphasis on ambitious, high-risk, high-gain fundamental or exploratory research rather than near-market development. Projects may include experimental, theoretical or computational work; fieldwork outside the EU or Associated Countries is allowed where essential to the scientific objectives.

Funding Amount:Starting Grants: up to €1 500 000 for up to 60 months (pro rata for shorter duration). Additional funding up to €1 000 000 can be requested; PIs relocating to the EU/Associated Countries from elsewhere may request up to €2 000 000 in additional funding under specific conditions. Call-level indicative budget for the 2027 Starting Grant call: approximately €594.1 million and an estimated 373 grants (information from the 2027 Work Programme).

Application Type:Open competitive call published in the ERC Work Programme; submission through the EU Funding & Tenders Portal electronic submission service. Single-stage online proposal submission (one complete proposal) within fixed opening and closing dates (not rolling).

Nature of Support:Financial support (grant funding). ERC Starting Grants reimburse eligible project costs (actual costs funding model) and are paid under a grant agreement. There is no routine in-kind-only award: the primary instrument is monetary support to the Host Institution/beneficiary covering the project activities.

Application Stages:Two-step peer-review evaluation: Step 1 evaluates Part I of the Scientific Proposal (up to 5 pages) plus CV and Track Record; proposals judged of sufficient quality (A-invited up to panel cut-off) proceed to Step 2. Step 2 evaluates the full proposal (Parts I and II, resources, budget, equipment table) and includes an interview / presentation by the PI. Panels produce ranked lists and recommend funding in rank order subject to available budget.

Success Rates:Typical success rates vary by panel and year; the 2027 Starting Grant indicative budget envisaged approximately 373 grants — absolute success rate depends on total number of eligible submissions in the call and varies by panel. Panels are allocated budget proportionally so success rates are balanced across panels.

Co-funding Requirement:No mandatory co-funding requirement from the applicant for the ERC Starting Grant itself. Host Institutions must provide a Host Institution Support Letter confirming commitment and conditions for the PI. Any costs not charged to the ERC grant must be clearly identified in the proposal budget section as covered by other sources.

Templates and Application Structure:Main templates and form structure to be used (provided in the submission system): Administrative form Part A: online (Part A includes the Part A Budget table, Ethics table, Security table and the Resources text boxes); Part B1 (downloadable template) contains Part I of the Scientific Proposal (max 5 pages), CV and Track Record (max 4 pages) and Part B2 (downloadable template) contains Part II of the Scientific Proposal (max 7 pages) and Funding ID information. Equipment table: Excel template must be uploaded (even if blank if no equipment is requested). Host Institution Support Letter: provided template must be completed, signed and uploaded. Page limits are strict (Part I 5 pages; Part II 7 pages; CV/Track Record 4 pages; Resources and budget entered in Part A online; equipment table separate). All documents must follow the font/layout rules specified in the templates and be uploaded as PDF (equipment table in Excel).

1. 1Application content required: Part A (online administrative form + budget table + Resources text boxes + Ethics table + Security table + declarations), Part B1 (Part I scientific proposal and CV/Track Record), Part B2 (Part II scientific proposal), Host Institution Support Letter, equipment table, any ethics/security supporting documents.
2. 2Page limits: Part I of the Scientific Proposal: up to 5 pages; Part II of the Scientific Proposal: up to 7 pages; CV and Track Record: up to 4 pages; Resources text boxes limited by character counts in the online form. References and Funding ID do not count towards page limits.
3. 3Budget presentation: Use the online budget table (whole Euros); provide a concise justification in the Resources text boxes; enter any request for additional funding in the budget and justify it in the additional funding explanation field; equipment must be detailed in the Excel equipment table and depreciation schedules.

Evaluation Criterion and Review Focus:Excellence is the sole evaluation criterion. Panels evaluate two main elements: (1) Research Project — ground-breaking nature and ambition, clarity of objectives, scientific approach, methodology, work plan, feasibility, risk identification and mitigation, and adequacy of resources; and (2) Principal Investigator — intellectual capacity, creativity, track record relevant to the project and ability to carry out ambitious frontier research. Step 1 assesses Part I and the CV/Track Record to select proposals to pass to Step 2. Step 2 assesses the full proposal and includes an interview.

Ethics, Security and Research Integrity:All proposals are subject to ethics and security checks. Applicants must complete an ethics issues table and an ethics self-assessment in Part A and upload supporting documents where available. Proposals raising serious or complex ethics issues will undergo an ethics assessment; poorly addressed ethics issues may block funding. Proposals must comply with EU and national legal and ethical rules. Applicants must complete the security issues table where relevant; selected proposals may require a security appraisal. Breaches of research integrity (fabrication, falsification, plagiarism or attempts to interfere with the peer review) can lead to rejection and restrictions on future applications.

Operational & Financial Checks:If a proposal is recommended for funding, ERCEA carries out administrative, legal and financial verifications of the applicant legal entity (including financial capacity checks where required). The Host Institution's Gender Equality Plan or equivalent (if applicable per eligibility rules) must be in place prior to grant signature for those legal entities concerned. Grant preparation addresses administrative conditions and any ethics/security conditions identified by the review.

• Submission channel: EU Funding & Tenders Portal electronic submission service only (except in exceptional, justified cases authorised by ERCEA).
• Language: any official EU language permitted; English is strongly recommended as evaluation working language. If a proposal is submitted in another EU language, an English translation of the abstract must be included and ERCEA may provide machine translation for reviewers.
• Confidentiality: the evaluation process and reviewer identities are confidential. Applicants must not contact reviewers.

Additional practical information:Applicants should register early on the Portal, use the official Part B templates and the equipment Excel template provided in the submission system, allow time for the host institution to supply and sign the Host Institution Support Letter, and submit well in advance of the deadline to avoid technical problems. The online form validates required fields and warns of missing information; mandatory missing fields must be corrected before submission.

How the ERC Plus Grant differs from regular ERC grants

ERC Plus Grants are designed to support exceptionally ambitious projects that could not be carried out with a regular ERC grant. Applicants must demonstrate why the proposed project requires the larger scale or scope requested in the Plus format. The PI will be evaluated in the context of peers at a comparable career stage; past achievements will be weighted more heavily than for other ERC grants. ERC Plus projects are judged against the same excellence criterion, but panels will expressly evaluate whether the aims and scale of the proposal go beyond what is achievable with standard START/COG/ADG grants.

Templates: Application structure and page limits:Administrative Part A (online): General data; Budget table and Section C Resources; Ethics table and security table; Time commitment and declarations. Part B1 (uploadable PDF): Part I of the Scientific Proposal (5 pages) and Curriculum Vitae and Track Record (4 pages). Part B2 (uploadable PDF): Part II of the Scientific Proposal (7 pages). Equipment table (Excel template) must be uploaded. Host Institution Support Letter (signed PDF) must be uploaded. References and Funding ID do not count towards page limits. Exact templates and the equipment Excel file are available in the submission system.

Apply through the Funding & Tenders Portal submission tool. Read the ERC Work Programme and the Information for Applicants document for the specific call. National Contact Points (ERC NCPs) provide practical assistance in many countries. For call queries contact the call-specific mailbox indicated on the call page.

Summary — What is ERC Plus about?

The ERC Plus Grant is an ERC main frontier research grant targeted at exceptional individual Principal Investigators proposing projects that cannot be delivered within the scope, timescale or budget of a standard ERC grant. It funds single-PI-led teams hosted by a single beneficiary established in an EU Member State or an Associated Country. The scheme is open to outstanding researchers at any career stage, of any nationality. Projects should be ambitious, high-risk and potentially transformative at the frontiers of knowledge; applicants must justify why the ERC Plus format (larger budget and longer duration up to a maximum of €7 million and up to seven years) is needed to achieve the proposed scientific transformation. Submissions are made through the EU Funding & Tenders Portal using the official Part A/B templates and the equipment table. The ERC’s evaluation is built around competitive peer review by interdisciplinary panels, with excellence as the sole evaluation criterion and a two-step evaluation including an interview. Ethics, security and research integrity safeguards apply throughout the process.

The ERC Starting Grant 2027 supports excellent Principal Investigators who are starting or have recently started an independent research team or programme, and the call opened on 22 July 2026 with a deadline of 14 October 2026.[3][8]

Call identifier

ERC-2027-STG:This is the official topic code used on the EU Funding and Tenders Portal.

What the funding is for

The scheme is designed to back frontier research and research independence, and it is open across scientific domains, including science, engineering, the humanities and social sciences.[3][4]

Who can apply

• Principal Investigators must hold a PhD or equivalent doctoral degree at the call deadline.[3]
• For the 2027 call, eligibility is based on a PhD defence between 1 January 2017 and 31 December 2026 inclusive, which corresponds to the 10 year window counted from 1 January 2027.[2][3]
• Researchers who have already held a Starting Grant or a Consolidator Grant before cannot apply again for the same grant type, and ERC states that a researcher may be the Principal Investigator of only one ERC Starting Grant in their career.[2][12]
• The eligibility window can be extended in duly documented circumstances or events, including cases such as parental leave or clinical training.[2][3]
• The call is open to researchers of any nationality, provided they are hosted by a legal entity in an EU Member State or an Associated Country.[6][19][3]
• Principal Investigators should devote at least 50 percent of their working time to the ERC project and at least 50 percent of their total working time in an EU Member State or Associated Country while carrying out the research.[14]

Funding available

A secondary summary reports a call budget of €594.1 million and around 373 grants, but that figure was not visible in the official excerpt verified here.[7]

Application and submission requirements

Proposals must be submitted electronically before the deadline, and they may be written in any official EU language, although English is strongly advised for efficiency.[3]

The host institution must provide a binding statement of support at the time of application, and proposals without this letter may be declared inadmissible.[3]

The proposal must also comply with the requirements set out in the call documents and the ERC Work Programme 2027.[3]

Timing and process notes

The official call opening date is 22 July 2026 and the deadline is 14 October 2026.[8]

A secondary webinar summary reports a two step evaluation process, with Step 1 results expected on 11 May 2027, Step 2 results on 24 August 2027, and grant agreement signature on 22 December 2027, but these dates were not verified in the official excerpt used here.[7]

What applicants should pay attention to

• Demonstrating research independence is central to the scheme, so applicants should present a strong publication record and a convincing case for leading their own programme.[3][20]
• Any request for additional funding should be carefully justified in the proposal because it is evaluated together with the main grant request.[1][3]
• If an applicant may rely on an eligibility extension, the relevant documentation should be prepared early because extensions are accepted only in well documented cases.[2][3]
• Host institution support is mandatory, so applicants should secure an eligible institution that can host the project and sign the required support statement.[3][14]