Raising awareness of and building capacity for the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights

This call CERV-2026 supports awareness raising and capacity building on the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights under the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values (CERV) programme. The topic has an indicative budget of €9,500,000, a minimum grant request of €75,000, a typical funding rate of 90% of eligible costs, and project durations normally between 12 and 24 months with activities taking place in EU Member States. Lead applicants must be private non-profit legal entities established in an EU Member State while co-applicants may include public or private bodies; proposals must be submitted electronically via the Funding & Tenders Portal by 15 September 2026 at 17:00 CET. Proposals are evaluated on Relevance (40 points, min 25), Quality (40) and Impact (20) with an overall pass threshold of 70, and must include Part A, Part B (max 45 pages), Part C and required annexes such as CVs and supporting documents.

Call at a glance

Essential facts

Programme:Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values (CERV). Call ID: CERV-2026. Deadline: 15 September 2026, 17:00 Brussels time. Planned opening: 20 May 2026. Type of action: CERV Project Grants (budget-based action grants).

What it funds:Projects that raise awareness of and build capacity to apply the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, including training, mutual learning, awareness-raising, development of tools/databases, support on remedies and strategic litigation, cooperation with national/regional/local authorities and other relevant actors ¹.

Who can apply:Lead applicants: private non-profit legal entities. Co-applicants: public or private bodies (for-profit organisations only in partnership with non-profit lead). Eligible participants must be formally established in eligible countries (EU Member States). Associated partners, subcontractors and affiliated entities may participate under the rules in the call document.

1. 1Minimum requested EU grant: €75 000
2. 2Project duration: typically 12 to 24 months
3. 3Financial & operational capacity checks apply; legal entity validation required
4. 4Activities must take place in eligible countries (Member States)

Budget (indicative):Total indicative call budget €26 000 000; budget allocated to this topic (CHARTER) €9 500 000.

Evaluation timetable:evaluation Oct 2026–Feb 2027; information to applicants March 2027; grant signature expected June 2027. Submit applications electronically via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal using the CERV application form and annexes before the deadline. Read the Call document and templates for full admissibility, eligibility, cost rules and annex requirements ¹.

Footnotes

1. 1Call document and templates available on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal topic page: Call fiche and documents.

Call and Topic

Call title:Call for proposals to support the application of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights (CERV-2026-CHAR-LITI). Topic: Raising awareness of and building capacity for the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights CERV-2026. Programme: Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values (CERV). Type of action: CERV Project Grants (CERV-PJG). Type of Model Grant Agreement: CERV Action Grant Budget-Based (CERV-AG). Deadline (submission): 15 September 2026 at 17:00 Brussels time. Planned opening date: 20 May 2026. Deadline model: single-stage. Submission: electronic via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal Submission System.

Primary objective:Strengthen application of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights by raising awareness and building capacity of relevant actors (primarily civil society organisations and human rights defenders, but potentially involving national, regional and local authorities as co-applicants) on the Charter’s content, scope of application and remedies available in cases of Charter breaches.

Key Administrative Facts

1. 1Total indicative call budget: €26,000,000 (Topic allocation: €9,500,000 for CERV-2026; €16,500,000 for the companion topic CERV-2026-CHAR-LITI-CIVIC).
2. 2Project duration: normally 12 to 24 months (extensions possible by amendment with justification).
3. 3Minimum requested grant amount: €75,000 (the requested EU grant cannot be lower).
4. 4Funding rate: 90% (typical for this call; the exact funding rate and other parameters will be fixed in the Grant Agreement Data Sheet).
5. 5Form of grant: budget-based mixed actual cost grant (actual costs, with unit cost and flat-rate elements).
6. 6Call publication: 29 April 2026. Evaluation: Oct 2026 to Feb 2027. Information to applicants: March 2027. Grant signature: June 2027.

Scope, Themes and Eligible Activities

Projects under this topic must address capacity building and awareness raising needs on the EU Charter. Applicants must focus on at least one of: the Charter in general and/or the content of a specific right or multiple rights enshrined in the Charter; the Charter’s scope of application (Article 51 — applicability to Member States when implementing EU law); remedies available where Charter rights are breached. The call emphasises the need to promote understanding of when the Charter applies relative to international human rights instruments and the role of Court of Justice of the EU case law.

Examples of eligible activities:Awareness-raising and capacity building; training and train-the-trainer programmes for professionals (lawyers, legal advisers, communicators, policy/advocacy advisers, national/regional/local authority professionals); mutual learning and exchange of good practices; development of operational guidance and learning tools; development of methods for fundamental-rights impact assessments; analytical activities (including sex-disaggregated data collection and databases of jurisprudence); communication and dissemination about rights and redress mechanisms; facilitating cooperation between CSOs and institutions (NHRIs, equality bodies, ombuds institutions, Member State authorities).

The call also expects mainstreaming of fundamental rights across project design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation (including gender equality and non-discrimination, children’s rights, right to effective remedy and fair trial). Proposals should apply a Do No Harm approach and include indicators to measure contribution to mainstreamed rights.

Who Can Apply and Geographic Scope

Lead applicants (coordinator):non-profit legal entities (private bodies). Co-applicants: private or public legal entities, non-profit or for-profit; for-profit organisations may apply only in partnership with private non-profit organisations. Natural persons are NOT eligible except self-employed persons/sole traders (where company has no separate legal personality). International organisations are eligible. EU bodies (except Commission Joint Research Centre) are not eligible. Programme Contact Points may be eligible under cost-separation conditions. Entities must be formally established in eligible countries; activities must take place in eligible countries (EU Member States).

Eligible countries and target geography:Primarily EU Member States (including overseas countries and territories where applicable). The call targets activities in EU Member States; transnational projects are particularly encouraged. Projects can be national or transnational. See Call document Section 6 for the full list of eligible countries and specific details on international participation and international organisations.

Eligible Applicant Types

Eligible applicant types based on the call text and programme rules:

1. 1Civil society organisations (nonprofit) — primary target and encouraged coordinators
2. 2Human rights defenders and NGOs (nonprofit)
3. 3National, regional and local authorities (public bodies) — can be partners/co-applicants; public bodies may be coordinators if they are private non-profit where required by call rules
4. 4National Human Rights Institutions, equality bodies, ombuds institutions (public or independent bodies)
5. 5Universities, research institutes and academic centres (nonprofit/legal entities) — for research/analysis components
6. 6Legal actors, practitioners and legal NGOs engaged in strategic litigation
7. 7For-profit entities (private companies) — only as co-applicants in partnership with private non-profit organisations
8. 8International organisations — eligible under specific rules
9. 9Programme Contact Points (subject to demonstrated cost separation)

Consortium Requirements and Roles

Consortium composition:the call allows mono-beneficiary (single) or multi-beneficiary (consortium) projects. There is no mandatory minimum number of partners specified for this topic, but transnational projects are encouraged and involving stakeholders across levels (CSOs, NHRIs, equality bodies, ombuds institutions, and authorities) is recommended. Lead applicant cannot submit more than one application across all topics under the call; multiple submissions by same lead applicant lead to rejection of all proposals. Beneficiaries and affiliated entities must be registered in the Participant Register (PIC) and undergo legal entity validation.

Consortium requirement:Consortium: single or consortium allowed. The call is single-stage; coordinator may be single organisation or lead of multi-beneficiary consortium. Transnational multi-partner projects encouraged but not mandated.

Funding Type and Nature of Support

Primary financial mechanism:grant (action grant). The grant is budget-based mixed actual cost (reimbursement of eligible actual costs and use of authorised unit costs, flat-rates or pre-fixed elements as specified in the Grant Agreement). Financial support to third parties is explicitly not allowed for this topic unless the Call document states otherwise; across the CERV programme financial support to third parties is possible only when specifically authorised.

Nature of support to beneficiaries:Monetary support (EU grant) covering eligible costs. Projects must declare eligible direct and indirect costs; non-monetary services (training, mutual learning platforms, analytical outputs) are delivered by the beneficiaries to target groups and stakeholders as part of project activities.

Funding Amount and Budget Details

Indicative total call budget:€26,000,000. Topic-specific budget for CERV-2026: €9,500,000. There is no explicit per-project maximum grant ceiling set in the scraped text; the only minimum EU grant request is €75,000. The Grant Agreement will set the maximum grant amount per selected project. Funding rate mentioned for CERV grants in the call doc: 90% of eligible costs (to be confirmed in the Grant Agreement Data Sheet). Indirect costs flat-rate: 7% of eligible direct costs (A-D, except volunteers and exempted categories). Eligible budget categories include personnel (employees; natural persons; SME owners; volunteers), subcontracting, travel and subsistence (unit or actual), equipment (depreciation), other goods/services, and indirect costs.

Project Stage and Expected Maturity

Expected project maturity:implementation/operational stage. Projects should be ready to design, deliver and evaluate capacity-building, awareness-raising, mutual learning, training, legal strategy support and monitoring activities. The call is not for basic research only; it funds practical capacity-building, awareness and applied analytical activities with clear deliverables, indicators and impact.

Application Process and Timeline

Application is submitted through a single-stage open call (electronic submission only) via the Funding & Tenders Portal Submission System. Use the mandatory Application Form: Part A completed online; Part B (technical description) downloaded, completed and uploaded as a PDF; Part C KPI tool filled online; required annexes uploaded as PDFs. Page limit for Part B: maximum 45 pages (evaluators will disregard excess pages). Templates, standard application forms and model grant agreements are available in the Submission System and Reference Documents. Applicant must be registered in the Participant Register and validated prior to submission.

1. 1Planned opening date: 20 May 2026
2. 2Submission deadline: 15 September 2026, 17:00 CET (Brussels)
3. 3Evaluation period: October 2026 – February 2027
4. 4Information to applicants: March 2027
5. 5Grant agreement signature: June 2027

Evaluation, Award Criteria and Success Metrics

Evaluation:one-stage submission and one-step evaluation by an evaluation committee assisted by independent experts. After admissibility and eligibility checks, proposals are scored on award criteria described in the Call document. Ranking used to select proposals up to the available budget; tie-breaking rules apply (priority order by Relevance, then Quality, then Impact).

Award criteria and scoring:Relevance (40 points; minimum 25/40), Quality (40 points), Impact (20 points). Overall pass threshold: 70 points. Projects must meet the Relevance threshold and overall threshold to be eligible for funding.

Relevance considers alignment with call priorities, needs analysis, target groups and EU added value; Quality examines methodology, workplan, management, budget and feasibility; Impact evaluates long-term results, dissemination, sustainability and multiplier potential.

Evaluation & Selection Process Stages

1. 1Admissibility checks: timely submission, correct forms and page limits.
2. 2Eligibility checks: applicant and activity eligibility, participant registration and validation.
3. 3Operational & financial capacity checks (coordinator and possibly other participants).
4. 4Merit review by evaluators against award criteria (Relevance, Quality, Impact).
5. 5Ranking of proposals per topic and budget envelope; application of tie-break rules.
6. 6Information to applicants and invitations for grant preparation for successful proposals.
7. 7Legal and financial checks (legal entity validation, financial capacity, exclusion checks) before signature of the Grant Agreement.

Number of evaluation stages:1 (single-stage submission with single-step evaluation), followed by grant preparation dialogue with the Agency for successful proposals.

Success Rates and Competitiveness

The Call document does not provide a historical success rate for this specific 2026 topic. Success rate will depend on number and quality of proposals received. The call’s available budget for this topic is €9.5 million; minimum project size €75,000. Applicants should plan realistic budgets and ensure high relevance, quality and impact to reach thresholds and obtain funding.

Financial and Operational Capacity Requirements

Applicants must demonstrate stable and sufficient financial capacity to implement the project (financial statements, profit and loss, balance sheet, audit report for last closed financial year) unless exempt (public bodies or if requested grant is ≤ €60,000). Operational capacity must be demonstrated via CVs of core team, activity reports, list of previous projects and relevant experience. New organisations (<12 months) can be considered but are exempt from some historical documentation requirements.

Exclusion and ethics checks:Standard exclusion grounds and integrity checks apply (bankruptcy, serious misconduct, fraud, money laundering, terrorist financing, breaches of social/tax obligations, etc.). Projects must comply with ethical standards, EU values (Article 2 TEU and Article 21 Charter), and data protection (GDPR). Private entities implementing activities involving children must provide a Child Protection Policy; public entities must provide a declaration of honour or equivalent.

Reporting, Payments and Financial Management

Grant Agreement will fix detailed reporting schedule, payment modalities and the Data Sheet parameters. Standard arrangements: prefinancing (normally up to 80% of maximum grant amount), periodic reporting and final payment. Interim/final payments subject to approval of periodic reports and certificates where required. Beneficiaries must keep records and supporting documentation for the retention period specified in the Grant Agreement (normally 5 years).

Eligible cost rules and categories:Eligible cost categories: A personnel (employees, natural persons under direct contract, seconded persons, SME owners unit costs, volunteers unit costs), B subcontracting, C purchases (travel & subsistence — unit or actual; equipment depreciation; other goods, works and services), E indirect costs (flat-rate 7% of eligible direct costs A-D excluding volunteers and exempted categories). VAT rules: non-deductible/non-refundable VAT is eligible except VAT of public bodies acting as public authority.

Application Templates and Form Structure

Applicants must use the Application Form (CERV) available in the Submission System. The Form comprises Part A (administrative forms filled online), Part B (technical description — downloadable template to be completed and re-uploaded as PDF; max 45 pages), and Part C (KPI tool online). Required annexes include CVs of key staff, activity reports (last year) or list of previous projects (last 4 years), child protection policy or declaration where relevant, and other supporting documents requested during submission and validation.

Part B structure (technical description) — recommended outline:Cover page and project summary; 1. Relevance: background, needs analysis, objectives, complementarity with other actions and EU added value; 2. Quality: concept & methodology, consortium set-up, project team and staff, management and monitoring & evaluation, risk management, cost-effectiveness; 3. Impact: expected results, dissemination & visibility, sustainability; 4. Workplan and work packages: tasks, deliverables, milestones, timing, resources; 5. Other: ethics, EU values, security; 6. Declarations. Annexes: CVs, activity reports, list of previous projects, detailed budget tables if required (for lump sum grants), supporting letters (e.g. letters of support).

Co-funding and Revenues

Co-funding:the call does not require a fixed co-funding percentage; however, the requested EU grant cannot be lower than €75,000. Project budgets should be balanced; applicants must show sufficient other resources to implement the project (own contribution, income generated by the action, or financial contributions from third parties). Revenues generated by the action must be declared and the no-profit rule applies (grants must not produce profit; profit will be deducted from final grant amounts where applicable).

Application Stages and Number of Steps

Application and selection stages:1) submission (single-stage), 2) admissibility & eligibility checks, 3) evaluation by experts, 4) ranking and selection, 5) information to applicants, 6) grant preparation and legal/financial validation, 7) signature of Grant Agreement. For applicants: one formal submission stage plus evaluation and grant preparation — effectively 2 principal stages (submission → evaluation → grant preparation/award).

Success Rate

The Call document does not provide historical success rates for this specific topic. Success probability depends on the number and quality of applications, available budget (€9,500,000 for this topic) and proposal size. Applicants should design strong relevance, high-quality methodology and clear impact to maximise chance of selection.

Co-funding Requirement

There is no mandatory fixed co-funding rate stated in the scraped call text. Projects must ensure a balanced project budget and sufficient other resources to implement the project. For specific rules on co-financing and calculation of contributions, follow the Grant Agreement Data Sheet and Annex 2 during grant preparation.

Templates and Application Guidance

Mandatory forms and templates are available in the Submission System. Key templates:Standard application form (CERV) Part B template, CV template, list-of-previous-projects template, declaration of honour templates, child protection policy template guidance (Keeping Children Safe standards), KPI tool (Part C). Applicants must use the templates provided inside the Submission System (not the example documents on the Topic page).

1. 1Part A (online): Administrative details, participant PICs, summarised budget, declarations.
2. 2Part B (PDF upload): Technical description — structured as per template (max 45 pages).
3. 3Part C (online): KPI tool — complete all sections.
4. 4Annexes: CVs (standard), activity reports (last year) or list of previous projects (last 4 years), child protection policy or declaration (if activities involve children), letters of support (if applicable).

Other Important Practical Requirements and Recommendations

Register early in the Participant Register and obtain PIC codes for all beneficiaries and affiliated entities. Validate legal entities and LEAR appointments prior to submission to avoid last-minute technical issues. Ensure compliance with ethics, data protection and child safeguarding rules. Do not submit partial or paper applications. Keep application concise and within formatting rules (A4, Arial ≥9, 15 mm margins). Applicants may use generative AI tools but must validate and attest to accuracy and list tools used in the application. Consult National Contact Points for country-specific support and EACEA-CERV@ec.europa.eu for non-IT questions (include call reference CERV-2026-CHAR-LITI).

Mentioned Countries and Geographic References

Explicit country references in the call text:EU Member States (general). The call is designed for projects implemented in EU Member States; transnational partnerships across Member States are encouraged. National Contact Points exist across Member States and listed in CERV documentation. No specific Member State lists are mandated for eligibility beyond being established in eligible countries described in Section 6 of the Call document.

Project Impact Expectations

Expected results for CERV-2026 include increased awareness and capacity among CSOs, NHRIs, equality bodies, ombuds institutions and authorities to apply the Charter; improved prevention and redress of fundamental rights breaches; improved cooperation among actors; improved knowledge of remedies under national and EU law; better skills for strategic litigation and strategic use of the Charter.

Risks, Ethics and EU Values

Applicants must address possible ethical issues and demonstrate compliance with EU values (Article 2 TEU and Article 21 Charter). Proposals must mainstream gender equality and non-discrimination, include sex-disaggregated data where relevant, and submit child protection policies when activities involve children. Projects must assess and mitigate any unintended negative effects on groups at risk of discrimination.

Contact and Support

IT helpdesk for Portal technical matters. Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual for step-by-step submission guidance. For non-IT questions contact the CERV National Contact Point of your country (if established) or otherwise EACEA-CERV@ec.europa.eu. Topic Q&A on the Portal will be used to publish call-specific answers and updates after call opening.

Summary: What is this Opportunity About?

This CERV call topic CERV-2026 funds projects that raise awareness of and build capacity for the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights across relevant actors in EU Member States. It targets civil society organisations and human rights defenders primarily, while encouraging partnerships with national, regional and local authorities, equality bodies, ombuds institutions and National Human Rights Institutions. Funded activities should focus on improving knowledge of Charter rights, clarifying the Charter’s scope of application (notably Article 51), and informing about remedies and enforcement mechanisms under national and EU law. Projects must be practical and action-oriented — training, mutual learning, technical guidance, databases, analytical work and communication to increase use of the Charter in practice. Transnational projects are encouraged. The call is part of the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values programme, has an indicative allocation of €9.5 million for this topic, uses budget-based action grants with a typical funding rate of 90%, and follows the EU Funding & Tenders Portal single-stage submission process. Applicants must follow strict eligibility, ethics, data protection and financial rules set out in the Call document and the Model Grant Agreement. Successful applicants will be invited to grant preparation and must pass legal and financial validation before signing the Grant Agreement and starting the project.

Useful links (call documentation and templates are published on the Funding & Tenders Portal): Call document, Application form templates (Part B), Standard application form (CERV), CERV Model Grant Agreement, CERV Work Programmes, CERV Regulation 2021/692, 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. See the Topic page on the Funding & Tenders Portal for the official call fiche and to submit proposals Funding & Tenders Portal - Topic page.

Applicants should consult the Call document for full details (eligibility, admissibility, scoring, award criteria, budget rules, certificates, prefinancing guarantee conditions, specific annexes) and prepare their application using the mandatory templates inside the Submission System.

For further details on the CERV programme and National Contact Points see the CERV programme pages on the European Commission website and the list of CERV National Contact Points published by the Commission CERV programme overview CERV topic page on the Portal. ¹

Footnotes

1. 1Primary call documentation and templates are hosted on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal. The applicant should always consult the official call document and submission templates in the Portal Submission System before preparing and submitting their proposal.

This call for proposals supports the application of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights through awareness raising and capacity building initiatives. The opportunity is part of the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values (CERV) Programme, which is the largest EU fund dedicated to civil society for promoting and protecting fundamental rights. The call aims to strengthen the knowledge and capacity of civil society organisations, human rights defenders, and other key actors to apply the Charter effectively and understand when and how it applies in practice.

Call Identification and Timeline

Call Reference:CERV-2026

Opening Date:20 May 2026

Submission Deadline:15 September 2026 at 17:00 CET (Brussels time)

Evaluation Period:October 2026 to February 2027

Grant Agreement Signature:June 2027

Funding Budget

Total Available Budget:€9,500,000 for this specific topic CERV-2026. The overall call budget across both topics is €26,000,000.

Minimum Grant Request:€75,000

Maximum Grant Amount:No upper limit specified

Funding Rate:90% of eligible costs

Eligible Applicants

Lead applicants must be non-profit legal entities (private bodies) formally established in an EU Member State. Co-applicants may be non-profit or for-profit legal entities (public or private bodies), though for-profit organisations may only apply in partnership with private non-profit organisations. Natural persons are not eligible except self-employed sole traders. EU bodies (except the Joint Research Centre) are not eligible. International organisations are eligible.

Consortium Requirements:Projects may be national or transnational. Transnational projects are particularly encouraged. The lead applicant (coordinator) cannot submit more than one proposal under this call. Multiple proposals from the same lead applicant will result in rejection of all proposals.

Eligible Activities and Project Scope

Projects must focus on raising awareness and building capacity on at least one of the following topics: the Charter in general and/or the contents of individual Charter rights; the Charter's scope of application; remedies available in cases of Charter breaches. The Charter applies to Member States only when they are implementing EU law, and there is a specific need to promote understanding of when the Charter applies.

Eligible activities include awareness raising and capacity building activities targeting civil society organisations, human rights defenders, and other key partners; facilitating cooperation between civil society and other actors such as National Human Rights Institutions and equality bodies; training and train-the-trainer activities for professionals; mutual learning and exchange of good practices; development of fundamental rights impact assessment methods; analytical activities including research and data collection; and communication activities for dissemination of information about the Charter and redress mechanisms.

Geographic Scope:Activities must take place in EU Member States

Project Duration:Projects should normally range between 12 and 24 months. Extensions are possible if duly justified through an amendment.

Key Eligibility Conditions

• Applicants must be formally established in an EU Member State
• Lead applicants must be non-profit legal entities
• Minimum grant request of €75,000
• Projects must address capacity building and awareness raising needs on the Charter
• Activities must take place in eligible countries (EU Member States)
• Applicants must comply with EU values and ethical standards
• Applicants must have stable and sufficient financial and operational capacity
• Applicants must not be subject to exclusion grounds under EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509

Financial and Operational Capacity

Applicants must demonstrate stable and sufficient resources to successfully implement projects. Financial capacity checks will normally be conducted for coordinators, except for public bodies or international organisations, or if the requested grant amount does not exceed €60,000. Applicants must provide evidence of their know-how, qualifications, and resources through CVs of core project team members, activity reports from the last year (not required for newly established organisations), and lists of key projects from the last four years (not required for newly established organisations).

Submission and Evaluation Process

Proposals must be submitted electronically via the EU Funding and Tenders Portal before the deadline. Paper submissions are not accepted. The submission process is single-stage with one-step evaluation. Proposals will first be checked for admissibility and eligibility, then evaluated against operational capacity and award criteria.

Award Criteria and Scoring:Relevance (40 points, minimum 25 points to pass), Quality (40 points), and Impact (20 points). Maximum total score is 100 points. Overall threshold for funding is 70 points. Proposals must pass both the individual threshold for Relevance and the overall threshold to be considered for funding.

Evaluation Committee:An evaluation committee assisted by independent outside experts will assess all applications. Successful proposals will be invited for grant preparation, which involves dialogue to fine-tune technical and financial aspects.

Required Documents and Application Components

• Application Form Part A: administrative information about participants and summarised budget (filled online)
• Application Form Part B: technical description of the project (maximum 45 pages, downloaded template, uploaded as PDF)
• Part C (KPI tool): additional project data on contribution to EU programme key performance indicators (filled online)
• CVs of core project team members
• Activity reports from last year (not required for newly established organisations)
• List of previous projects from last four years (not required for newly established organisations)
• Child protection policy (if implementing activities involving children) or declaration of honour for public entities
• Supporting documents as specified in the call

All proposals must be complete and contain all requested information and required annexes. Proposals must be readable, accessible and printable. Part B is limited to maximum 45 pages; evaluators will not consider additional pages.

Grant Agreement and Financial Terms

Grant Type:Budget-based mixed actual cost grant (actual costs with unit costs and flat-rate elements)

Funding Rate:90% of eligible costs

Eligible Cost Categories:Personnel costs (employees, natural persons under direct contract, seconded persons, SME owners, volunteers), subcontracting costs, purchase costs (travel and subsistence, equipment, other goods and services), and indirect costs (7% flat-rate of eligible direct costs)

Prefinancing:Normally 80% of maximum grant amount, paid 30 days from entry into force or financial guarantee (whichever is latest)

Payment Schedule:Initial prefinancing, interim payments (if applicable), and final payment. Interim payment ceiling is 90% of maximum grant amount.

No-Profit Rule:Grants may not produce a profit. For-profit organisations must declare revenues; if profit exists, it will be deducted from the final grant amount.

Ineligible Costs

• Return on capital and dividends
• Debt and debt service charges
• Provisions for future losses or debts
• Interest owed
• Currency exchange losses
• Bank costs for transfers
• Excessive or reckless expenditure
• Deductible or refundable VAT
• Costs incurred during grant agreement suspension
• In-kind contributions by third parties
• Costs declared under other EU grants (except Synergy actions or combined with operating grants)
• Costs for staff of national administration for normal activities
• Travel and subsistence for EU institution staff

Reporting and Compliance Obligations

Beneficiaries must report continuously on project progress using the Portal Continuous Reporting tool. Periodic reports (technical and financial) must be submitted according to the schedule set in the grant agreement. Financial statements must detail eligible costs and contributions by budget category. Beneficiaries must keep records and supporting documents for at least five years after final payment (or three years for grants not exceeding €60,000).

Beneficiaries must maintain their information in the Participant Register up to date at all times. They must immediately inform the granting authority of any events or circumstances likely to affect implementation or the EU's financial interests, including changes in legal, financial, technical, organisational or ownership situation.

Ethics and Values Requirements

Projects must comply with the highest ethical standards and EU values based on Article 2 of the Treaty on the European Union and Article 21 of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights. Projects must promote gender equality and non-discrimination mainstreaming. Private entities implementing activities involving children must provide a child protection policy covering recruitment, background checks, procedures, and continuous training. Public entities must provide at least a declaration on respect of child protection requirements.

Strategic Context and Policy Alignment

This call supports the 2020 Strategy to strengthen the application of the Charter of Fundamental Rights in the EU and the annual Charter Reports. It also supports the EU Strategy for Civil Society and the 2023 Recommendation on civic participation. The call recognises that many civil society organisations and human rights defenders face persistent restrictions including disproportionate registration requirements, limited access to funding, threats such as attacks on staff or premises, smear campaigns, and strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs). The call aims to support an enabling environment for civil society actors and strengthen their capacity to promote and protect fundamental rights.

Expected Project Outcomes

• Increased awareness of and capacity to apply the Charter by civil society organisations, National Human Rights Institutions, equality bodies, ombudspersons, and other human rights defenders
• Increased prevention of fundamental rights breaches
• Improved knowledge of available redress mechanisms under national and EU law
• Improved cooperation on fundamental rights issues among civil society organisations and authorities at national, regional and local level
• Strengthened capacity of civil society organisations and human rights defenders to enforce the Charter

Support and Contact Information

Each EU Member State has a CERV National Contact Point to help applicants with questions and issues related to the programme. If a country does not have a contact point, applicants should contact the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA) at EACEA-CERV@ec.europa.eu. For IT-related questions, applicants should contact the IT Helpdesk. The Funding and Tenders Portal Online Manual provides step-by-step guidance on proposal preparation and submission.

Important Applicant Notes

• Applicants should submit proposals well in advance of the deadline to avoid technical problems; call deadlines cannot be extended
• The Portal Call and Topic pages should be consulted regularly for updates and additional information
• All participants must register in the Participant Register before submitting proposals
• Consortium roles should be attributed according to level of participation; main participants should be beneficiaries or affiliated entities
• Subcontracting should normally constitute a limited part of the project; subcontracting exceeding 30% of total eligible costs must be justified
• A consortium agreement is recommended for practical and legal reasons
• Project budgets must be balanced with sufficient other resources to implement successfully
• Proposals for projects already completed will be rejected; proposals for projects already started will be assessed case-by-case
• It is strictly prohibited to cumulate funding from the EU budget except under Synergy actions
• Applicants cannot submit more than one proposal as coordinator under this call
• By submitting applications, all applicants accept the call conditions and the use of the electronic exchange system

Language and Transparency

Proposals can be submitted in any official EU language, though the project abstract or summary should be in English. For efficiency, English is strongly advised for the entire application. Information about EU grants awarded is published annually on the Europa website, including beneficiary names, addresses, purpose of the grant, and maximum amount awarded. Publication can be exceptionally waived if there is a risk that disclosure could jeopardise rights and freedoms or harm commercial interests.

Footnotes

1. 1The Charter of Fundamental Rights is a legally binding document that contains a list of human rights recognised by the European Union. It applies to Member States only when they are implementing EU law, which is a specific scope of application unlike international human rights agreements. The increasing number of references to the Charter in the case law of the Court of Justice of the EU underscores the need to promote understanding of when the Charter applies.