RFCS-2026-02-PDP Steel Pilot and demonstration projects

RFCS-2026-02-PDP Steel Pilot and demonstration projects is a Research Fund for Coal and Steel call financing pilot and industrial demonstration projects in the steel sector to advance sustainable, low-carbon steelmaking, circular economy practices and improved working conditions. Indicative topic budget is €7,620,000 with EU funding at 50% of eligible costs and typical requested grants expected between €3 and €5 million for projects normally lasting 36 to 42 months. Proposals must be submitted by a consortium of at least two independent legal entities from two different eligible countries, should progress from TRL 4-5 to TRL 7-8, and must be submitted via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal by 16 September 2026 at 17:00 CET.

What it funds

Scope and objectives

Pilot and demonstration projects for the steel sector that bridge research and commercialisation. Activities should start at TRL 4-5 and reach TRL 7-8 by project end and address RFCS steel objectives (near-zero-carbon processes, advanced steel grades, circularity, workforce/working conditions). Proposals must assess expected industrial, economic, social and environmental benefits.

Typical project size:Project grants for steel PDPs are expected in the range €3–€5 million; the indicative budget for this topic in the 2026 call is €7,620,000 ¹.

1. 1Funding form: budget-based action grant (mixed actual costs with unit/flat-rate elements)
2. 2Funding rate for RFCS steel PDP: 50% of eligible costs
3. 3Expected project duration: normally 36–42 months (longer if justified)

Who can apply

Consortia of legal entities (public or private, research organisations, industry, SMEs, natural persons where allowed) established in eligible countries (EU Member States and RFCS-associated countries).

1. 1Minimum consortium for PDP: at least 2 independent applicants (beneficiaries) from 2 different eligible countries
2. 2Affiliated entities, associated partners, subcontractors and third parties in-kind may participate under the rules set out in the call

Key practical facts

Assessment and selection

Proposals are evaluated on Excellence, Impact and Quality/efficiency of implementation (each scored up to 5 points; overall threshold applies). Admissibility and eligibility rules and document templates are in the call documentation on the Portal.

Contact and support:For call-specific help contact REA-RFCS@ec.europa.eu and use the Portal Topic page Q&A and Online Manual F&T Portal ¹.

Footnotes

1. 1Call document and detailed budgets are available on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal topic page and in the RFCS Call fiche (RFCS Annual Call 2026).

Basic facts and administrative details

Call:RFCS-2026 — RFCS Annual Call 2026. Topic identifier: RFCS-2026-02-PDP. Type of action: RFCS Project Grants — Pilot and Demonstration Projects (PDP). Opening date: 17 June 2026. Deadline for submission: 16 September 2026, 17:00 CET (Brussels). Submission procedure: single-stage, electronic submission only via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal. Programme period: 2021-2027. Managed by: European Research Executive Agency (REA).

Topic scope summary:Pilot projects: construction, operation and development of installations on an appropriate (smaller) scale. Demonstration projects: construction and/or operation of industrial-scale installations. Both aim to bridge research, innovation and commercialisation. Expected start TRL: 4-5 and target TRL at project end: 7-8. Each proposal must include an assessment of expected industrial, economic, social and environmental benefits in line with Article 26 of Council Decision 2008/376/EC ¹.

Eligibility and consortium requirements

Eligible legal entities:public or private bodies (undertakings), public bodies, research organisations, higher or secondary education establishments, other legal entities carrying out RTD activities, natural persons. International organisations are NOT eligible as beneficiaries. Entities without legal personality may exceptionally participate if their representative can undertake legal obligations. EU bodies (except JRC) cannot be part of the consortium. Participants must be established in eligible countries (EU Member States including OCTs and RFCS-associated non-EU countries as listed in the call documentation). All beneficiaries and affiliated entities must register in the Participant Register and be validated by REA Validation prior to grant signature.

1. 1Minimum consortium composition for Pilot and Demonstration Projects: minimum 2 independent applicants (beneficiaries; not affiliated entities) from at least 2 different eligible countries.
2. 2Independent means no direct or indirect control relationship (no common control; typical control defined as >50% share or majority voting rights).
3. 3Affiliated entities may participate with similar rights and obligations as beneficiaries but do not count toward the minimum number of independent beneficiaries.
4. 4Associated partners may participate only without funding and only if participation is in the EU interest.

Eligible activities, TRL and project duration

Eligible activities must correspond to the topic description and RFCS steel research objectives (Articles 8, 9, 10, 10a of Council Decision 2008/376/EC). Pilot and demonstration projects should start at TRL 4-5 and achieve TRL 7-8 by project end. Typical project duration: normally between 36 and 42 months; longer allowed if justified. Projects must take into account and describe complementarities with national and other EU-funded projects.

Target sectors, technology areas and Technical Groups

This topic addresses the steel sector and covers the full RFCS steel research objectives:new, sustainable and low-carbon steelmaking and finishing processes (Article 8); advanced steel grades and applications (Article 9); conservation of resources, protection of the environment and circular economy (Article 10); management of workforce and working conditions (Article 10a). Proposals should indicate the relevant Technical Group(s) from Annex 2 (TGA1 to TGA5), for example iron- and steelmaking processes, downstream processing, product conception, applications and smart/human factory topics.

• TGA1 Iron- and steelmaking: near-zero-carbon processes, process chain optimisation, scrap melting, recovery of waste heat, energy efficiency, hydrogen economy, recycling of slags and by-products.
• TGA2 Downstream steel processing: casting, rolling, finishing, coating, digitalisation, AI and modelling for process control and automation.
• TGA3 Conception of steel products: advanced steel grades, predictive simulation models on microstructures and properties, corrosion and heat resistance, standardisation.
• TGA4 Steel applications and markets: forming, joining, mobility applications, eco-design, lightweight design, life-cycle assessment and recyclability.
• TGA5 Steel factories – smart and human: instrumentation, digital twins, workforce skills and ergonomics, pollution control and workplace health and safety.

Funding, budget and financial modalities

Overall estimated available call budget:€40 000 000. Indicative budget for this topic (RFCS-2026-02-PDP Steel): €7 620 000. The grant form: budget-based mixed actual cost grant with unit cost and flat-rate elements. Funding rate for RFCS-2026-02-PDP (Steel Pilot and Demonstration Projects): 50% of eligible costs. Grants must not produce profit for for-profit beneficiaries; revenues must be declared and potential profit deducted from final grant. Grants are subject to the EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509 provisions and the RFCS Model Grant Agreement (RFCS MGA).

Typical project budget ranges (guidance):Guidance in the Call document: Pilot and demonstration projects (requested grant amount) for steel are expected to range between €3 000 000 and €5 000 000. Coal PDP guidance differs (1.5-€3 M). These are indicative and proposals requesting other amounts may still be submitted and selected depending on quality and justification.

Costs, budget categories and cost eligibility

Budget categories follow the RFCS MGA:A Personnel costs (A.1 employees, A.2 natural persons under direct contract, A.3 seconded persons, A.4 SME owners and natural person beneficiaries), B Subcontracting costs, C Purchase costs (C.2 Equipment, C.3 Other goods, works and services), E Indirect costs (flat-rate 35% of eligible personnel costs A). VAT: non-deductible/non-refundable VAT is eligible (with usual exceptions). Equipment costs are treated per the MGA: depreciation is the default; in RFCS certain full-cost options for equipment may be available depending on call wording. Subcontracting must follow best value-for-money principles and must be justified; subcontracting beyond 30% of total eligible costs requires explicit justification in the application.

1. 1Indirect costs: flat-rate 35% of total eligible personnel costs (category A, excluding volunteers if any).
2. 2Personnel costs: charged on actual costs with time-recording and declaration rules; SME owner natural person unit-cost option available under Commission decision.
3. 3Equipment: normally depreciation; some calls allow full-cost for listed items — check Annex 2 and call-specific conditions.
4. 4Subcontracting: eligible when necessary, limited and justified; must comply with procurement rules and avoid conflicts of interest.

Application process and templates

Submission:electronic via Funding & Tenders Portal submission system. Application consists of Part A (administrative data entered online) and Part B (technical description PDF uploaded). Mandatory annexes include the detailed budget table (Excel template), list of previous projects (if required by topic) and any other templates requested by the Submission System. Part B is limited to 70 pages; supporting annexes do not count towards the 70-page limit. All documents must be the versions provided in the Submission System; documents uploaded elsewhere will not be evaluated. Proposals must be complete and the online summarised budget must match the detailed budget table (if discrepancies, online table prevails).

Application form structure (Part B) — recommended structure:Part B technical description template is provided in the Submission System and includes: 1) Excellence (objectives, ambition, TRL start and targets, methodology); 2) Impact (pathways to impact, dissemination, exploitation and communication plan); 3) Quality and efficiency of the implementation (work plan, work packages, deliverables, milestones, Gantt, risk management, resources and budget justification, staff effort tables, subcontracting justification, equipment justification); 4) Ethics and Security sections; 5) Declarations and list of annexes (detailed budget table mandatory). The Part B template contains specific tables for deliverables, milestones, staff effort and budget breakdown and must be used as supplied.

Evaluation, award criteria and success thresholds

One-stage submission with expert evaluation and award by evaluation committee. Admissibility and eligibility checks precede evaluation. Award criteria: Excellence (max 5 points), Impact (max 5 points), Quality and efficiency of the implementation (max 5 points). Individual thresholds: 3/5 for each criterion. Overall threshold: 10/15. Proposals passing thresholds are considered for funding subject to ranking and available budget. Ties (ex aequo) are resolved by comparing Impact scores, then Excellence, then implementation scores; if still equal, proposals with higher private for-profit participation or higher budget share assigned to private for-profit organisations are prioritised.

Evaluation timeline (indicative):Evaluation September–November 2026. Information on evaluation results January–February 2027. Grant Agreement signature April–June 2027 (call document dates are indicative; check topic page for updates).

Application stages, type and success rate

1. 1Application type: open competitive call — single-stage submission via Portal.
2. 2Application stages: 1 (single-stage submission) — evaluation and ranking, followed by grant preparation with legal and financial checks (legal entity validation, financial capacity, exclusion checks).
3. 3Nature of support: financial (grant money) in the form of a budget-based grant (actual costs, unit costs and flat rates where applicable); beneficiaries receive monetary funding. Non-monetary support includes access to the Portal, evaluation feedback, and REA grant preparation support.
4. 4Success rates: not specified explicitly in the topic text. Success depends on quality and ranking within available budget. Indicative budget for the topic is €7.62 million; expected number of awarded projects depends on requested grant sizes (guidance: steel PDP requested grant typically €3-€5 million).

Financial capacity, operational capacity and co-funding

Financial capacity:beneficiaries must demonstrate stable and sufficient resources to implement the project; checks are carried out during grant preparation on requested documents (P&L, balance sheet, audit reports, etc.). Financial capacity checks may be waived for public bodies or if individual requested grant amount is ≤ €60 000. Operational capacity: assessed via CVs, consortium description and list of previous projects. The call does not require mandatory co-funding beyond the funded share: the grant finances a percentage of eligible costs according to the funding rate (50% for steel PDP). Applicants must provide own resources or other funding for the non-funded share and to ensure a balanced project budget; own resources, in-kind contributions and other resources must be declared in the detailed budget table.

Reporting, payments and certificates

Reporting:continuous reporting via Portal Continuous Reporting tool for deliverables and indicators; periodic reporting for interim and final payments. Typical reporting deadlines: periodic reports due within 60 days after end of reporting periods; payments processed within the timeframe specified in the Data Sheet. Prefinancing: normal prefinancing around 20% of maximum grant amount, subject to prefinancing guarantee requirements for some consortia and beneficiaries; specific prefinancing and guarantee modalities will be set during grant preparation. Certificate on the financial statements (CFS) may be required at final payment if beneficiary requested EU contribution to costs ≥ €325 000 (threshold may be adjusted per Data Sheet). Records and supporting documents must be retained for the period specified in the Data Sheet (typically 5 years).

Ethics, security and legal obligations

All projects must comply with highest ethical standards, research integrity and applicable EU, international and national law. Projects raising ethics issues will undergo ethics review and may require authorisations and ethics deliverables. Security: proposals must declare any issues related to EU Classified Information, potential misuse of results or national security restrictions. Intellectual property rights: background, results ownership, protection and exploitation, access rights and rights of use are governed by the RFCS Model Grant Agreement and Annex 5. Communication obligations and visibility rules for EU funding (European flag and funding statement) must be respected.

Templates, annexes and help resources

Mandatory templates and documents are available in the Submission System:Application Form Part B template (RFCS), Detailed budget table (Excel), RFCS Model Grant Agreement (MGA), RFCS Call document (Call fiche and call document), Instructions and Online Manual. Applicants must use the templates provided in the Submission System, not older or alternate versions. For support contact REA-RFCS@ec.europa.eu and the IT Helpdesk for portal technical issues.

1. 1Mandatory upload: Detailed budget table (Annex 1 to Part B) using the RFCS Excel template.
2. 2Mandatory: Application Form Part B (technical description) as PDF, max 70 pages (Part A entered online).
3. 3Optional/conditional: CFS certificate if threshold exceeded, prefinancing guarantee if required, consortium agreement recommended.

Risks, exclusions and important compliance points

Entities subject to EU restrictive measures or exclusion decisions cannot participate. Grounds for exclusion include bankruptcy, grave professional misconduct, fraud, money laundering, terrorism-related offences, failure to comply with social security or tax obligations and other situations listed in the EU Financial Regulation. Double funding from EU sources is prohibited unless specific Synergy action rules apply. Financial responsibility and recoveries: the liability regime for recoveries will be spelled out in the Grant Agreement; limited joint and several liability is the default unless unconditional joint and several liability or individual financial responsibility is specified in the Data Sheet.

Answers to the requested categorisation questions

The following sections address explicitly the categorisation questions requested and reproduce all relevant details from the topic and call documentation.

Eligible Applicant Types:Eligible applicant types include: startups, SMEs, large enterprises (undertakings), universities, research institutes, public bodies (national/regional/local authorities), non-profit organisations and natural persons. International organisations are NOT eligible as beneficiaries. Associated partners and affiliated entities can participate under the conditions described in the call. Subcontractors, associated partners, third parties providing in-kind contributions can be involved as non-beneficiary roles. Applicants must be legal entities established in eligible countries and natural persons are eligible in specific cases.

Funding Type:Primary financial mechanism: Grant. Specifically, RFCS Project Grants — budget-based mixed actual cost grants (actual costs with unit cost and flat-rate elements where applicable).

Consortium Requirement:Requirement: Consortium required. For Pilot and Demonstration Projects the minimum is 2 independent applicants (beneficiaries; not affiliated entities) from 2 different eligible countries. Accompanying Measures and Research Projects have different minima (see call doc), but for this PDP topic the consortium minimum is two independent beneficiaries in two eligible countries.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility):Geographic eligibility: EU Member States (including overseas countries and territories) and countries associated to the RFCS (list of participating countries available in the call documentation). Proposals must relate to activities taking place in eligible countries. Participants from other third countries may participate as associated partners or in other roles only if specified and in the EU interest; check the Call document for the up-to-date list of RFCS-associated countries.

Target Sector:Target sector: Steel industry and related value chains. Thematic technology areas include low-carbon steelmaking and finishing processes, advanced steel grades and product development, circular economy and recycling of steel and steel by-products, process and plant digitalisation, energy efficiency and hydrogen integration, lifecycle assessment, workplace safety and workforce skills, and downstream steel processing and applications.

Mentioned Countries:Explicit countries: none listed in the topic text beyond the general references to EU Member States and RFCS-associated non-EU countries. The Call document references the EU and RFCS-associated countries; applicants must consult the call documentation and the Participant Register for the up-to-date list of associated countries. Region: EU and RFCS-associated countries.

Project Stage:Expected project maturity: TRL 4-5 at project start (technology validation in relevant environment) progressing to TRL 7-8 by project end (system prototype demonstration in an operational environment and system complete and qualified). This topic is for late-development, pre-commercial pilot and industrial demonstration activities bridging research and commercialisation.

Funding Amount:Indicative funding available for RFCS-2026-02-PDP: €7 620 000 for the topic. Project-level guidance: requested grant amounts for steel PDP are expected to range between €3 000 000 and €5 000 000. Funding rate for steel PDP: 50% of eligible costs. Final grant amounts subject to evaluation, ranking and available budget.

Application Type:Open call (Annual RFCS call), single-stage submission via the Funding & Tenders Portal Electronic Submission System. Not rolling; applicants must submit by the published deadline (16 September 2026).

Nature of Support:Monetary support: yes — direct EU grant funding via RFCS Project Grants. Non-monetary services: grant administration support, evaluation feedback, participation in RFCS project networks and dissemination activities. Financial support to third parties is NOT allowed under RFCS PDP actions.

Application Stages:Number of stages: 1 (single-stage submission followed by independent expert evaluation and selection). Post-selection: grant preparation stage with legal and financial checks (may involve iterative exchanges to finalise the Grant Agreement).

Success Rates:No explicit numerical success rate is provided in the call text. Selection depends on scoring against thresholds and ranking within the topic budget envelope. With an indicative topic budget of €7.62 million and typical requested projects of €3–€5 million, the number of awards expected would be small (likely one or two) but actual outcomes depend on the proposals received and their requested amounts. Applicants should assume competition and prepare high-quality, well-justified proposals.

Co-funding Requirement:Co-funding: The RFCS grant covers a percentage of eligible costs (50% for steel PDP); the remaining share must be covered by applicants’ own resources, other funding or in-kind contributions where appropriate. There is no separate mandatory cash co-funding ratio beyond the funding rate, but applicants must ensure sufficient own resources to implement the project and justify the budget. Financial guarantees or joint and several liability may be required based on the financial capacity assessment.

Templates: Application forms and structure guidance

Application templates are provided in the Submission System. The main application package comprises Part A (administrative forms entered online) and Part B (technical description PDF using the RFCS Part B template). The Detailed budget table (former Form B3) Excel template is mandatory and must be completed and uploaded. The RFCS Model Grant Agreement and call-specific call document (call fiche and call document) are available as reference documents in the Portal. Use the exact templates available in the submission system; do not upload alternate versions.

Part B structure (from the template) — detailed outline to help applicants prepare content and ensure compliance with evaluation criteria:

1. 1Project summary and abstract (consistent with Part A).
2. 21. Excellence: objectives and ambition; state-of-the-art; TRL start and target; methodology and interdisciplinary approach; link to RFCS objectives and Technical Group(s).
3. 32. Impact: pathways to impact; expected industrial, economic, social and environmental benefits; quantification of benefits where possible; target groups; dissemination, exploitation and communication plan; IP management and standardisation/market uptake strategy.
4. 43. Quality and efficiency of implementation: work plan and WP descriptions; detailed tasks, deliverables and milestones; Gantt/timetable; staff effort tables (person-months per WP and participant); resource and budget justification; subcontracting justification; equipment justification; risk management matrix; consortium roles and complementarity; CVs and list of previous projects where requested.
5. 54. Other: ethics self-assessment (if applicable), security self-assessment (dual-use/classified), management of open science and data (DMP if applicable), recruitment and working conditions for researchers.
6. 65. Declarations and list of annexes: detailed budget table, any required certificates, consortium agreement (recommended), and other mandated annexes.

Detailed budget table contents:per beneficiary breakdown of personnel costs (by category), subcontracting, equipment (purchase or depreciation), other goods/works/services (raw materials, consumables, energy, testing), indirect costs calculation (35% of eligible personnel costs), detailed justification for capital equipment requests and any full-cost equipment options if allowed by the call. The amounts in the online summarised budget must match the detailed budget table; if discrepancies occur the online amounts prevail.

Applicants should anticipate potential requests during grant preparation:legal entity validation documents, financial statements, bank account validation, prefinancing guarantees (if required) and possible certificates (CFS) at final reporting depending on thresholds.

How to approach a competitive PDP proposal for this topic

Key elements evaluators expect:strong industrial relevance and credible pathway to commercialisation; clear TRL progression from 4-5 to 7-8 within project timeframe; demonstrable environmental and industrial benefits (quantified where possible, including CO2 reduction or circular material gains); robust technical methodology and risk mitigation; realistic work plan with justified budget and staff effort; consortium with complementary competencies and access to industrial-scale facilities or pilot lines; clear dissemination, exploitation and IP protection strategy; and evidence of financial and operational capacity.

Use the RFCS Technical Group mapping (Annex 2 of the call document) to position the proposal and to identify the relevant priorities and deliverables expected by the RFCS community and evaluators. Demonstrate alignment with EU policy objectives such as the European Green Deal, Clean Industrial Deal and the Steel and Metals Action Plan when relevant.

Footnotes

1. 1Call document requirement: Each proposal must include an assessment of expected industrial, economic, social and environmental benefits in line with Article 26 of Council Decision 2008/376/EC. See call documentation and topic page for full text and guidance RFCS Call document 2026.

Key Opportunity Details

Call Specifics

This call funds pilot and demonstration projects in the steel sector to bridge the gap between research, innovation, and commercialisation. Projects must advance sustainable, low-carbon steelmaking, circular economy practices, and improved working conditions, progressing from TRL 4-5 to TRL 7-8 ¹.

Total Budget:€7,620,000 is available for this specific topic under the RFCS-2026 call ².

Funding Rate:The EU provides 50% of the eligible project costs as a budget-based mixed actual cost grant ³.

Project Duration:Projects should normally range between 36 and 42 months, with extensions possible if duly justified ⁴.

Submission Deadline:16 September 2026 at 17:00:00 CET (Brussels time) ⁵.

Who Should Apply

Consortium Requirements

Proposals must be submitted by a consortium of at least 2 independent legal entities (beneficiaries) from 2 different eligible countries. Independent means no entity is under the direct or indirect control of another ⁶.

Eligible Participants

• Businesses (Large Enterprises, SMEs)
• Research Organizations and Centers
• Public Bodies and Government Entities
• Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
• Legal Entities carrying out RTD activities

Applicants must be established in EU Member States (including overseas countries and territories) or non-EU countries associated with the RFCS programme ⁷.

Scope and Research Objectives

Steel Sector Objectives (Article 8-10a)

Projects must address one or more of the following RFCS objectives for steel:new sustainable and low-carbon steelmaking processes, advanced steel grades and applications, conservation of resources and circular economy, and management of workforce and working conditions ⁸.

Project Types

Both types aim to bridge the gap between research and commercialisation, starting at TRL 4-5 and achieving TRL 7-8 by the end of the project ⁹.

Financial and Operational Requirements

Budget Expectations

Requested grant amounts for steel pilot and demonstration projects are expected to range between €3 million and €5 million. This does not preclude other amounts, but the grant awarded may be lower ¹⁰.

Evaluation Criteria

Proposals are evaluated on three criteria:Excellence (5 points), Impact (5 points), and Quality and efficiency of implementation (5 points). Minimum pass scores are 3/5 for each criterion and 10/15 overall ¹¹.

Cost Eligibility

The grant reimburses only eligible costs actually incurred. Key categories include personnel costs, subcontracting, equipment (depreciation + full cost for PDP), operating costs (raw materials, energy, transport), and indirect costs (35% flat rate on personnel). Travel costs are not eligible ¹².

How to Submit

Applications must be submitted electronically via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal. The process involves registering in the Participant Register to obtain a PIC, filling Part A online, and uploading Part B (technical description) and annexes as PDFs ¹³.

Part B is limited to a maximum of 70 pages. Proposals must include a detailed budget table and a list of previous key projects from the last 4 years ¹⁴.

Footnotes

1. 1Call Fiche RFCS-2026, Section 2: RFCS-2026-02-PDP Steel – Pilot and demonstration projects, p. 12-13.
2. 2Call Fiche RFCS-2026, Section 3: Available budget, p. 13.
3. 3Call Fiche RFCS-2026, Section 10: Form of grant, funding rate, p. 23.
4. 4Call Fiche RFCS-2026, Section 6: Duration, p. 17.
5. 5Call Fiche RFCS-2026, Section 4: Timetable and deadlines, p. 14.
6. 6Call Fiche RFCS-2026, Section 6: Consortium composition, p. 16.
7. 7Call Fiche RFCS-2026, Section 6: Eligible participants, p. 15.
8. 8Call Fiche RFCS-2026, Section 2: Objectives for steel, p. 12.
9. 9Call Fiche RFCS-2026, Section 2: Activities that can be funded, p. 13.
10. 10Call Fiche RFCS-2026, Section 6: Project budget, p. 17.
11. 11Call Fiche RFCS-2026, Section 9: Award criteria, p. 21-22.
12. 12Call Fiche RFCS-2026, Section 10: Budget categories and cost eligibility rules, p. 23-24.
13. 13Call Fiche RFCS-2026, Section 11: How to submit an application, p. 27.
14. 14Call Fiche RFCS-2026, Section 5: Admissibility and documents, p. 14-15.