SOCPL-2026-INFO-REPR

SOCPL-2026 is a single-stage EU call for transnational projects to strengthen employee information, consultation and participation, with a focus on company-level social dialogue, European Works Councils and managing transitions linked to climate and digital change. The topic has an indicative budget of €2.5 million, expects to fund 8–10 projects with an estimated EU contribution of €250,000–350,000 per project and a funding rate of up to 90% of eligible costs. Eligible applicants are legal entities established in eligible countries, prioritising social partner organisations and transnational consortia; proposals must be submitted electronically via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal. The call opens 2 September 2026 and closes 12 November 2026 at 17:00 Brussels time and follows the standard SOCPL application, eligibility and evaluation rules set out in the call documents.

What it funds

Scope and objectives

Grants to support transnational projects strengthening employee information, consultation and participation in undertakings, with emphasis on European Works Councils, gender balance, anticipation and management of change during climate and digital transitions, dispute prevention/resolution and capacity building for social partners.

Deadline:Single-stage call, submission deadline 12 November 2026 17:00 Brussels time. Submit electronically via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal Funding & Tenders Portal ¹.

Who can apply

Legal entities (public or private) established in eligible countries (EU Member States and eligible EEA/Candidate Countries as specified in the call). Priority applicants are social partner organisations (trade unions, employers’ organisations) at European, national or regional level. Technical bodies, research or training organisations or companies may coordinate only if expressly mandated/endorsed by eligible social partners.

Eligibility highlights

1. 1Single applicants allowed if they are trade unions or employers’ organisations; consortia must include minimum two applicants from two eligible countries.
2. 2Projects should normally last 18–24 months.
3. 3Proposals must be submitted in the Portal using Part A and Part B templates; page limits and annex requirements apply.

Funding and expected award

Total indicative budget for the topic:€2,500,000. Typical requested grant per project is expected between €250,000 and €350,000; funding rate 90% (budget-based mixed actual cost grant). Indicative number of grants: 8–10. The granting authority may award different amounts and not all funds may be allocated.

Timing:Call opening 2 September 2026. Evaluation November 2026–February 2027; grant agreements expected March–April 2027.

Practical notes

Applications must be complete, uploaded as PDF via the Portal, and comply with admissibility (page/layout) and eligibility conditions. Financial and operational capacity checks apply; CVs and supporting documentation required. No financial support to third parties unless explicitly authorised. Accessibility, non-discrimination and gender considerations are required.

1. 1Contact for call-specific questions: EMPL-SOCPL-2026-INFO-REPR@ec.europa.eu
2. 2Apply via the Portal topic page (submission session available once logged in)
3. 3Read the Call Document and Annexes for full conditions and templates before preparing the proposal

Focus proposals on a limited number of topical challenges to maximise EU-wide impact and ensure strong transnational social partner cooperation and sustainability of results.

Footnotes

1. 1Full call document, conditions and templates are available on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal: Call fiche & annexes.

Call title and purpose

Call for Proposals:Information, consultation & participation of representatives of undertakings SOCPL-2026. Managed by the European Commission DG EMPL under the Social Prerogatives and Specific Competencies Lines (SOCPL) 2026 work programme. The main objective is to develop employees’ involvement in undertakings by raising awareness and contributing to the application of EU law and policies on employee information, consultation and participation, to support social dialogue at company level during industrial transitions and to facilitate the take-up and effective functioning of European Works Councils. Actions should focus on one or a limited number of topical challenges to maximise impact and are expected to support transnational cooperation of social partners, promote exchange and dissemination of good practices, support the setting up and functioning of European Works Councils (including gender balance) and support workers’ involvement in anticipation and management of change including restructuring driven by climate objectives and digital transformation (e.g. AI impact on work organisation).

Call documentation and entry point:Full call fiche, call document and annexes including the Application Form templates and ESF/SOCPL Model Grant Agreement are published on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal SOCPL-2026-INFO-REPR topic page and summarized in this briefing ¹.

Key administrative facts

1. 1Opening date: 02 September 2026
2. 2Deadline: 12 November 2026, 17:00 Brussels time (single-stage submission)
3. 3Submission channel: Electronic submission only via the Funding & Tenders Portal Electronic Submission System; paper submissions not accepted
4. 4Type of action: SOCPL Project Grants (SOCPL-PJG) using SOCPL Action Grant Budget-Based model grant agreement (SOCPL-AG)
5. 5Budget (indicative): €2,500,000 for the topic (budget year 2026); expected to fund 8 to 10 projects
6. 6Expected project duration: normally 18 to 24 months
7. 7Project budget guidance: expected requested grant amounts normally in the range €250,000 to €350,000 per project (other amounts may be submitted)
8. 8Page limits and forms: Part A (online) and Part B (PDF) must be submitted using Portal forms; Part B limited to 50 pages; entire application must be readable, accessible and printable

Eligibility and who can apply

Eligible applicants must be legal entities (public or private bodies). Organisations of social partners without legal personality under national law can be eligible if they provide evidence that their representatives can undertake legal obligations and provide guarantees equivalent to legal persons. Participants must be established in eligible countries (EU Member States; selected participation by some non-EU Candidate Countries as indicated in the call document). Applicants should be representative organisations of workers (works councils, trade unions at European/national/sectoral level) or employers’ organisations. As an exception, non-profit training or research bodies or commercial companies (only where project is non-profit) may act as coordinators or beneficiaries if expressly mandated and endorsed by eligible social partner organisations (mandatory endorsement letter). Natural persons are not eligible except self-employed persons where the company has no separate legal personality. International organisations may participate as co-applicants but cannot act as coordinators.

Eligible consortium configuration:Single applicants are allowed only if the single entity is a trade union or employers’ organisation. Multi-beneficiary proposals must include at least two beneficiaries from at least two different eligible countries. The coordinator shall be a European, national or regional workers’ or employers’ organisation; if the coordinator is not a European-level organisation, the action must involve beneficiaries from more than one Member State or Candidate Country. Associated partners, affiliated entities, subcontractors and third parties giving in-kind contributions are permitted in defined roles. Participant registration in the Participant Register (PIC) and legal entity validation is mandatory before submission and during grant preparation ¹.

Scope, activities and expected impact

Scope:transnational actions promoting cooperation between social partners at European level addressing: support for setting up and ensuring good functioning of European Works Councils (including promotion of gender-balanced EWC); supporting workers’ involvement in anticipation and management of change, prevention and resolution of disputes during restructuring in EU-level undertakings and groups, addressing challenges from the green transition (reference to Council recommendation on fair transition) and digital transformation including AI impacts on work organisation and working conditions. Activities must respect gender equality, non-discrimination and accessibility for persons with disabilities.

1. 1Examples of fundable activities: training actions, manuals, outreach activities, exchange and dissemination of good practices; analysis of quantitative and qualitative aspects related to worker/employer representation and social dialogue at undertaking level; activities to enhance stakeholder collaboration and proactivity in anticipation/response to change; dissemination actions (websites, publications, newsletters) ensuring accessibility.
2. 2Expected impact: EU-wide systemic impact; improved capacity of social partners and company-level actors to understand and implement EU law and policies on employee involvement; facilitate negotiation and creation of EWCs and their better functioning; present pragmatic and sustainable solutions to challenges related to climate neutrality and digital transition; measurable indicators and evaluation methods must be included in proposals.

Financial model and eligible costs

Form of grant:budget-based mixed actual cost grant (actual costs, with unit cost and flat-rate elements where applicable). Funding rate: 90% reimbursement of eligible costs as indicated in the call documentation. Eligible cost categories include personnel (employees, seconded persons, natural persons under direct contract; SME owner and volunteer unit costs addressed if allowed in the call), subcontracting, purchase costs (travel and subsistence, equipment — depreciation, other goods and services), and indirect costs (flat-rate 7% of eligible direct costs, categories A-D except volunteers and exempted categories). VAT non-deductible/non-refundable is eligible except where national rules or public authority status preclude it. Financial support to third parties is NOT allowed under this topic. The grant must not produce a profit; if profit occurs for for-profit beneficiaries it will be deducted from the final grant amount.

Indicative per-project funding and budget overview:Total topic budget €2,500,000 (2026). Proposed grant size per project typically €250,000 to €350,000. Expected number of projects funded: 8 to 10. Funding rate 90% of eligible costs. Projects normally 18 to 24 months. The call reserves the right not to award all funds or to redistribute depending on proposal quality and evaluation results ¹.

Application process, templates and submission

Submission is single-stage and fully electronic via the Funding & Tenders Portal. Applications must use the online Application Form Part A and the Portal Part B template (download, complete, re-upload as PDF) plus mandatory annexes (CVs of core team in English indicating language competence, list of previous projects, endorsement letters where applicable, any required declarations). Part B (technical description) must comply with page limits (50 pages for Part B) and formatting rules (A4, minimum font size, margins). The specific Application Form templates and the ESF and SOCPL MGA are provided in the Submission System and Portal Reference Documents. The call includes a Portal Q&A section and a dedicated contact email for call-specific queries EMPL-SOCPL-2026-INFO-REPR@ec.europa.eu.

Key annexes and mandatory documents:Mandatory items at submission: Application Form Part A (online), Application Form Part B (PDF using template), annexes and supporting documents as specified in the call (CVs for core team, list of previous projects, letters of endorsement/mandate if technical or commercial bodies act as coordinators; additional documents may be requested during grant preparation). Participant Register registration and legal entity validation are required before signature of the grant agreement ¹.

Evaluation, award criteria and timeline

Single-stage evaluation. Applications will first be checked for admissibility and eligibility; admissible/eligible proposals will be assessed by an evaluation committee against the award criteria and scored. Successful proposals will be invited to grant preparation; invitation does not constitute final award until legal and financial checks are completed. Applicants may request complaint procedures if they consider the evaluation flawed; details will be in the evaluation result letter.

1. 1Award criteria and scoring (individual thresholds): Relevance (max 30 points; minimum pass 20), Quality — Project design and implementation (max 25; minimum pass 15), Quality — Project team and cooperation arrangements (max 25; minimum pass 15), Impact (max 20; minimum pass 10). Overall pass threshold: 60/100.
2. 2Evaluation timetable (indicative): Evaluation Nov 2026 – Feb 2027; Information to applicants Feb 2027; Grant Agreement signature March–April 2027.
3. 3Evaluation process: one-step evaluation by committee after eligibility checks; ranking by score; funding decisions within available budget, reserve list maintained.

Eligibility checks, capacity and exclusions

Financial capacity:applicants must have stable and sufficient resources to implement the project. Financial capacity checks are carried out during grant preparation; public bodies and organisations requesting ≤ €60,000 may be exempt. Operational capacity: expertise, qualifications and resources demonstrated via CVs, profiles and lists of past projects; minimum B2 English expected for project manager and core team and at least 3 years project management experience for project manager as indicated in Q&A guidance. Exclusion: EU exclusion decisions, bankruptcy, grave professional misconduct, fraud, money laundering, serious breach of prior EU contracts or grants, and other exclusion grounds specified by the EU Financial Regulation will bar participation. Entities under EU restrictive or conditionality measures are ineligible.

Consortium, roles and contractual issues

Consortium must respect minimum composition rules if multi-beneficiary. Coordinator acts as intermediary with the granting authority, distributes payments to beneficiaries and ensures project monitoring and reporting. Consortium agreement is strongly recommended to define internal organisation, payment distribution and dispute resolution. Affiliated entities (if used) participate with similar rights/obligations as beneficiaries but do not sign the grant; associated partners participate without receiving EU funds. Subcontracting should normally be limited and justified; subcontracting beyond 30% of total eligible costs must be justified in the application.

Application stages, selection process and success rates

Application type:open single-stage call for proposals (one submission stage). Number of stages to obtain funding: 1 main submission stage plus grant preparation (clarifications and legal/financial checks) — effectively two sequential steps (selection and grant preparation/award). Success rates: not specified in the call documentation; outcome depends on number and quality of applications and available budget. The call expects to fund approximately 8–10 projects with an indicative budget of €2.5 million, which can be used to estimate competitive pressure but no explicit success probability is provided.

Co-funding and revenue rules

Co-funding requirement:the call does not set mandatory co-financing from applicants as a fixed percentage; the grant finances 90% of eligible costs. Applicants should ensure a balanced project budget and demonstrate sufficient other resources (own contribution, third-party contributions, income generated by the action where applicable). Projects must respect the EU no-profit rule: grants may not produce profit. If profit arises, it will be deducted from the final grant amount.

Application form structure and templates

Application Form comprises Part A (administrative data filled in the Portal Submission System) and Part B (technical description uploaded as PDF using the Portal template). The standard Part B template includes structured sections to address relevance, quality (methodology, consortium, team, management, monitoring and evaluation, risk management), impact (target groups, dissemination, sustainability), work plan and work packages (including deliverables, milestones, staff effort, subcontracting), ethics and declarations. Mandatory annexes include CVs for core project team members in English and a list of previous projects. Applicants must respect page, font and margin limits in the template and follow detailed instructions contained in the Portal templates and Online Manual. A recommended structure is the official Part B template available in the Submission System and referenced in the call documents ¹.

1. 1Part A: online administrative forms (topic, summary, participants, budget, declarations)
2. 2Part B: Technical Description (download template from Portal, fill and upload as PDF). Typical Part B headings: Project Summary; 1. Relevance (background, needs analysis, complementarity); 2. Quality (concept, methodology, consortium set-up, project team, management, M&E, risk management); 3. Impact (target groups, indicators, dissemination, sustainability); 4. Workplan, work packages, activities, resources and timing; 5. Other (ethics, security); 6. Declarations
3. 3Annexes: CVs of key personnel (English, indicate foreign language levels), list of previous projects (last 3 years), letters of mandate/endorsement where applicable, any other supporting documents requested in the call

Project implementation, reporting and payments

Reporting and payment arrangements follow the ESF/SOCPL Model Grant Agreement:continuous reporting of deliverables in the Portal, periodic technical and financial reporting for payment requests. Payments include prefinancing instalments and final payment. Prefinancing and payment schedule will be fixed in the Grant Agreement; standard arrangements described in the AGA apply (initial prefinancing, possible additional prefinancing and final payment). Prefinancing guarantees may be required during grant preparation depending on risk and financial capacity checks. CFS certificates may be requested depending on requested EU contribution thresholds set in the Grant Agreement. The Coordinator receives payments and distributes them to beneficiaries.

Risks, exclusions and compliance

Key compliance requirements:respect for EU values and policies, ethics and confidentiality rules, data protection, conflict of interest avoidance, accurate record-keeping for costs and time records (person-days), adherence to accessibility and non-discrimination rules. Exclusion grounds include EU restrictive measures, bankruptcy, serious professional misconduct, fraud, money laundering, breaches of social security or tax obligations, irregularities with past EU grants. Non-compliance may trigger rejection of costs, grant reduction, suspension or termination, recoveries and administrative sanctions.

Target sectors, project stage and geographic scope

1. 1Target sector: Social policy / Social dialogue; themes linked to employment, industrial transitions, labour law implementation, company-level social dialogue, worker representation and participation, European Works Councils, organisational change due to climate and digital transitions (AI impacts).
2. 2Project stage: Implementation and demonstration at company and transnational level; projects should deliver transnational capacity-building, training, good practice exchange, analysis, outreach and concrete deliverables to support EWCs and worker involvement — expected to be applied/demonstration and policy support oriented rather than basic research.
3. 3Geographic eligibility: EU Member States principally; certain Candidate Countries may participate as set out in the call (Türkiye, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Albania, Moldova, Ukraine, Georgia, Bosnia and Herzegovina) and EEA countries in accordance with the EEA Agreement where applicable. Activities must take place in eligible countries.

What is required from applicants (checklist)

1. 1Register organisation(s) in the Participant Register (obtain PIC) and ensure legal entity validation and LEAR appointment before grant preparation
2. 2Use Portal Submission System: complete Part A online and upload Part B using official template as PDF; include mandatory annexes (CVs in English, list of previous projects, letters of mandate/endorsement if needed)
3. 3Ensure Part B is within the page limit (50 pages) and follows formatting rules
4. 4Provide evidence of financial and operational capacity if requested; public bodies and certain low-value grants may be exempt from financial capacity checks
5. 5If coordinator is not a social partner organisation and acts as a technical or commercial body, include mandatory endorsement letters from social partner(s) that mandate them
6. 6Prepare robust evaluation and monitoring indicators (quantitative and qualitative) and a monitoring and evaluation plan as required in Part B
7. 7Plan for accessibility and inclusion measures for persons with disabilities and gender balance considerations for EWCs

Contact and support

For Portal technical problems contact the IT Helpdesk. For call-specific questions contact EMPL-SOCPL-2026-INFO-REPR@ec.europa.eu. Consult the Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual, the ESF/SOCPL call document, the annotated Model Grant Agreement and the Portal reference documents for detailed guidance before preparing the proposal ¹.

Summary: What is this opportunity about and how to explain it

This SOCPL call finances transnational projects that strengthen employee involvement, information, consultation and participation in undertakings across the EU, with a particular focus on supporting the creation and functioning of European Works Councils and enabling social partners and company-level actors to manage the changes arising from the green and digital transitions. It targets social partner organisations (workers and employers) and, as appropriate, non-profit technical bodies mandated by social partners. Typical activities include training, mutual learning, dissemination of good practices, targeted analytical work and outreach that produce durable capacity-building. Projects are expected to deliver EU-level systemic impact, measurable indicators and sustainable outputs. Applicants must submit a single-stage electronic proposal through the Funding & Tenders Portal, using the ESF/SOCPL templates, demonstrate operational and financial capacity, respect eligibility rules and evaluation criteria (Relevance, Quality, Impact) and follow the Model Grant Agreement rules for grant implementation, reporting and payments. Budget per project is typically €250,000–350,000, with the topic budget €2.5 million and an expected funding rate of 90% of eligible costs. The call opens 02 September 2026 and closes 12 November 2026; evaluation and grant preparation are planned through early 2027 with GA signature March–April 2027. This is an opportunity for European and transnational social partner-driven consortia to obtain EU funding to reinforce social dialogue, workers’ representation and company-level capacity to anticipate and manage transitions in line with EU policies and law.

Footnotes

1. 1Call fiche, call document, application templates and full conditions are published on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal topic page: ec.europa.eu. Applicants must read the Call document and annexes available there for the definitive and complete rules, templates and legal provisions.

SOCPL-2026 is a single stage EU call for proposals under the Social Prerogative and Specific Competencies Lines programme. It supports projects on information, consultation and participation of representatives of undertakings, with the call opening on 2 September 2026 and closing on 12 November 2026 at 17:00 Brussels time¹.

What the call supports

The call seeks to strengthen employees involvement in undertakings by raising awareness and improving the application of EU law and policy in this field. The practical focus is on social dialogue at company level, support for European Works Councils, and responses to major industrial change, especially restructuring linked to climate transition and digital transformation, including the impact of artificial intelligence on work organisation and working conditions¹.

The Commission expects proposals to focus on one or a limited number of topical challenges so that each project can generate strong individual results and also contribute to wider aggregated impact across the programme¹.

Who can apply

The portal indicates that eligible applicants are drawn from EU Member States and, in some cases, EEA countries, with the exact country list set out in the call document. The topic is clearly designed for transnational social partner cooperation, so applicants should expect to build consortia that can demonstrate strong employee representation, company level social dialogue expertise, and delivery capacity across countries¹.

• Applicants should be organisations able to act in line with the call document eligibility rules and the EU financial and operational capacity requirements¹.
• The portal Q and A indicates that organisations may submit more than one proposal if the projects are different³.
• The portal Q and A also indicates that a public higher education and research institution may coordinate a multi beneficiary proposal if it is formally mandated by a trade union partner in the consortium³.
• Lead applicants must have the mandate to act for all applicants at submission stage and all beneficiaries must later sign a declaration of honour before grant signature¹.

Funding profile

The published budget is €2 500 000, and the call document summary indicates that the Commission expects to fund around 8 to 10 projects. The same summary reports an estimated EU contribution per project of €250 000 to €350 000 and a funding rate of up to 90 percent of eligible costs².

Submission requirements

1. 1Applications must be submitted electronically through the Funding and Tenders Portal; paper submissions are not accepted¹.
2. 2The application must include Part A, Part B, and any required annexes and supporting documents uploaded as PDF files¹.
3. 3The proposal must be readable, accessible and printable, and must not exceed 70 pages¹.
4. 4At submission, the lead applicant must confirm the mandate to represent all applicants and the correctness and completeness of the information provided¹.
5. 5Before grant signature, each beneficiary and affiliated entity must confirm eligibility and related declarations through the declaration of honour process¹.

Evaluation and timeline

The indicative timetable is as follows:call opening on 2 September 2026, submission deadline on 12 November 2026 at 17:00 Brussels time, evaluation from November 2026 to February 2027, information on results in February 2027, and grant agreement signature during March to April 2027¹.

Applicant takeaways

• The strongest proposals will directly address European Works Councils, gender balanced representation, restructuring preparedness, and support for just transition challenges linked to climate and digital change¹.
• Projects should be transnational and should show clear added value from cooperation between social partners at European level¹.
• The call is not a general social dialogue fund; it is targeted at topical challenges with measurable dissemination and implementation value¹.
• Applicants should plan early for compliant submission, partner mandates, and evidence of operational and financial capacity¹.

Call-specific contact:EMPL-SOCPL-2026-INFO-REPR@ec.europa.eu³

Footnotes

1. 1Official topic page on the EU Funding and Tenders Portal, including scope, conditions, admissibility rules, eligibility, evaluation criteria, and indicative timeline: EU Funding and Tenders Portal topic page
2. 2Call document summary and published overview for SOCPL-2026, including the total budget, expected number of projects, estimated grant range, funding rate, and indicative project duration: Call document PDF
3. 3Topic updates and Q and A on the Funding and Tenders Portal, including clarifications on multiple proposals, consortium coordination, and the call-specific contact email: Topic updates and Q and A