Support to the implementation of Multi-Country Projects: EDIC Support Hub

DIGITAL-2026 invites proposals to establish an EDIC Support Hub delivering legal and operational advice, a consolidated EDIC data repository, a community of practice, an annual EDIC Gathering and yearly impact reports to feed into the State of the Digital Decade Report. The call is a single Coordination and Support Action under the Digital Europe Programme with an indicative budget of €1,000,000, 100% funding rate and a project duration of 36 months. Eligible applicants are legal entities established in eligible countries, submitted either by a single established EDIC or ERIC or by a consortium that includes at least one established EDIC or ERIC, and proposals must be submitted electronically via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal by 01 October 2026 (17:00 CEST). Proposals will be evaluated against Relevance, Implementation and Impact (threshold 3/5 each, overall 10/15) and must comply with the Digital Europe Model Grant Agreement, ethics, security and reporting requirements.

Support to the implementation of Multi-Country Projects: EDIC Support Hub

Call at a glance

Essential facts

What it funds: Establishment and operation of an EDIC Support Hub delivering legal, operational and coordination advice to European Digital Infrastructure Consortia (EDICs) and Member States; a consolidated data and information repository (including best practices and quantified EDIC results where possible); a community of practice; annual EDIC Gathering; and annual impact reporting to feed into the State of the Digital Decade Report.

Who can apply:Eligible applicants: an established EDIC or an established ERIC as single applicant, or a consortium that includes at least one established EDIC or ERIC; legal entities (public or private) established in countries eligible for the Digital Europe Programme. See call document for full eligibility and consortium rules Call document ¹.

1. 1Type of action: DIGITAL Coordination and Support Action (DIGITAL-CSA)
2. 2Funding rate: 100% (budget-based mixed actual cost grant)
3. 3Project duration: typical 36 months; detailed milestones and deliverables required

Scope highlights: legal and compliance advice (DDPP and other EU/national law), central repository and data processing to generate evidence on EDIC results, liaison and coordination across EDICs and MCP mechanisms, support to identify and mobilise new EDIC initiatives, community building and outreach, and annual impact reporting aligned with EU digital policy.

Application essentials: single-stage electronic submission via the Funding & Tenders Portal; proposals limited to the page limits and templates in the Submission System; standard eligibility, financial capacity and evaluation checks apply. See the portal topic page for templates and submission steps Portal topic.

Footnotes

1. 1Full call conditions, evaluation criteria, admissibility and budget details are in the official call document: ec.europa.eu

Support to the implementation of Multi-Country Projects: EDIC Support Hub (DIGITAL-2026-BESTUSE-MCP-10-HUB)

Call at a glance

Programme: Digital Europe Programme (DIGITAL). Call identifier: DIGITAL-2026. Call title: Support to the implementation of Multi-Country Projects: EDIC Support Hub. Type of action: DIGITAL Coordination and Support Actions (DIGITAL-CSA). Type of Model Grant Agreement: DIGITAL Action Grant Budget-Based (DIGITAL-AG). Planned opening date: 21 April 2026. Deadline date: 1 October 2026, 17:00 Brussels time. Deadline model: single-stage. Indicative budget for the topic: €1 000 000. Indicative number of grants: 1. Project duration: 36 months. Funding rate: 100% (Coordination and Support Action).

Purpose, objectives and scope

Purpose: to establish an EDIC Support Hub that provides legal, operational, coordination and strategic support to European Digital Infrastructure Consortia (EDICs), Member States and the European Commission for the consolidation, sustainability, transparency, outreach and strategic development of the EDIC ecosystem as a Multi-Country Projects (MCP) implementation mechanism.

Expected outcomes and core deliverables: 1) Comprehensive legal and operational advice to established EDICs, a maintained repository of legal/operational guidance, support to Member States and the Commission in identifying and mobilising new EDIC initiatives, outreach activities and reporting to feed into the State of the Digital Decade Report; creation and maintenance of a consolidated data and information repository on EDICs including best practices and quantified EDIC results where possible; liaising and coordination between EDICs and other MCP implementation mechanisms; evidence-based proposals for future EDIC ecosystem milestones aligned with EU digital policy. 2) Establishment of an EDIC community of practice including knowledge-sharing, collaborative projects, outreach and knowledge management. 3) Organisation of an Annual EDIC Gathering for the EDIC community and stakeholders under Commission policy steering. 4) Annual impact report covering the project as a whole and each EDIC, timed to feed into the State of the Digital Decade Report.

Who should apply and eligible applicant types

Who may lead and participate: legal entities (public or private bodies) established in eligible countries. Proposals must be submitted either by a single established European Digital Infrastructure Consortium (EDIC) or a single established European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC), or by a consortium that includes at least one established EDIC or at least one established ERIC together with other relevant public and private organisations. Natural persons (except self-employed persons where the legal form is a sole trader) and international organisations are not generally eligible, except International Organisations of European Interest as defined by the Digital Europe Regulation. Affiliated entities, associated partners, subcontractors and third parties giving in-kind contributions can be part of project consortia in defined roles.

Eligible applicant types:European Digital Infrastructure Consortia (EDICs), European Research Infrastructure Consortia (ERICs), universities, research institutes, public bodies, SMEs, large enterprises and other public or private legal entities established in eligible countries. Associated partners, subcontractors, affiliated entities, third parties giving in-kind contributions and recipients of financial support to third parties are allowed in the roles described in the Call document.

Funding mechanism and financial conditions

Funding type: EU action grant awarded as a Coordination and Support Action (CSA) under the Digital Europe Programme. Funding modality: budget-based mixed actual cost grant with allowed unit costs/flat rates as specified in the DEP Model Grant Agreement. Funding rate: 100% of eligible costs (Coordination and Support Action). Topic budget: €1 000 000 (indicative). Maximum grant amount: no pre-set ceiling stated in the topic text, but the call budget for the topic is €1 000 000 and the indicative number of grants is 1, so applicants should request realistic budgets within that envelope.

Co-funding requirement:No mandatory co-funding is required for this Coordination and Support Action since the funding rate is 100%. Projects must still ensure financial capacity and may show additional resources or income where applicable.

Consortium composition and consortium requirement

Consortium requirement: the call allows either a single-applicant model when the single applicant is an established EDIC or an established ERIC, or a consortium that must include at least one established EDIC or at least one established ERIC. If submitted as a consortium, partners may include public authorities, research organisations, private organisations and others contributing to MCP implementation.

Geographic eligibility and targeted beneficiaries

Beneficiary scope: applicants must be legal entities established in one of the eligible countries defined in section 6 of the call document. Eligible countries include EU Member States (and their Overseas Countries and Territories where applicable), EEA countries and countries associated to the Digital Europe Programme, subject to the list of participating countries. Participation by entities from countries negotiating association or subject to restrictive or conditionality measures is covered by special provisions in the call documentation. Where relevant, national rules and security ownership/control declarations may apply.

Mentioned countries or regions:European Union Member States, Overseas Countries and Territories where applicable, EEA countries and countries associated with the Digital Europe Programme. The call text repeatedly references Member States and the European Commission as primary stakeholders.

Target sector, maturity and project stage

Primary sector: Digital policy, digital infrastructure governance, ICT and public sector digital transformation. The topic supports multi-country deployment and capacity-building mechanisms through EDICs and is policy-driven coordination support rather than technology R&D. Expected project stage: implementation and consolidation of an organisational support hub, community-building, knowledge management and evidence generation (maturity: operational/implementation-focused rather than basic research). The action should process data, create repositories, provide legal/operational advice and organise events and reporting.

What applicants will receive

Nature of support: financial (grant funding) and non-financial services. The beneficiary will receive EU grant funding to implement the EDIC Support Hub activities. The project will also deliver non-monetary outputs and services: legal and operational advice, knowledge repositories, coordination services, community of practice activities, events, annual impact reporting and liaison services with stakeholders.

Budget, financial rules and eligible costs

Indicative call budget: €1 000 000 for the topic and an indicative single grant expected. Funding form: budget-based mixed actual cost grant with unit costs and flat-rate elements where provided by the DEP Model Grant Agreement. Project duration: 36 months. Eligible cost categories include personnel (employees, seconded persons, natural persons under direct contract and SME owners/natural person beneficiaries where applicable), subcontracting, purchases (travel and subsistence actual costs, equipment depreciation or specified full-cost rules as per call), other goods/works/services, financial support to third parties (allowed with per-recipient limits and conditions), internally invoiced goods and services and a flat-rate indirect cost at 7% of eligible direct costs. VAT rules: non-deductible/non-refundable VAT is eligible except when public bodies acting as public authority (special rules apply). Equipment for this topic: depreciation only (call-specific condition). Financial support to third parties: allowed with maximum €60 000 per third party unless higher amount is justified and foreseen in the application and approved by the granting authority.

Key financial limits and rules:Part B proposal page limit: maximum 50 pages. Personnel costs: daily rate method or average personnel costs unit option where applicable. Travel and subsistence: actual costs only (not unit cost). Indirect costs: 7% flat-rate of eligible direct costs (categories A-D). Equipment: depreciation only for this topic. Financial support to third parties: per-third-party ceiling €60 000 unless justified and permitted.

Application, submission and evaluation

Application type and submission method: open single-stage call for proposals submitted electronically only via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal Electronic Submission System. Applicants must register participants in the Participant Register and use the Application Form templates provided in the Submission System. Part A is completed online. Part B (technical description) must be downloaded from the Submission System, completed and uploaded as PDF together with mandatory annexes. Proposals must be submitted before the call deadline; paper submissions are not accepted. Part B is limited to 50 pages and evaluators will disregard excess pages.

1. 1Submission via the Funding & Tenders Portal; Part A administrative forms completed online.
2. 2Part B technical description uploaded as PDF using the DEP application template from the Submission System; limited to 50 pages.
3. 3Mandatory annexes and supporting documents uploaded in the Submission System (list of previous projects for the last 4 years template is mandatory where required).
4. 4Proposals must include the participant PICs and the coordinator mandate to act on behalf of all applicants.

Evaluation process, award criteria and thresholds: one-stage submission and one-step evaluation by an evaluation committee assisted by independent external experts. Admissibility and eligibility checks first. Award criteria: Relevance (max 5), Implementation (max 5) and Impact (max 5). Minimum thresholds per criterion: 3/5. Overall threshold: 10/15. Proposals passing individual thresholds and the overall threshold will be considered for funding within the available budget and ranked by score. Tie-breaking rules prioritise thematic coverage, then Relevance scores, then Impact, then Implementation, and finally portfolio balance and synergies.

Application stages to obtain the grant:1) Online submission of the complete application via the Portal; 2) Evaluation by independent experts and panel; 3) Invitation to grant preparation for successful proposals; 4) Grant signature after legal and financial checks. For the purposes of this summary, applicants should expect at least 3 formal stages (submission, evaluation, grant preparation/award).

Timetable and indicative timeline

Call opening: 21 April 2026. Deadline: 1 October 2026 (17:00 Brussels time). Evaluation: October–November 2026 (indicative). Information on evaluation results: January–February 2027 (indicative). Grant Agreement (GA) signature: May–June 2027 (indicative). Project starting date normally after GA signature; project duration is 36 months.

Number of expected grants and success rate guidance

Indicative number of grants: 1. The call budget for this topic is €1 000 000 and the topic text states an indicative single grant. The call does not publish an applicant number, so an absolute success rate cannot be determined from the call text. Given the single-grant allocation, competition is expected to be strong and successful selection will be merit-based against the defined award criteria and thresholds.

Eligibility checks, capacity and exclusions

Eligibility checks include legal entity validation via the Participant Register, confirmation of mandate to act for all applicants, eligibility of countries, consortium composition rules, and the requirement that applicants are legal entities. Financial capacity and operational capacity checks will be performed during grant preparation; public bodies and small grants may be exempt from some checks. Exclusion grounds under the EU Financial Regulation apply (bankruptcy, fraud, significant misconduct, breaches of tax/social security obligations, sanctions, etc.). Special conditions apply for entities subject to EU restrictive or conditionality measures.

Templates, forms and application structure

Application templates and mandatory documents: use the DEP Application Form templates available inside the Submission System. Part A administrative forms are completed online in the Portal. Part B technical description must be completed using the DEP Part B template (download from Submission System) and uploaded as PDF. Mandatory annexes and templates are available in the Submission System (e.g., list of previous projects template where required). The call document is the authoritative source for admissibility, eligibility, evaluation procedures and award criteria.

1. 1Application Form Part A: online administrative information, participant PICs, summary budget and declarations.
2. 2Application Form Part B: narrative technical description using the DEP template. Maximum 50 pages for this topic; include Work Packages, objectives, methodology, management, risk management, deliverables, milestones, KPIs, dissemination and exploitation plan and budget justification.
3. 3Annexes: list of previous projects (last 4 years) template, other annexes as specified in the Submission System (financial statements or certificates only if requested during grant preparation).
4. 4Model Grant Agreement: DEP MGA will be used; applicants should read the MGA and Annotated Model Grant Agreement (AGA) included in the call documents.
5. 5Supporting documentation: legal entity validation documents, bank account validation, LEAR appointment and financial capacity documents during grant preparation as requested.

Evaluation criteria and KPIs

Award criteria and thresholds: Relevance, Implementation and Impact. Individual thresholds: 3/5 per criterion. Overall threshold: 10/15. KPIs listed in the topic text that evaluators will use to measure outcomes include quality and accessibility of the consolidated data and information repository on EDICs, number and quality of workshops/events, number of EDICs in preparation supported, number of potential EDIC initiatives identified, stakeholder involvement, quality and number of community of practice activities, quality and effectiveness of the Annual EDIC Gathering and quality of the annual impact report.

Administrative, legal and security considerations

Legal and financial set-up will follow the DEP MGA. Project deliverables, milestones and reporting obligations will be included in Annex 1 of the Grant Agreement. Ethics review is required and must comply with EU, international and national law including GDPR. Projects involving AI systems will be checked against ethics principles and robustness. Projects possibly involving EU classified information will require security scrutiny and compliance with the security aspects letter; facility security clearance or personnel security clearance may be required. Participants must not be subject to EU restrictive measures or conditionality measures restricting participation.

Key compliance points:Adhere to DDPP Decision compliance for EDICs, ensure repository and data operations respect GDPR, include evidence-collection methods for quantified EDIC results, ensure deliverable timing allows feeding into the State of the Digital Decade Report, and complete ethics and security self-assessments in Part A of the application.

Practical advice for applicants

Read the Call document, DEP Model Grant Agreement and Online Manual carefully. Register organisations early in the Participant Register to obtain PICs and validate LEARs. Prepare Part B within the 50-page limit, focusing on relevance to the EDIC ecosystem, clear work packages for the Hub functions (legal/advisory service, data repository, community of practice, annual event, annual impact report), measurable KPIs and a credible implementation and dissemination plan. Ensure evidence of operational capacity and provide the consortium agreement if required. Use the Submission System templates and attach all mandatory annexes. Contact CNECT-MCP-ACCELERATOR@ec.europa.eu for call-related questions; use the IT Helpdesk for Portal issues.

1. 1Design a clear WP structure: WP1 Management; WP2 Legal and operational advisory services and repository; WP3 Community of practice and knowledge management; WP4 Annual EDIC Gathering and outreach; WP5 Impact assessment and reporting.
2. 2Quantify expected repository outputs and KPIs and define data collection and processing methods compatible with GDPR.
3. 3Propose an annual reporting timeline aligned with the State of the Digital Decade Report cycle.
4. 4If providing financial support to third parties, include selection criteria, maximum amounts and administration procedures according to call rules.

Application form templates and structure (DEP Application Form guidance)

Use the DEP Application Form provided in the Submission System. Part A (administrative) is completed online and includes general information, participants, budget summary and mandatory declarations. Part B is the technical description structured along the award criteria and work plan and must be uploaded as PDF using the template from the Submission System. Part B suggested structure: project summary; 1 Relevance: objectives and activities, synergies, contribution to digital policy; 2 Implementation: maturity, implementation plan, project management, risks, capacity and consortium roles; 3 Impact: expected outcomes and deliverables, dissemination and communication, competitiveness and societal benefits, environmental sustainability; 4 Work plan: WPs, activities, deliverables, milestones, resources, timing, staff effort, subcontracting and budget justification; 5 Other: ethics and security; 6 Declarations. Annexes: list of previous projects and other templates as required. Part B for this topic is limited to 50 pages.

Call-specific constraints and special conditions

Consortium composition specific condition: the applicant must be an established EDIC or ERIC as single applicant, or the consortium must include at least one established EDIC or one established ERIC. Equipment cost reimbursement modality for this topic: depreciation only. Access rights to ensure continuity and interoperability obligations apply. The award criterion item 'extent to which the proposal can overcome financial obstacles such as the lack of market finance' is exceptionally not applicable for this topic. Financial support to third parties is allowed with per-recipient limits and conditions in the call document. Country eligibility and security/ownership control restrictions may apply in other topics but for this topic standard DEP eligibility rules apply as described in the call document.

For authoritative details, applicants must consult the Call document (DEP Call fiche) and the DEP Model Grant Agreement; the call document provides full legal, eligibility and evaluation rules and templates available on the Funding & Tenders Portal Call document - DIGITAL-2026-BESTUSE-MCP-10-HUB. ¹

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

This call aims to fund one Coordination and Support Action to set up an EDIC Support Hub that will strengthen and coordinate the European Digital Infrastructure Consortia ecosystem. The Hub will provide legal and operational advice, maintain a legal/operational repository, create and operate a consolidated data and information repository on EDICs (including best practices and quantified results where possible), coordinate between EDICs and MCP implementation mechanisms, support the identification and mobilisation of new EDIC initiatives, run a community of practice, organise an annual EDIC Gathering, and deliver annual impact reports timed to feed into the European Commission’s State of the Digital Decade Report. The topic is part of the Digital Europe Programme and is funded at 100% as a Coordination and Support Action. Applicants must be legal entities established in eligible countries, and proposals must be submitted via the Funding & Tenders Portal using the DEP Application Form templates. The call has strict eligibility and consortium composition rules requiring either an established EDIC or ERIC as applicant or as a mandatory consortium member, a 50-page limit for Part B, and an indicative budget of €1 000 000 for one grant. Successful applicants will be evaluated against Relevance, Implementation and Impact criteria and must comply with DEP MGA terms, ethics and security checks, and reporting obligations. The funded Hub will combine financial support for project implementation with significant non-monetary outputs and services to consolidate and sustain the EDIC ecosystem and support EU digital policy objectives.

Footnotes

1. 1The full call fiche, application templates, the DEP Model Grant Agreement and additional documents (Work Programme, EU Financial Regulation, Online Manual and IPR/security/ethics guidance) are published on the Funding & Tenders Portal topic page and must be consulted for all mandatory details and templates: ec.europa.eu

EDIC Support Hub: EU Funding Opportunity Analysis

Funding Opportunity Overview

This call establishes an EDIC Support Hub to provide comprehensive legal, operational, and coordination support to European Digital Infrastructure Consortia (EDICs), Member States, and the European Commission. The initiative aims to consolidate and strengthen the EDIC ecosystem while supporting the development of new EDIC initiatives aligned with EU digital policy objectives.

Call Identifier and Programme:DIGITAL-2026 under the Digital Europe Programme (DIGITAL), specifically within the Accelerating the Best Use of Technologies call.

Funding Amount:Total available budget is €1,000,000 for a single grant award. No limit on individual project budget requests, though the grant awarded may be lower than requested.

Project Duration:36 months, with extensions possible if duly justified through amendment.

Funding Rate:100% funding rate for Coordination and Support Actions (CSA). This is a fully funded action type.

Key Dates and Submission Timeline

Eligibility and Consortium Requirements

Eligible Participants

Applicants must be legal entities (public or private bodies) established in eligible countries: EU Member States (including overseas countries and territories), EEA countries, or countries associated with the Digital Europe Programme. Natural persons are not eligible except self-employed persons where the company lacks separate legal personality.

Mandatory Consortium Composition

Proposals must be submitted by one of the following: an established European Digital Infrastructure Consortium as a single applicant, an established European Research Infrastructure Consortium as a single applicant, or a consortium including at least one established EDIC or ERIC with other relevant private and public organisations contributing to Multi-Country Project implementation.

All beneficiaries and affiliated entities must register in the Participant Register before proposal submission and undergo validation by the Central Validation Service (REA Validation).

Ineligible Entities

• EU bodies (except European Commission Joint Research Centre)
• International organisations (unless they are International organisations of European Interest)
• Entities subject to EU restrictive measures under Article 29 TEU and Article 215 TFEU
• Entities subject to EU conditionality measures under Regulation 2020/2092 (currently Hungarian public interest trusts)
• Entities in exclusion situations: bankruptcy, breach of tax/social obligations, grave professional misconduct, fraud, corruption, terrorism-related crimes, or significant deficiencies in EU contract compliance

Expected Outcomes and Deliverables

The EDIC Support Hub must deliver four main categories of outcomes:

1. 1Comprehensive support to EDICs, the Commission and Member States including legal and operational advice to established EDICs with compliance documentation; support for EDICs in preparation and identification of new initiatives; creation and maintenance of consolidated data and information repository on EDICs with best practices and quantified results; liaison and coordination between EDICs and other Multi-Country Project mechanisms; strategic development proposals for the EDIC ecosystem
2. 2Establishment of an EDIC community of practice with knowledge-sharing activities, collaborative projects, outreach events, and knowledge management to build shared expertise
3. 3Organisation of an Annual EDIC Gathering addressed to the EDIC Community and relevant stakeholders following European Commission policy steering
4. 4Annual impact reports covering the project as a whole and each European Digital Infrastructure Consortium, with proposed milestones for future EDIC ecosystem development aligned with EU digital policy objectives, timed to feed into the State of the Digital Decade Report

Key Performance Indicators

• Quality and accessibility of consolidated data and information repository on EDICs including best practices and quantified results
• Quality and number of targeted thematic workshops or events addressing common EDIC challenges
• Number of EDICs in preparation supported
• Number of potential EDIC initiatives identified
• Number and variety of stakeholders involved
• Quality and number of knowledge-sharing activities, collaborative projects, outreach and other events within the EDIC Community of Practice
• Quality and effectiveness of the Annual EDIC Gathering measured by participation and participant satisfaction
• Quality of yearly impact reports covering the project and each EDIC with proposed strategic development milestones

Application and Submission Requirements

Submission Process

All proposals must be submitted electronically via the EU Funding and Tenders Portal Electronic Submission System. Paper submissions are not accepted. Submission is a two-step process: first, create an EU Login user account and register organisations in the Participant Register to obtain a 9-digit participant identification code (PIC); second, submit the proposal through the Portal.

Application Form Structure

Proposals consist of three parts: Part A (administrative information about participants and summarised budget, filled directly online), Part B (technical description of the project, downloaded as template, completed, and re-uploaded as PDF), and mandatory annexes including list of previous projects for the last 4 years.

Page Limits:Part B is limited to maximum 50 pages. Evaluators will not consider additional pages. Minimum font size is Arial 9 points with margins of at least 15mm on all sides.

Mandatory Documents

• Application Form Part A (administrative information)
• Application Form Part B (technical description, maximum 50 pages)
• List of previous projects (key projects for the last 4 years, template provided)
• Proof of national designation for each EDIC or ERIC participant (if applicable)

At proposal submission, applicants must confirm they have the mandate to act for all participants and that all participants comply with eligibility, financial and operational capacity, and exclusion conditions. Each beneficiary and affiliated entity must sign a declaration of honour before grant signature.

Evaluation and Award Criteria

Evaluation Process

Proposals follow a single-stage submission with one-step evaluation. An evaluation committee assisted by independent experts assesses all applications. Proposals are first checked for formal requirements (admissibility and eligibility), then evaluated against operational capacity and award criteria, and ranked by score.

Award Criteria and Scoring

Proposals must achieve individual thresholds of 3/5 for each criterion and an overall threshold of 10 points to be considered for funding. The following award criteria elements are NOT applicable to this topic: extent to which the proposal can overcome financial obstacles such as lack of market finance.

Relevance Criterion

• Alignment with the objectives and activities described in the call
• Contribution to long-term policy objectives, relevant policies and strategies, and synergies with activities at European and national level
• Extent to which the project would reinforce and secure the digital technology supply chain in the EU

Implementation Criterion

• Maturity of the project and state of preparation
• Soundness of the implementation plan and efficient use of resources
• Capacity of the applicants and consortium to carry out the proposed work

Impact Criterion

• Extent to which the project will achieve expected outcomes and deliverables with plans to disseminate and communicate achievements
• Extent to which the project will strengthen competitiveness and bring important benefits for society
• Extent to which the project addresses environmental sustainability and European Green Deal goals

Financial and Operational Capacity Requirements

Financial Capacity

Applicants must have stable and sufficient resources to successfully implement the project and contribute their share. Financial capacity checks are normally conducted for all beneficiaries except public bodies and international organisations, and when the individual requested grant amount exceeds €60,000. The check is based on neutral financial indicators and considers dependency on EU funding, deficit and revenue history. If financial capacity is unsatisfactory, the granting authority may require further information, enhanced financial responsibility regimes, prefinancing paid in instalments, prefinancing guarantees, or propose no prefinancing.

Operational Capacity

Applicants must demonstrate know-how, qualifications and resources to successfully implement the project, including sufficient experience in projects of comparable size and nature. Capacity is assessed through the Implementation award criterion based on competence and experience of applicants and project teams, including operational resources (human, technical and other), or measures proposed to obtain such resources by task implementation start. Applicants must provide general profiles of staff responsible for managing and implementing the project, descriptions of consortium participants, and a list of previous key projects for the last 4 years.

Budget and Cost Eligibility

Budget Categories

• 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.1 Travel and subsistence, C.2 Equipment, C.3 Other goods, works and services)
• D. Other cost categories (D.1 Financial support to third parties, D.2 Internally invoiced goods and services)
• E. Indirect costs (7% flat-rate of eligible direct costs)

Cost Eligibility Conditions

Personnel costs use average personnel costs as unit cost according to usual cost accounting practices. Travel and subsistence are reimbursed as actual costs only. Equipment costs are reimbursed through depreciation only. Financial support to third parties is allowed with a maximum amount per third party of €60,000 unless higher amounts are justified because the action objective would otherwise be impossible or overly difficult to achieve. Indirect costs are calculated at 7% of eligible direct costs (categories A-D, except volunteers costs and exempted specific cost categories).

VAT Treatment:Non-deductible and non-refundable VAT is eligible. VAT paid by public bodies acting as public authority is not eligible.

Ineligible Costs

• Costs not complying with eligibility conditions including return on capital, dividends, debt service, provisions for future losses, interest owed, currency exchange losses, bank transfer costs, excessive expenditure, deductible or refundable VAT
• Costs declared under other EU grants (except Synergy actions or when combined with operating grants with clear separation)
• Costs for staff of national administration for activities that are part of normal administration
• Travel and subsistence costs for EU institution staff or representatives
• Costs for activities not taking place in eligible countries (unless approved by granting authority)

Grant Agreement and Payment Arrangements

Grant Form and Type

The grant is a budget-based mixed actual cost grant (action grant) reimbursing only eligible costs actually incurred. It may include unit costs and flat-rate elements. The grant will not produce profit; for-profit organisations must declare revenues and any surplus will be deducted from the final grant amount.

Payment Schedule

Prefinancing is normally 65% of the maximum grant amount. Payments are made in euro to the coordinator's bank account and must be distributed to other beneficiaries without unjustified delay. The granting authority bears costs of transfers charged by its bank; beneficiaries bear costs charged by their banks.

Prefinancing Guarantees

If required, prefinancing guarantees are normally equal to or lower than the prefinancing amount. Guarantees must be in euro issued by an approved bank or financial institution established in an EU Member State. Non-EU beneficiaries may exceptionally provide guarantees from their country if offering equivalent security. Guarantees are released at the end of the grant according to conditions in the Grant Agreement.

Reporting and Certificates

Beneficiaries must provide continuous reporting through the Portal Continuous Reporting tool and periodic reports (additional prefinancing reports and periodic reports for interim and final payments). Periodic reports include technical and financial parts with financial statements for all beneficiaries and affiliated entities. Certificates on financial statements (CFS) are required if the requested EU contribution to costs is €325,000 or more at final payment.

Specific Topic Conditions

• Specific consortium composition conditions apply: proposals must include at least one established EDIC or ERIC
• Equipment costs are reimbursed through depreciation only
• Access rights to ensure continuity and interoperability obligations apply
• The award criterion on overcoming financial obstacles is NOT applicable to this topic

Ethics, Security and Compliance

Ethics Requirements

Projects must comply with the highest ethical standards and applicable EU, international and national law. Proposals will undergo ethics review to authorise funding and may be subject to specific ethics rules becoming part of the Grant Agreement. For proposals involving AI systems development, testing, deployment, use or distribution, ethics review will check compliance with principles of human agency and oversight, diversity/fairness, transparency and responsible social impact.

Security Requirements

Projects involving EU classified information must undergo security scrutiny. Projects involving information classified TRES SECRET UE/EU TOP SECRET cannot be funded. Classified information must be marked according to applicable security instructions. Information classified CONFIDENTIEL UE/EU CONFIDENTIAL or above may be created or accessed only on premises with facility security clearance from competent national security authorities, handled only in secured areas, and accessed only by persons with valid personnel security clearance and need-to-know. Classified information subcontracting requires prior written granting authority approval and can only be performed by entities in EU Member States or non-EU countries with EU security agreements.

Data Protection

Beneficiaries must process personal data in compliance with applicable EU, international and national law, particularly Regulation 2016/679 (GDPR). Data must be processed lawfully, fairly and transparently, collected for specified purposes, adequate and relevant, accurate, kept securely, and retained only as long as necessary. Personnel access to personal data is restricted to those with strict necessity and confidentiality obligations.

Intellectual Property Rights and Dissemination

The granting authority does not obtain ownership of results produced under the action. Beneficiaries must give each other and other participants access to background identified as needed for implementing the action. The granting authority has royalty-free, non-exclusive and irrevocable licence rights to use non-sensitive information, materials and documents for policy, information, communication, dissemination and publicity purposes, including rights to use, distribute, edit, translate, store, archive and authorise third parties to act on its behalf.

Communication and Visibility

Beneficiaries must promote the action and its results by providing targeted information to multiple audiences in a strategic, coherent and effective manner. Communication activities must acknowledge EU support and display the European flag and funding statement. The emblem must remain distinct and separate and cannot be modified. When displayed with other logos, the emblem must be at least as prominent and visible. All communication must use factually accurate information and include a disclaimer that views expressed are those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or granting authority.

Record-Keeping and Audit Requirements

Beneficiaries must keep records and supporting documents for at least 5 years after final payment (or 3 years for grants not exceeding €60,000) to prove proper action implementation and justify declared amounts. For actual costs, adequate records and supporting documents must prove costs declared with direct reconciliation between declared amounts, amounts recorded in accounts, and amounts in supporting documents. For personnel costs, time worked must be supported by monthly declarations signed by the person and supervisor unless another reliable time-record system is in place. Records must be made available upon request or during checks, reviews, audits or investigations. Original documents must be kept; digital and digitalised documents are considered originals if authorised by applicable national law.

Checks, Audits and Investigations

The granting authority may conduct checks, reviews and audits to verify proper implementation and compliance with obligations. OLAF, EPPO and the European Court of Auditors may conduct audits and investigations. Beneficiaries must allow access to records for assessing simplified forms of funding. Findings from checks on other grants may be extended to this grant. Beneficiaries must keep records until the end of any ongoing checks, reviews, audits, investigations, litigation or other claims.

Consequences of Non-Compliance

Grant Reduction

The grant may be reduced if beneficiaries breach obligations regarding proper implementation, conflict of interests, confidentiality and security, ethics and values, data protection, intellectual property rights, communication and visibility, or specific action rules.

Suspension and Termination

Payment deadlines may be suspended if reports do not comply with requirements. Payments may be suspended if beneficiaries breach obligations. The grant agreement may be suspended or terminated by the consortium or the EU. Individual beneficiaries may be terminated from the consortium. Grounds for EU-initiated termination include failure to implement the action, breach of obligations, events affecting implementation, or circumstances affecting the award decision or compliance with requirements.

Recoveries

If the granting authority has paid too much, recovery of undue amounts will be made. At final payment, the coordinator is fully liable for recoveries. At beneficiary termination or after final payment, recoveries are made directly against beneficiaries concerned. Beneficiaries are fully liable for repaying debts of their affiliated entities. In case of enforced recoveries, beneficiaries may be jointly and severally liable for repaying debts of other beneficiaries, and affiliated entities may be held liable for repaying debts of their beneficiaries.

Applicable Law and Dispute Settlement

The standard applicable law regime is EU law plus the law of Belgium. For EU beneficiaries, disputes are settled by the EU General Court with appeal to the EU Court of Justice. For non-EU beneficiaries, disputes are settled by courts of Brussels, Belgium, unless an international agreement provides for enforceability of EU court judgements. Special dispute settlement forums (such as arbitration) may apply to specific beneficiaries if selected for the grant.

Support and Guidance

For individual questions on the Portal Submission System, contact the IT Helpdesk. For non-IT related questions, contact CNECT-MCP-ACCELERATOR@ec.europa.eu. Applicants should consult the Portal Topic page regularly for updates and additional information. The EU Funding and Tenders Portal Online Manual provides step-by-step guidance through proposal preparation and evaluation to reporting on ongoing projects. The EU Grants AGA (Annotated Grant Agreement) contains detailed annotations on all Grant Agreement provisions.

Important Reminders for Applicants

• Complete applications sufficiently in advance of the deadline to avoid last-minute technical problems; call deadlines cannot be extended
• All beneficiaries, affiliated entities and associated partners must be registered in the Participant Register before proposal submission
• Consortium roles should be attributed according to participation level; main participants should be beneficiaries or affiliated entities
• Subcontracting beyond 30% of total eligible costs must be justified
• Ensure balanced project budgets with sufficient other resources (own contributions, income generated, third-party contributions)
• No double funding is permitted; any given action may receive only ONE grant from the EU budget
• Applicants may submit multiple proposals for different projects under the same call but only one application will be accepted for very similar projects
• Proposals may be changed and re-submitted until the deadline
• By submitting applications, all applicants accept the call conditions; non-compliant proposals will be rejected
• Information about awarded grants is published annually on the Europa website including beneficiary names, addresses, purpose and maximum amount awarded
• Submission of a proposal involves collection, use and processing of personal data according to the Funding and Tenders Portal Privacy Statement

Context: European Digital Infrastructure Consortia

EDICs are legal structures created under the Digital Decade Policy Programme 2030 to enable EU Member States to pool resources efficiently for implementing joint digital infrastructure. The main objective is to provide a legal framework for multi-country projects that single Member States cannot effectively establish alone. EDICs facilitate coordination of funding and enable speedy establishment and flexible implementation of multi-country projects. As of February 2026, five EDICs have been formally established: the Alliance for Language Technologies EDIC, Local Digital Twins towards the CitiVERSE EDIC, the EUROPEUM EDIC, the Digital Commons EDIC, and the Innovative Massive Public Administration interConnected Transformation Services European Digital Infrastructure Consortium (IMPACTS-EDIC). Further EDICs are in preparation and more initiatives are under consideration. ¹

Footnotes

1. 1Information on EDICs is available at EDIC Information. The ALT-EDIC is an EDIC dedicated to language technologies enabling pooling of resources to develop Large Language Models more efficiently than any single member country could do alone.