ERC Proposal Submission

Two hands are typing on a laptop computer. — Adobe Stock / Urupong

Proposals for ERC funding may be submitted annually for all ERC grants in accordance with proposal calls. The current calls for proposals and necessary related documents can be found on our ERC Proposal Submission page.

Preconditions for Starting, Consolidator and Advanced Grant Applications

There is a one-step submission process and a two-step evaluation process for Starting Grants, Consolidator Grants and Advanced Grants. Proposals are submitted online by the Principal Investigator (PI) via the host institution’s (Funding & Tenders Portal) account.

All applications must be submitted by PIs together with a public or private host institution. Any type of institution, including universities, research centres and companies can host PIs and their teams. The host institutions can either be an institution where the applicant already is located or an institution which will host the PI by the project start at the latest.

ATTENTION: The host institution must be located in an EU Member State or Horizon Europe Associated State.

ERC funding is awarded to the host institution on the condition that the institution commits to providing the PI with the appropriate working environment to lead the project’s research independently and to managing the project’s funding for the duration of the project. A Letter of Commitment from the host institution must be uploaded together with the proposal at the time of submission.

It is possible that one or more members of the ERC project team are based at other research institutions- in this case, these institutions can also be located in non-European countries.

Preconditions for Synergy Grant Applications

Synergy Grant (SyG) applications consist of a one-step submission process followed by a three-step evaluation process.

ERC SyG proposals are submitted online by the corresponding Principal Investigator (cPI) via the corresponding Host Institution’s (cHI’s) (Funding & Tenders Portal) account.

All other PIs in the SyG group are named as equal partners in the application. The cHI can be a university or other research institution within the EU or in a Horizon Europe Associated State.

One PI of the SyG group may also be resident at an institution in a non-European third country.

Upon submission, each hosting institute must provide written proof of its participation and its support for its PI(s) by issuing a Letter of Commitment. Letter of Commitment

Preconditions for the Proof of Concept Application

ERC Proof of Concept Grant (PoC) are aimed only at researchers who have already been awarded an ERC Grant for an ongoing project or for a project that concluded in the twelve months preceding 1st January of the respective call’s year as the reference date.

It is important that the proposal explains the relationship between the PoC project and the PI’s ERC project that provides the basis for the PoC project. Only one proposal may be submitted each call year.

A maximum of three PoC projects can be awarded for each ERC Starting, Consolidator and Advanced Grant project. A maximum of 6 PoC projects can be awarded for each ERC Synergy Grant project. One PI can lead multiple PoC projects at the same time.

For all proposal submissions from 2022 onwards (i.e. ERC-2022-PoC2), an Equality Plan (Gender Equality Plan, GEP) has to be submitted by the host institution, at the latest when signing the grant agreement. For more information and an overview of previously funded projects, please visit webseite ERC.

The ERC has published a video entitled "Secrets of the PoC proposal evaluation process" featuring a PoC reviewer explaining what she thinks makes a successful PoC application and giving advice to potential applicants. The video can be found here: Secrets of the PoC proposal evaluation process

General Submission Conditions

The following conditions must be taken into account when submitting an application:

The basis for application submission is the ERC's annual ERC-Work Programme. Only one submission within an ERC-Work Programme is allowed (if accepted for review).
One PI can only be granted one ERC Grant at a time (with the exception of PoC). New proposals can only be submitted during the last two years preceding the conclusion of an ERC grant. ERC PoC applications can also be submitted during ongoing ERC research grants.
If a PI is involved in the evaluation of a Call, the PI is not allowed to submit a proposal for that Call. PIs who have been involved in the evaluation process within the two years preceding a call are also not allowed to submit a proposal to the call in question.
The host institution must engage the PI at least for the duration of the project. For PIs, however, it is possible to change host institutions at any time during an ongoing project.

Resubmissions

Applications that were rejected in a previous review are subject to certain resubmission rules.

Please note: these rules always depend on the ERC-Work Programme where the new application is being submitted. In principle, the rules can be changed every year.
Applications rejected for formal reasons (ineligible proposals) can be resubmitted and are not subject to any additional resubmission requirements. If an ERC project is evaluated and then rejected, the project can be resubmitted (apart from Proof of Concept applications). The respective Work Programmes resubmission rules apply.

Applicants Holding a Degree in Medicine

For applicants holding an MD or ‘Dr.med.’ degree: to be considered eligible as Principal Investigator, you must additionally provide proof of a position requiring the equivalent of a doctoral degree and must provide information on your research experience following the receipt of your medical degree with your application.

Additionally, for applicants with a "Dr. med." degree, it is important to note that the reference date for calculating your research application timeframe is the date of completion of your third state examination (“3. Staatsexamen”).