To be eligible for Horizon Europe funding in 2026, applicants must generally be legal entities established in an EU Member State or an associated country, participating as part of a consortium that meets minimum composition rules. The programme is open to a wide range of organisations, including universities, research institutes, companies, public bodies, and NGOs. The sections below break down each key eligibility dimension in detail.
Who is eligible to apply for Horizon Europe funding?
Any legal entity, regardless of its place of establishment, can in principle participate in Horizon Europe. This includes universities, research and technology organisations (RTOs), small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), large companies, public authorities, international organisations, and non-governmental organisations. However, to receive EU funding, most participants must be established in an EU Member State or a country associated with Horizon Europe.
Researchers and innovators working as individuals are not eligible to apply directly in most funding schemes, with the notable exception of the European Research Council (ERC) and Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA), which support individual researchers under specific conditions. For the vast majority of collaborative projects under Pillar II (Global Challenges and European Industrial Competitiveness), the applicant is the organisation itself, not an individual.
NGOs and civil society organisations are explicitly recognised as eligible participants, making Horizon Europe one of the more inclusive major research funding programmes globally. Government bodies, including national ministries and regional authorities, are also welcome participants, particularly in projects addressing public policy, health, or climate adaptation.
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Which countries can participate in Horizon Europe in 2026?
In 2026, Horizon Europe participation is open to three categories of countries: EU Member States, Associated Countries, and, in some cases, Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs). Organisations from EU Member States are automatically eligible for funding. Associated Countries have signed bilateral agreements with the EU granting their organisations essentially the same rights and obligations as EU participants.
As of 2026, the list of Associated Countries includes nations from the Western Balkans, several countries in the European neighbourhood, and others such as Israel, Tunisia, and Georgia, though association agreements can change. It is always advisable to check the European Commission’s official Horizon Europe participant portal for the most current list, as association status can be updated between work programme cycles.
Organisations from non-associated third countries can also participate in Horizon Europe projects, but they typically do not receive EU funding unless the specific call explicitly allows it or the work programme designates their country as eligible for funding in that particular action. In practice, third-country partners often contribute to consortia using their own national funding or through bilateral agreements.
What are the consortium requirements for Horizon Europe?
Most Horizon Europe collaborative projects require a minimum consortium of three independent legal entities, each established in a different EU Member State or Associated Country. This three-entity rule is a cornerstone of the programme’s design, ensuring that projects are genuinely cross-border and collaborative rather than single-country endeavours.
The three participants must be independent of one another, meaning they cannot be subsidiaries of the same parent company or otherwise legally linked in a way that would compromise their independence. Each entity must also be established in a different country, so three organisations from the same country cannot fulfil the minimum requirement even if they are entirely separate institutions.
Some specific funding instruments have different consortium rules:
- ERC grants are awarded to individual principal investigators hosted by a single institution, with no consortium requirement.
- MSCA fellowships typically involve one researcher, one host organisation, and sometimes a secondment partner.
- Innovation Actions and Research and Innovation Actions under Pillar II follow the standard three-entity rule.
- Coordination and Support Actions (CSAs) may require only one eligible legal entity in some cases, though multi-partner consortia are the norm.
Are there financial or organisational criteria applicants must meet?
Horizon Europe does not impose a minimum budget size or revenue threshold as a general eligibility criterion. However, applicants must demonstrate the operational and financial capacity to carry out the proposed project. The European Commission assesses this during the grant preparation phase, not during the initial evaluation, so organisations are not screened out purely on financial grounds at the application stage.
Organisations must be able to provide audited financial statements or equivalent documentation if requested. For larger grants, the Commission may require a financial viability check, particularly for coordinators and participants receiving significant funding. SMEs and newer organisations are not automatically excluded, but they may need to provide additional assurance of their capacity to deliver.
On the organisational side, applicants must be registered as legal entities and must have a valid Legal Entity Identifier (LEI) or be registered in the EU Funding and Tenders Portal. This registration is a practical prerequisite before any application can be formally submitted.
What disqualifies an organisation from Horizon Europe participation?
An organisation can be excluded from Horizon Europe participation if it falls into one of the exclusion grounds defined in the EU Financial Regulation. These grounds include bankruptcy or insolvency, serious professional misconduct, fraud or corruption, significant failures in a previous EU-funded contract, and being subject to EU sanctions or asset-freezing measures.
Organisations that have been found guilty of misusing EU funds in the past may be placed on the Early Detection and Exclusion System (EDES) database, which is checked during grant preparation. Additionally, entities linked to countries subject to specific EU restrictive measures may face restrictions depending on the nature of the call and the applicable rules at the time.
It is worth noting that exclusion is assessed at the organisational level, not the individual researcher level. A researcher employed by an ineligible or excluded institution cannot circumvent the exclusion by applying through a different entity unless they have a genuine, independent affiliation with that entity.
How do eligibility rules differ across Horizon Europe funding schemes?
Horizon Europe is structured into three pillars and several cross-cutting programmes, and eligibility rules vary meaningfully across them. Understanding which scheme applies to your project is essential before assessing whether your organisation qualifies.
Pillar I: Excellent Science
The ERC and MSCA programmes under Pillar I are researcher-focused rather than organisation-focused. ERC grants require a single principal investigator hosted at an eligible institution, with no nationality restriction on the researcher. MSCA fellowships require researchers to move between countries, with specific rules about the researcher’s country of residence in the years prior to application. Both schemes prioritise scientific excellence over consortium composition.
Pillar II and Pillar III: Collaborative Projects
Collaborative Research and Innovation Actions under Pillar II and the European Innovation Council (EIC) instruments under Pillar III follow the standard three-entity consortium rule for most calls. The EIC Accelerator, however, is specifically designed for individual SMEs and start-ups, meaning a single company can apply without forming a consortium. This makes it one of the few Horizon Europe instruments where a solo applicant from the private sector can receive substantial grant funding.
Mission-oriented programmes and European Partnerships may also carry additional eligibility criteria specific to their thematic scope, sometimes requiring participants to have prior involvement in a defined research community or to commit to co-funding arrangements alongside EU support.
How WAITRO supports organisations navigating Horizon Europe eligibility
Understanding Horizon Europe eligibility requirements is one thing; being genuinely prepared to meet them is another. Many organisations, particularly those in emerging economies or newer to EU-funded research, face real gaps in institutional capacity, consortium-building experience, and project management readiness that can make the difference between a competitive application and a missed opportunity.
We at WAITRO support research and technology organisations in building exactly that readiness. Through our Capacity Development Program, we help members strengthen the organisational foundations that Horizon Europe assessors look for:
- Project coordination skills: We build competencies in managing multi-partner, cross-border projects, directly aligned with Horizon Europe’s consortium requirements.
- Strategic planning: We help organisations define their research priorities and position themselves as credible partners within international consortia.
- Thematic expertise: We support members in developing specialised knowledge in areas such as AI, digital transformation, and sustainability, which are central to current Horizon Europe work programmes.
- Partnership access: Our global network of 135 Full Members and 45 Associate Members creates direct pathways to finding consortium partners in EU Member States and Associated Countries.
If your organisation is preparing to engage with Horizon Europe in 2026 and wants to strengthen its eligibility profile and partnership networks, we invite you to explore WAITRO membership and connect with our team to find out how we can support your journey.
