Open now · HORIZON ERC Proof of Concept Grants · ERC-2026-POC
Objective:
The ERC Proof of Concept Grants aim at facilitating exploration of the commercial and social innovation potential of ERC funded research and are therefore available only to Principal Investigators whose proposals draw substantially on their ERC funded research.
Scope:
Size of ERC Proof of Concept Grants: The financial contribution will be awarded as a single lump sum of EUR 150 000 for a period of eighteen months. Extensions of the duration of Proof of concept projects may be granted only exceptionally.
The lump sum will cover the beneficiaries' direct and indirect eligible costs for the project: if the project is implemented properly the amounts will be paid regardless of the costs actually incurred. The lump sum is designed to cover the beneficiaries’ personnel costs, subcontracting costs, purchase costs, other cost categories, and indirect costs.
Profile of the ERC Proof of Concept Eligible Principal Investigator
The ERC Proof of Concept Grant is open to Principal Investigators whose ERC main frontier research grant is ongoing, or Principal Investigators whose ERC main frontier research grant ends on or after 1 January 2025. For further information please see the ERC Work Programme 2026.
| Item | Estimate | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Drafting effort | 3–4 weeks | single submission |
| Time to first payment | 6–9 months | cut-off → evaluation → grant agreement |
These are Bemzu's estimates from the call's structure (the number of stages and whether a consortium is required) not figures published by the Commission. Only the co-financing share is read from the call itself.
Two kinds of row. Most are the sentence we read the condition from, quoted out of the call itself. Some say plainly that they are not a quotation but the programme's own rule for this type of action, the EU portal publishes a table of contents where the conditions should be, so for a Research and Innovation Action the rate comes from the rulebook rather than from the fiche.
| Condition | Quoted from the call, or the rule behind it |
|---|---|
| Consortium size | Not quoted from this call — ERC grants under the Horizon Europe rules are one principal investigator with a host institution in a Member State or Associated Country — there is no consortium. |
| Funding rate | Not quoted from this call — ERC grants under the Horizon Europe rules are funded at 100% of eligible costs. |
Eight questions, no account, nothing sent anywhere. You will know which of the 1526 open calls you can actually enter before you finish your coffee.
Check my fit
