Horizon Europe
Horizon Europe is the EU’s key funding programme for research and innovation with a budget of € 95.5 billion (2021-2027). The ambitious EU research and innovation framework programme aims to fuel Europe’s scientific and technological excellence, strengthen the European Research Area (ERA), and boost innovation uptake, competitiveness, and job creation across the continent.
The structure of Horizon Europe is organised in 3 pillars and 1 horizontal focus area:
Pillar 1 – Excellent Science
Pillar 1 supports excellent scientific research in Europe through the European Research Council (ERC) (€16 billion), Marie Sklodowska Curie Actions (MSCA) (€6.6 billion), and Research Infrastructures (€2.4 billion).
ERC
ERC grants are awarded to top researchers from any nationality, to conduct investigator-driven frontier research in any field at a Host Institution in a European Member State or Associated Country. Scientific excellence, both of the applicant and the project is the only evaluation criterion. Applicants can submit a high-risk, high-gain frontier research project of 5 years duration.
Types of ERC Grants:
- ERC Starting Grants
Support early-career researchers (2–7 years after PhD) to establish their own independent research teams. Funding is up to €1.5 million for 5 years, plus an optional €1 million for specific needs. - ERC Consolidator Grants
Designed for researchers 7–12 years after PhD to strengthen their independent research programs. Grants provide up to €2 million for 5 years, with the possibility of an extra €1 million. - ERC Advanced Grants
Target established researchers with a proven track record of major scientific achievements over the past decade. Funding can reach €2.5 million for 5 years, with an additional €1 million available in justified cases. - ERC Synergy Grants
Support 2–4 Principal Investigators tackling ambitious interdisciplinary projects that require a high level of collaboration and synergy. Each must commit significant time and be based in the EU or an associated country. - ERC Proof of Concept Grants
Available only to ERC grantees, these help explore the commercial or societal potential of ERC-funded research results. The grant provides €150,000 for up to 18 months.
MSCA
MSCA supports the training and career development of researchers through doctoral programmes, postdoctoral fellowships, staff exchanges, and collaborative projects. Mobility is a core principle—researchers must move to a host institution in a country where they haven’t recently lived or worked, in order to gain new knowledge, skills, and experience. The programme promotes international, intersectoral, and interdisciplinary cooperation, with active involvement of the non-academic sector, including industry and SMEs.
Types of MSCA Grants:
- MSCA Doctoral Networks (DN)
Train early-stage researchers through international and cross-sectoral doctoral programmes. - MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships (PF)
Support PhD holders in developing their research careers through mobility and advanced training. - MSCA Staff Exchanges (SE)
Promote collaborative research via short-term international and intersectoral staff exchanges. - MSCA COFUND
Co-fund regional, national, or international doctoral and postdoctoral programmes aligned with MSCA standards. - MSCA and Citizens
Engage the public with science and research, mainly through the European Researchers’ Night.
Research Infrastructures
Research infrastructures are facilities that provide high-quality resources and services—such as scientific equipment, data collections, and ICT tools—to support research, innovation, education, and public services. They can be single-site, distributed, or virtual.
Pillar 2 – Global Challenges
Pillar 2, with a budget of €53.5 billion, focuses on addressing major EU challenges—such as health, climate change, clean energy, mobility, security, and digital transformation—by reinforcing technological and industrial capacities. It promotes partnerships between Member States, industry, and stakeholders to fund collaborative R&D projects that support EU policies and Sustainable Development Goals. The Joint Research Centre also contributes by providing independent scientific evidence and technical support to EU and national policymakers. Pillar 2 is structured as:
- Cluster 1 – Health (Total budget €8.246 billion)
- Cluster 2 – Culture, Creativity & Inclusive Societies (Total budget €2.28 billion)
- Cluster 3 – Civil Security for Society (Total budget €1.60 billion)
- Cluster 4 – Digital, Industry & Space (Total budget €15.35 billion)
- Cluster 5 – Climate, Energy & Mobility (Total budget €15.12 billion)
- Cluster 6 – Food, Bioeconomy, Natural Resources, Agriculture & Environment (Total budget €8.95 billion)
- Joint Research Centre (non-nuclear direct actions) – (Total budget €1.97 billion)
Pillar 3 – Innovative Europe
Innovation is at the heart of the EU’s strategy to boost economic growth, improve quality of life, and tackle major societal challenges in a responsible and sustainable way. With a budget of around €13 billion, the EU supports innovators with a flexible and risk-tolerant approach to help breakthrough ideas scale internationally and create lasting impact.
The pillar is built around three key components:
- European Innovation Council (EIC)
The EIC identifies and funds groundbreaking technologies and disruptive innovations with high growth potential. It supports innovators across all stages—from early research (Pathfinder), through applied development (Transition), to market scale-up (Accelerator). - European Innovation Ecosystems (EIE)
EIE fosters a connected, inclusive innovation environment by linking regional and national actors. It helps startups and scale-ups grow while addressing societal challenges through collaborative and sustainable innovation. - European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT)
The EIT drives innovation by uniting business, education, and research. Through education programs, business acceleration, and innovation projects, it nurtures entrepreneurial talent and supports solutions to global challenges via specialized Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KICs).
Together, these initiatives form a powerful framework that promotes market-creating innovation, strengthens SMEs, and elevates Europe’s position as a global innovation leader.
Cross cutting pillar
This cross-cutting pillar supports Horizon Europe’s mission to reduce disparities in research and innovation capacities across the EU, including outermost regions, by fostering collaboration, knowledge exchange, and inclusive participation.
Widening participation and spreading excellence
It helps countries lagging behind to build research and innovation excellence through:
- Teaming: Creating or upgrading Centres of Excellence.
- Twinning: Enhancing research capacity in universities and organizations.
- ERA Chairs: Attracting and retaining top research talent.
- COST Actions: Promoting scientific networking, capacity building, and career development at all levels.
This strengthens national reforms, encourages brain circulation, and expands collaborative networks across the EU.
Strengthening the European Research Area
The pillar drives strategic alignment of national reforms and EU programmes to maximize the impact of investments, supporting missions and partnerships under Horizon Europe Pillar II.
It also promotes Open Science, citizen science, gender equality, diversity, ethics, integrity, international cooperation, and delivers scientific input to EU policy-making.