ANNEX III

The activities supported by the Seventh Framework Programme will be funded through a range of ‘Funding schemes’. These schemes will be used, either alone or in combination, to fund actions implemented throughout the Framework Programme. The decisions for specific programmes, work programmes and calls for proposals will specify, as and when appropriate: The type(s) of scheme(s) used to fund different actions; The categories of participants (such as research organisations, universities, industry, SMEs, public authorities) which can benefit from it; The types of activities (such as research and technological development, demonstration, management, training, dissemination, and other related activities) which can be funded through each of them. Where different funding schemes can be used, the work programmes may specify the funding scheme to be used for the topic on which proposals are invited. The funding schemes are the following: To support actions which are primarily implemented on the basis of calls for proposals: Collaborative projects Support for research projects carried out by consortia with participants from different countries, aiming at developing new knowledge, new technology, products, demonstration activities or common resources for research. The size, scope and internal organisation of projects can vary from field to field and from topic to topic. Projects can range from small or medium-scale focused research actions to large-scale integrating projects for achieving a defined objective. Projects will also be targeted to special groups such as SMEs and other smaller actors. Networks of Excellence Support for a Joint Programme of Activities implemented by a number of research organisations integrating their activities in a given field, carried out by research teams in the framework of longer term cooperation. The implementation of this Joint Programme of Activities will require a formal commitment from the organisations integrating part of their resources and their activities. Coordination and support actions Support for activities aimed at coordinating or supporting research activities and policies (networking, exchanges, trans-national access to research infrastructures, studies, conferences, etc.). These actions may also be implemented by means other than calls for proposals. Support for ‘frontier’ research Support for projects carried out by individual national or transnational research teams. This scheme will be used to support investigator-driven ‘frontier’ research projects funded in the framework of the European Research Council. Support for training and career development of researchers Support for training and career development of researchers, mainly to be used for the implementation of the Marie Curie actions. Research for the benefit of specific groups (in particular SMEs) Support for research projects where the bulk of the research and technological development is carried out by universities, research centres or other legal entities, for the benefit of specific groups, in particular SMEs or associations of SMEs. Efforts will be undertaken to mobilise additional financing from the EIB and other financial organisations. To support actions implemented on the basis of decisions by the Council and the European Parliament (or by the Council in consultation with the European Parliament) based on a proposal from the Commission, the Community will provide financial support to multi-financed large-scale initiatives. A financial contribution from the Community to the joint implementation of well identified national research programmes, on the basis of Article 169 of the Treaty. This joint implementation will require the establishment or existence of a dedicated implementation structure. Community financial support will be provided subject to the definition of a financing plan based on formal commitments from competent national authorities. A financial contribution from the Community to the implementation of Joint Technology Initiatives to realise objectives that cannot be achieved through the funding schemes identified in part (a) above. Joint Technology Initiatives will mobilise a combination of funding of different kinds and from different sources; private and public, European and national. This funding may take different forms and may be allocated or mobilised though a range of mechanisms: support from the Framework Programme, loans from the European Investment Bank (EIB), risk capital support. Joint Technology Initiatives may be decided and implemented on the basis of Article 171 of the Treaty (this may include the creation of joint undertakings) or through the Decisions establishing the specific programmes. Community support will be provided subject to the definition of an overall blueprint of financial engineering, based on formal commitments from all parties concerned. A financial contribution from the Community to the development of new infrastructures of European interest. This contribution may be decided on the basis of Article 171 of the Treaty or through the Specific Programme Decisions. The development of new infrastructures will mobilise a combination of funding of different nature and origin: national funding, Framework Programme, Structural funds, loans from the EIB and others. Community support will be provided subject to the definition of an overall financial plan based on a commitment from all parties concerned. The Community will implement the funding schemes identified in part (a) above in compliance with the provisions of the regulation to be adopted pursuant to Article 167 of the Treaty, the relevant State aid instruments, in particular the Community framework for State aid to research and development, as well as international rules in this area. In compliance with this international framework, it will be necessary to be able to adjust the scale and form of financial participation on a case-by-case basis, in particular if funding from other public sector sources is available, including other sources of Community financing such as the EIB. In addition to providing direct financial support to participants in RTD actions, the Community will improve their access to debt finance through the ‘Risk-Sharing Finance Facility’ by providing a contribution to the EIB. The Community contribution must be used by the EIB, which will be a risk sharing partner, to contribute to the provisioning and capital allocation for loan and guarantee financing from its own resources. There will be no further liability for the Community budget. Subject to and in accordance with arrangements to be established by the regulation adopted pursuant Article 167 of the Treaty and the Council decisions adopting the specific programmes, this mechanism will enable the EIB to increase the amount of financing of European RTD actions (such as joint technology initiatives, large projects-including EUREKA projects, and new research infrastructures and projects run by SMEs) to help overcome market deficiencies. In the case of participants in an indirect action established in a region lagging in development (convergence regions and outermost regions Convergence regions are those set out in Article 5 of Regulation (EC) No 1083/2006. This includes ‘convergence’ objective regions, regions eligible for funding from the Cohesion fund, and outermost regions. ), complementary funding from the structural funds will be mobilised wherever possible and appropriate. In the case of participation of entities from the candidate countries, an additional contribution from the pre-accession financial instruments may be granted under similar conditions. As regards actions in the ‘research infrastructures’ part of the ‘capacities’ programme of the Seventh Framework Programme, the detailed funding arrangements for these will be defined with a view to ensuring that there is effective complementarity between community research funding and other Community and national instruments, notably the structural funds. The Community will undertake activities implemented by the Joint Research Centre, which are referred to as direct actions.

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Source: EUR-Lex (Cellar) · retrieved 2026-11-04 · Text as adopted (Official Journal); later amendments are not incorporated in this text.