Section I

For the implementation of Horizon 2020, account shall be taken of advice and inputs provided by independent advisory groups of high level experts set up by the Commission from a broad constituency of stakeholders, including research, industry and civil society, to provide the necessary inter-disciplinary and cross-sectoral perspectives, taking account of relevant existing initiatives at Union, national and regional level. Other inputs will be provided from dialogue structures created under international science and technology agreements; forward-looking activities; targeted public consultations, including, where appropriate, consultations of national and regional authorities or stakeholders; and transparent and interactive processes that ensure that responsible research and innovation is supported. Advice on the identification and design of strategic priorities by the European Research Area and Innovation Committee (ERAC), other ERA-related groups and the Enterprise Policy Group (EPG) shall, where appropriate, also be taken into consideration. Full account shall also be taken of relevant aspects of the research and innovation agendas established by, inter alia, the EIT, European Technology Platforms and European Innovation Partnerships, as well as of advice from scientific panels such as the Scientific Panel for Health. For the implementation of Horizon 2020, account shall be taken of the need to build appropriate synergies and complementarities between national and European research and innovation programmes, for example in areas where coordination efforts are made through the Joint Programming Initiatives. Union support to Joint Programming Initiatives may be considered with any support to be delivered through the instruments referred to in Article 26, subject to the conditions and criteria laid down for such instruments. Linkages and interfaces shall be implemented across and within the priorities of Horizon 2020. Particular attention shall be paid in this respect to: the development and application of key enabling and industrial technologies as well as future and emerging technologies; areas relating to bridging from discovery to market application; interdisciplinary and cross-sectoral research and innovation; social and economic sciences and humanities; climate change and sustainable development; fostering the functioning and achievement of the ERA and of the flagship initiative 'Innovation Union'; framework conditions in support of the flagship initiative "Innovation Union"; contributing to all relevant Europe 2020 flagship initiatives (including the Digital Agenda for Europe); widening participation across the Union in research and innovation and helping to close the research and innovation divide in Europe; international networks for excellent researchers and innovators such as European Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST); cooperation with third countries; responsible research and innovation including gender; SME involvement in research and innovation and broader private sector participation; enhancing the attractiveness of the research profession; and facilitating cross-border and cross-sector mobility of researchers. Where an indirect action is supported which is of high relevance to several of the priorities or specific objectives referred to in Article 5(2) and (3), the financial amount for that action may be combined from the amounts allocated to each priority or specific objective concerned. Horizon 2020 shall be implemented in a manner ensuring that the priorities and actions supported are relevant to changing needs and take account of the evolving nature of science, technology, innovation, economies and society in a globalised world, where innovation includes business, organisational, technological, societal and environmental aspects. Proposals for changes to the priorities and actions under Horizon 2020 shall take into account the external advice referred to in Article 12 as well as the recommendations from the interim evaluation referred to in Article 32(3). Horizon 2020 shall ensure the effective promotion of gender equality and the gender dimension in research and innovation content. Particular attention shall be paid to ensuring gender balance, subject to the situation in the field of research and innovation concerned, in evaluation panels and in bodies such as advisory groups and expert groups. The gender dimension shall be adequately integrated in research and innovation content in strategies, programmes and projects and followed through at all stages of the research cycle. Horizon 2020 shall be implemented in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 1290/2013, which shall contribute to the reinforcement of a single market for researchers and attractiveness of researchers' careers across the Union in the context of the ERA, by taking into account the transnational character of the majority of the actions supported under it. Open access to scientific publications resulting from publicly funded research under Horizon 2020 shall be ensured. It shall be implemented in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 1290/2013. Open access to research data resulting from publicly funded research under Horizon 2020 shall be promoted. It shall be implemented in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 1290/2013. All the research and innovation activities carried out under Horizon 2020 shall comply with ethical principles and relevant national, Union and international legislation, including the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and the European Convention on Human Rights and its Supplementary Protocols. Particular attention shall be paid to the principle of proportionality, the right to privacy, the right to the protection of personal data, the right to the physical and mental integrity of a person, the right to non-discrimination and the need to ensure high levels of human health protection. Research and innovation activities carried out under Horizon 2020 shall have an exclusive focus on civil applications. The following fields of research shall not be financed: research activity aiming at human cloning for reproductive purposes; research activity intended to modify the genetic heritage of human beings which could make such changes heritable Research relating to cancer treatment of the gonads can be financed. ; research activities intended to create human embryos solely for the purpose of research or for the purpose of stem cell procurement, including by means of somatic cell nuclear transfer. Research on human stem cells, both adult and embryonic, may be financed, depending both on the contents of the scientific proposal and the legal framework of the Member States involved. No funding shall be granted for research activities that are prohibited in all the Member States. No activity shall be funded in a Member State where such activity is forbidden. The fields of research set out in paragraph 3 of this Article may be reviewed within the context of the interim evaluation set out in Article 32(3) in the light of scientific advances. Horizon 2020 shall be implemented in a way which is complementary to other Union funding programmes and policies, including the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESI Funds), the Common Agricultural Policy, the Programme for the Competitiveness of Enterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises (COSME) (2014–2020), the Erasmus+ programme and the Life Programme. In addition to Union, national and regional structural policies, Horizon 2020 shall also contribute to the closing of the research and innovation divide within the Union by promoting synergies with the ESI Funds. Where possible, cumulative funding may be used as set out in Regulation (EU) No 1290/2013.

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Source: EUR-Lex (Cellar) · retrieved 2026-11-03 · Text as adopted (Official Journal); later amendments are not incorporated in this text.