European Commission further simplifies Horizon 2020

(Note: Although participation in Horizon 2020 will be simplified, it does not mean that competition will be halved. Quite on the contrary, applicants will need to continuously persist in winning Horizon 2020 funding. Read article “Persistence is key in Horizon 2020“, by CEO of Octopux Consulting Daniela Gomes.)

.

The European Commission will further simplify the participation in Horizon 2020, the world’s biggest Research and Innovation programme. New funding rules will be introduced aiming at reducing administrative costs to participants and helping prevent accounting errors.

On 27th February 2017, the Commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation – Mr. Carlos Moedas – presented a package of simplification measures in a meeting with Members of the European Parliament, the European Court of Auditors and major research and innovation stakeholder organisations.

Mr. Moedas said: “Radical simplification is one of the defining features of Horizon 2020, when compared to previous programmes. Responses from stakeholders show that huge progress has been made. But simplification is an on-going process. We have listened to researchers, businesses and other stakeholders and reflected their feedback in this second wave of simplification of Horizon 2020. The new measures will further cut red tape, making the programme even more attractive for top researchers and the most innovative enterprises, which is a major pre-requisite for achieving the Commission’s policy objectives.” The new measures will further simplify rules and procedures in Horizon 2020, making participation easier. They will also pave the way for new simplification measures under the next Framework Programme between 2021-2027. The changes comprise the following:

1) A revision of the Horizon 2020 Model Grant Agreement adopted on 26/01/2017 introduces a new definition of additional remuneration for researchers, and also simplifies the charging of other costs (e.g. equipment, consumables, subcontracting, other direct costs…) in Horizon 2020 grants. This will allow the broadest possible acceptance of beneficiaries’ own usual accounting and management practices. The revision introduces a number of detailed measures including:

• acceptance of participants’ own accounting practice when charging costs for products or services provided internally in an organisation;
• increased openness to the world by providing a simpler option for international partners from third countries not eligible for EU funding;
• the extension of the electronic-only grant management to the period after the final payment.

2) Streamlining the Horizon 2020 work programme for 2018-2020. More than ever before, the final work programme of Horizon 2020 will focus on key priorities. There will be fewer topics and fewer calls. The aim is to maximise impact and to ensure that stakeholders can easily find topics of interest.

3) Making the programme more relevant and easier to access for start-ups and innovators. As set out in the Start-up and Scale-up Initiative, the European Commission intends to make changes for the remaining period of Horizon 2020 in order to target breakthrough innovation with the potential for scaling up and will consider reinforcing this approach in future through a European Innovation Council. Preparatory actions in the Horizon 2020 work programme 2018-2020 will include adapting the SME Instrument so that it can support innovations in any area as opposed to predefined topics and introducing an interview stage to evaluate the most promising project proposals. The European Commission will also upgrade online navigation tools in order to facilitate access to the programme for innovators.

4) The wider use of lump-sum project funding has the potential to considerably reduce the administrative burden on participants – keeping the project focus firmly on research and innovation, enhancing impacts and lowering the financial error rate. This is also in line with the European Commission’s priority on Budget Focused on Results. Lump-sum funding aims to shift the focus from checking inputs (i.e. costs incurred) to monitoring performance and outputs, covering the entire project life cycle, including new ways of ex-post audits.

Further information:

“Horizon 2020 – Performance and Further Simplification” event, 27th February 2017:

• Commission adopts new rules for funding salaries in Horizon 2020 grants: Webstreaming
• Commission adopts new rules for funding salaries in Horizon 2020 grants: Web forum

.

Source: European Commission’s DG Research and Innovation