What is cascade funding?

Cascade funding (also called financial support to third parties) is money the European Commission gives to an EU-funded project, which the project then passes on to startups, SMEs, researchers or other organisations through its own open calls. You apply to the project, not to the Commission, and the project's own call rules apply.

Each call sets its own eligibility in its call document: usually organisations established in an EU member state or a Horizon Europe associated country, often startups and SMEs. Check the call's eligibility section and the official guide before you apply.

Do I need a consortium?

Most cascade calls accept single applicants, which makes them one of the easiest ways into EU funding. Some calls ask for small teams; the call document says which.

How large are the grants?

Typically tens of thousands of euros per applicant and rarely more than €200,000, because the EU rules for financial support to third parties keep amounts per recipient modest. The exact maximum is in each call.

Can I combine it with other EU funding?

Yes, as long as the same costs are not funded twice. Many startups use a cascade grant to build evidence before applying to larger programmes such as the EIC Accelerator.

Restack Open Call (2027-01R) (EU cascade funding)

On this page · 7 sections→

01The project
02Consortium
03Similar calls
04Cascade funding FAQ
05Call scope
06Eligibility & conditions
07Official source

The project running this call: Restack

Delivering a strong, reproducible next generation Open Internet Stack through strategic digital commons

Europe needs to regain the capability to run its own infrastructure, after the 'cloud first' strategy that was dominant in the last decade backfired. The goal of NGI0 Restack is to deliver a publicly available and fully operational stack of strategic technology commons implementing the European vision of an open, trustworthy, human-centric internet that benefits all.We bring together the expertise, skill and dedication of the European free and open source community — SMEs, research institutes and individual researchers and developers. Restack is designed to retain the much heralded strength of the NGI Zero approach of nurturing bottom up innovation, while bridging this vast and flourishing ecosystem of contributors to digital commons to the current needs of European service operators: telecom and hosting providers, shared service centers, research and education networks — and also…

EU contribution

€10.0M

Total cost

€10.0M

Runs

1 Jun 2026 to 31 May 2030

Programme

Horizon Europe

Funded under the EU call HORIZON-CL4-2025-03-DATA-11. Official project record ↗

Who runs it: the consortium

15 organisations in the project. The coordinator usually manages the open call and its evaluation.

Stichting Nlnet · NetherlandsCoordinator
Stichting Edsger Institute · NetherlandsPartner
Stichting Nationale Beheersorganisatie Internet Providers · NetherlandsPartner
Association Professionnelle Europeenne du Logiciel Libre · Belgium · SMEPartner
Asociacion Para El Progreso de Las Comunicaciones · Spain · SMEPartner
Openforum Europe · Belgium · SMEPartner
Stichting Nixos Foundation · NetherlandsPartner
Commons Caretakers BV · Netherlands · SMEPartner
Center for the Cultivation of Technology Gemeinnutzige GmbH · Germany · SMEPartner
Radically Open Security BV · Netherlands · SMEPartner
Tolerant Networks Limited · Ireland · SMEPartner
Free Software Foundation Europe eV · GermanyPartner
Ow2 · France · SMEPartner
Stichting Hogeschool van Arnhem Ennijmegen Han · NetherlandsPartner
Geant Vereniging · Netherlands · SMEPartner

Similar open calls from EU projects

Other cascade calls on related topics that you can apply to now.

Cascade funding: what to know before you apply

What is cascade funding?: Cascade funding (also called financial support to third parties) is money the European Commission gives to an EU-funded project, which the project then passes on to startups, SMEs, researchers or other organisations through its own open calls. You apply to the project, not to the Commission, and the project's own call rules apply.
Who can apply?: Each call sets its own eligibility in its call document: usually organisations established in an EU member state or a Horizon Europe associated country, often startups and SMEs. Check the call's eligibility section and the official guide before you apply.
Do I need a consortium?: Most cascade calls accept single applicants, which makes them one of the easiest ways into EU funding. Some calls ask for small teams; the call document says which.
How large are the grants?: Typically tens of thousands of euros per applicant and rarely more than €200,000, because the EU rules for financial support to third parties keep amounts per recipient modest. The exact maximum is in each call.
Can I combine it with other EU funding?: Yes, as long as the same costs are not funded twice. Many startups use a cascade grant to build evidence before applying to larger programmes such as the EIC Accelerator.

Cascade funding in the glossary · All open cascade calls

What this call funds

Projects can be submitted through https://NLnet.nl/propose, please check the guide for applicants and our Generative AI policy before you start writing a proposal - this might save you a lot of work. Anyone can apply, including private individuals and organisations of any type, provided that your proposal has a clear European dimension. All outcomes should become available under a free and open license.

There is a two stage evaluation process followed by an external review.

Eligibility & conditions+

The complete overview of the call text, eligibility criteria and an FAQ can be found on the main call page: https://nlnet.nl/restack

Official source

Confirm the current call documents and submission conditions with the funding authority.

View on EU portal ↗

Source: EU Funding & Tenders Portal · synced 2026-11-09

On this page · 7 sections→

01The project
02Consortium
03Similar calls
04Cascade funding FAQ
05Call scope
06Eligibility & conditions
07Official source

The project running this call: Restack

Delivering a strong, reproducible next generation Open Internet Stack through strategic digital commons

EU contribution

€10.0M

Total cost

€10.0M

Runs

1 Jun 2026 to 31 May 2030

Programme

Horizon Europe

Funded under the EU call HORIZON-CL4-2025-03-DATA-11. Official project record ↗

Who runs it: the consortium

15 organisations in the project. The coordinator usually manages the open call and its evaluation.

Stichting Nlnet · NetherlandsCoordinator
Stichting Edsger Institute · NetherlandsPartner
Stichting Nationale Beheersorganisatie Internet Providers · NetherlandsPartner
Association Professionnelle Europeenne du Logiciel Libre · Belgium · SMEPartner
Asociacion Para El Progreso de Las Comunicaciones · Spain · SMEPartner
Openforum Europe · Belgium · SMEPartner
Stichting Nixos Foundation · NetherlandsPartner
Commons Caretakers BV · Netherlands · SMEPartner
Center for the Cultivation of Technology Gemeinnutzige GmbH · Germany · SMEPartner
Radically Open Security BV · Netherlands · SMEPartner
Tolerant Networks Limited · Ireland · SMEPartner
Free Software Foundation Europe eV · GermanyPartner
Ow2 · France · SMEPartner
Stichting Hogeschool van Arnhem Ennijmegen Han · NetherlandsPartner
Geant Vereniging · Netherlands · SMEPartner

Similar open calls from EU projects

Other cascade calls on related topics that you can apply to now.

Cascade funding: what to know before you apply

What is cascade funding?: Cascade funding (also called financial support to third parties) is money the European Commission gives to an EU-funded project, which the project then passes on to startups, SMEs, researchers or other organisations through its own open calls. You apply to the project, not to the Commission, and the project's own call rules apply.
Who can apply?: Each call sets its own eligibility in its call document: usually organisations established in an EU member state or a Horizon Europe associated country, often startups and SMEs. Check the call's eligibility section and the official guide before you apply.
Do I need a consortium?: Most cascade calls accept single applicants, which makes them one of the easiest ways into EU funding. Some calls ask for small teams; the call document says which.
How large are the grants?: Typically tens of thousands of euros per applicant and rarely more than €200,000, because the EU rules for financial support to third parties keep amounts per recipient modest. The exact maximum is in each call.
Can I combine it with other EU funding?: Yes, as long as the same costs are not funded twice. Many startups use a cascade grant to build evidence before applying to larger programmes such as the EIC Accelerator.

Cascade funding in the glossary · All open cascade calls

What this call funds

There is a two stage evaluation process followed by an external review.

Eligibility & conditions+

The complete overview of the call text, eligibility criteria and an FAQ can be found on the main call page: https://nlnet.nl/restack

Official source

Confirm the current call documents and submission conditions with the funding authority.

View on EU portal ↗

Source: EU Funding & Tenders Portal · synced 2026-11-09

Restack Open Call (2027-01R)

The project running this call: Restack

Who runs it: the consortium

Similar open calls from EU projects

Cascade funding: what to know before you apply

What this call funds

Official source

Track this call and plan your application.

Restack Open Call (2027-01R)

The project running this call: Restack

Who runs it: the consortium

Similar open calls from EU projects

Cascade funding: what to know before you apply

What this call funds

Official source

Track this call and plan your application.