GrantTRL 3-6

EIC Transition

Up to €2.5M to bring research results from lab to market

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Next Deadline16 September 2026
62Days Left
76% elapsed24% remaining
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Funding available
€2.5MGrant (100% of eligible costs for all eligible entities, including companies)
Success rate~6.5%highly competitive
TRL band3–6
To decision5–7 mo
2026 budget€100M

Verified against official EU sources · last checked 9 days ago (7 Jul 2026)

On this page · 18 sections
The programme

Overview

EIC Transition is the European Innovation Council grant for turning a proven lab result into something a company and its investors can build on. It is aimed at teams whose technology came out of an earlier EU-funded project, such as EIC Pathfinder, an ERC Proof of Concept grant, a former FET Flagship, or Horizon Europe Pillar II research, and who now need to mature and validate it rather than discover something new. The money funds prototyping, validation in a relevant environment, IP strategy, and an early business case, pushing the work from roughly TRL 3 or 4 toward TRL 5 or 6. The headline terms are simple: a grant of up to €2.5 million at 100% of eligible costs, no equity taken, no co-financing required, plus an optional booster of up to €50,000 for commercialisation work. Companies like GLIOBREAK, building a glioblastoma treatment with a companion diagnostic, MoSS, developing intelligent DNA data storage, and CombTools, integrating chip-scale optical frequency combs, all took this route. With a 2026 budget of €100 million and a single annual deadline of 16 September 2026, it is the bridge between a research breakthrough and a fundable company.

2026 Budget~€100M (2026 work programme)
Average Grant€2.0M average grant
Be realistic about the odds.
Fit

Is this for you?

EIC Transition is perfect if you came out of an EIC Pathfinder, ERC, FET, or Pillar II project with a result that works in the lab but is nowhere near a product. You have a validated proof of concept around TRL 3 or 4, you can name a market, and you need non-dilutive money to build a prototype, test it in a relevant environment, lock down IP, and assemble a real business case. If that is you, the full 100% funding and zero equity make this the cleanest grant in the EIC toolkit. Skip it if your work has no traceable EU-funded parent project, because that link is a hard gate. Skip it if you are still doing open-ended discovery science, since that is Pathfinder territory. And skip it if you already have a market-ready product and customers, because you belong in the EIC Accelerator, which can write much bigger cheques and add equity.
A good fit if
  • Single entity — SME, startup, spin-off, university or research organisation
  • Or a consortium of 2–5 partners from at least 2 EU / associated countries
  • Technology at TRL 3–4 — proof of concept done, ready for real-world validation
  • Results from an eligible EU precursor project (EIC Pathfinder, ERC Proof of Concept, Pillar II RIA, Research Infrastructures, European Defence Fund — civil only)
  • IP rights to the precursor results, or a commitment letter from the rights holder
Probably not if
  • No prior EU-funded research to build on → EIC Pathfinder first
  • Already at TRL 5+ with a near-market product → EIC Accelerator
  • Large company applying alone → consortia only here; try Horizon Europe Pillar II
  • Looking for scale-up equity capital → EIC Accelerator blended finance

Timing rules tightened for 2026: an ongoing precursor project must have started more than 18 months before the cut-off (was 12), and a completed one qualifies only within 24 months of its end date (was 30). Research Infrastructures projects became eligible precursors in 2026.

Focus areas

Eligible precursor programmes

EIC Pathfinder

Including H2020 FET-Open, FET-Proactive, FET Flagships, and Horizon Europe Pathfinder

ERC Proof of Concept

Both H2020 and Horizon Europe ERC Proof of Concept grants

Pillar II Research & Innovation Actions

H2020 Societal Challenges, Leadership in Industrial Technologies, or Horizon Europe Pillar II RIAs

Research Infrastructures

NEW for 2026 — Horizon Europe and H2020 Research Infrastructures RIAs

European Defence Fund

Civil applications only — research results must have civilian use

The odds

Success rates — the honest picture

Be realistic about the odds. In the 2025 call, 40 projects were funded out of 611 submissions, roughly a 6.5% success rate. A further 228 proposals earned a Seal of Excellence and still got nothing because the budget ran dry, so writing a good proposal is not enough on its own. You are competing for a slice of a €100 million pot against teams who have done this before. Two things move the needle more than anything. First, the commercialisation and impact case: most strong-science proposals lose points here, so a sharp market, a clear IP position, and a believable path to a fundable company set you apart. Second, the maturation plan: evaluators reward concrete TRL targets and de-risking milestones, not more exploration. Get those two right and you are in the top tier, not the Seal-of-Excellence pile.
End-to-end success rate~6.5%

Roughly 1 in 15 applications gets funded. A sharp, evidence-backed proposal is what separates the funded from the rejected.

Applications vs funded — the squeeze is real
CallApplicationsFundedSuccess rateBudget
20212924214.4%€99M
20222873411.8%€79M
2023 (Apr)1801910.6%€47M
2023 (Sep)2572710.5%€68M
20244134010.3%€94M
2025611406.5%€98M

Applications more than doubled from 2021 to 2025 while the budget stayed flat — the success rate has slid from 14.4% to 6.5%. No resubmission penalty: a rejected proposal can come back improved at the next deadline. The 2026 call has a single cut-off (16 September 2026, 17:00 Brussels) and is Open-only — the thematic Challenges ended in 2023.

Who qualifies

Eligibility

  • 1Your technology must trace back to results from an earlier EU-funded project: EIC Pathfinder, an ERC Proof of Concept grant, a Horizon Europe Pillar II (Cluster) project, a former FET Flagship, a European Defence Fund project (civil applications only), or as of 2026 the Horizon Research Infrastructures programme.
  • 2You either include a participant from that original project in your application, or you prove you legally hold the IP rights to develop the result further. No traceable parent project, no eligibility.
  • 3You can apply as a single legal entity (SME, start-up, spin-off, university, or RTO) or as a consortium of no more than 5 partners. Single applicants are fully competitive and win regularly.
  • 4Your entry technology should sit around TRL 3 to 4 (proof of concept validated in the lab), and the project must credibly carry it to TRL 5 or 6 by the end.
  • 5You must be established in an EU member state or a Horizon Europe associated country. UK applicants can participate but, with association still partial, check your specific call eligibility before committing.
  • 6This is for maturing a validated result toward a real product and business case. Pure basic research belongs in Pathfinder; a TRL 8 product ready to scale belongs in the Accelerator.
The fine print
Solo applicants must be small; big firms ride in consortia only

A single legal entity ("mono-beneficiary") may apply only if it is a start-up, an SME (small or medium-sized enterprise under EU Recommendation 2003/361: fewer than 250 staff, turnover ≤€50m or balance sheet ≤€43m) or a research-performing organisation — universities, research and technology organisations, including principal investigators planning a spin-off. The Work Programme is blunt: "Larger companies (i.e. which do not qualify as SMEs) are not eligible to apply as a single legal entity." Consortia are the back door — two entities from two different Member States or Associated Countries, or three to five entities (at least one in a Member State, two more in different countries); these may include large companies, hospitals, utilities and end users. Six or more partners renders the whole proposal ineligible.

The TRL window is a guillotine, checked at any point in evaluation

Your proposal must build on results from an eligible prior project that have completed all elements of TRL 3 (Technology Readiness Level 3, experimental proof of concept) and not gone beyond completed TRL 4 (technology validated in lab). Too early or too mature and you are out — "proposals building on project results at other TRLs level are not eligible". If your innovation combines several technologies, the lowest TRL of any core component counts. The Work Programme warns that additional TRL checks "may be conducted at any time during the evaluation", so an inflated claim can sink you months after submission.

Source-project freshness rules are the real deadline

EIC Transition is restricted to results from a closed list of feeder grants: EIC Pathfinder (including Horizon 2020 FET-Open, FET-Proactive, FET Flagships), European Research Council (ERC) Proof of Concept, Research and Innovation Actions under Horizon 2020 Societal Challenges/Industrial Leadership or Horizon Europe Pillar II, Research Infrastructures projects, and European Defence Fund research (civil applications only). The clock matters: if the feeder grant is still running, it must have started more than 18 months before the cut-off (6 months for ERC Proof of Concept); if finished, its end date must be less than 24 months before the cut-off. There is no Accelerator-style submission cap — resubmission of an improved proposal is explicitly allowed — but with one cut-off a year, the 24-month window typically gives a rejected applicant exactly one more shot. Cascading grants (financial support to third parties, such as ERA-NETs or EIT Knowledge and Innovation Communities) do not qualify as feeder projects.

You need not have been in the source project — but you need the IP paperwork

Newcomers are "welcome and encouraged": a start-up that was never part of the original Pathfinder consortium can apply. The catch is intellectual property. If you were a participant, you must confirm you own or hold the rights to commercialise the results for the whole duration of the Transition project. If you were not, your proposal must include a commitment letter from the result owners to negotiate fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory (FRAND) access, including IP rights, for future commercial exploitation. Every proposal must cite the feeder grant's number and acronym plus where the result was reported (CORDIS, Horizon Results Platform or the Innovation Radar). One extra trap: only one proposal may be submitted per originating ERC Proof of Concept or FET Innovation Launchpad project.

Financial capacity, ethics and security screens bite at grant preparation

Because every Transition grant exceeds €500,000, coordinators (other than public bodies) face a financial-capacity check during grant agreement preparation, based on audited accounts uploaded to the Participant Register. A shaky balance sheet — or heavy dependency on EU funding — can trigger pre-financing in instalments, no pre-financing at all, a demand to replace the applicant, or outright rejection of the proposal. Separately, every applicant completes an ethics self-assessment (projects raising issues undergo a full ethics review before funding is authorised), and projects touching classified or sensitive information go through a security appraisal. Proposals involving the evolution of European communication networks (5G and post-5G) face specific participation restrictions to protect network security.

Country status: UK fully in, Switzerland in from the 2025 budget onwards

Applicants must be established in an EU Member State or a Horizon Europe Associated Country. The United Kingdom is associated to the entire programme — its sole exclusion, the EIC Fund equity component of the Accelerator, is irrelevant to Transition, which is grant-only. Switzerland signed its association agreement on 10 November 2025, giving Swiss entities full access, including as coordinators, for calls funded from the 2025 budget onwards. Norway, Iceland, Israel, Türkiye, Ukraine and the other Pillar III associated countries also qualify; always check the live List of Participating Countries on the Funding & Tenders Portal, as status can shift between Work Programme adoption and grant signature.

Technology readiness

Where you need to be

Your project should sit at TRL 3–6 when you apply. The eligible band is highlighted below.

  1. 1
    Basic principles observedYou've observed something interesting in the lab or on paper
  2. 2
    Technology concept formulatedYou have a hypothesis for how this could become a technology
  3. 3
    Experimental proof of conceptYou've shown the basic idea works in a controlled setting
  4. 4
    Technology validated in labYou've validated key components work together in lab conditions
  5. 5
    Validated in relevant environmentTested in conditions close to real-world — a key milestone
  6. 6
    Demonstrated in relevant environmentPrototype demonstrated in near-real conditions
  7. 7
    System prototype in operational environmentWorking prototype in actual operating conditions
  8. 8
    System complete and qualifiedFinal product tested and proven to work
  9. 9
    Actual system proven in operationProduct is live and working in the real world
The money

The money — a pure grant, paid as a lump sum

Grant per projectUp to €2.5MHigher amounts possible if duly justified
Funding rate100%No co-financing — the EU covers all eligible costs
2026 call budget€100MSingle deadline, roughly 40 projects funded
Booster on top+€50KFixed-amount add-on for commercialisation activities
Good to know
Lump sum means no timesheets.

Transition uses the lump-sum model: you agree a price per work package up front, then declare each one "completed" or "not completed". No cost reporting, no individual expense tracking, no timesheet audits — but a half-finished work package can mean the whole package goes unpaid, so slice them sensibly.

Cash arrives fast.

Pre-financing — typically 40–60% of the total grant — lands within 30 days of signing the Grant Agreement. Interim payments follow each periodic report; the final roughly 10% is held back until project end.

Genuinely non-dilutive.

Unlike the EIC Accelerator, there is no equity component and no national co-funding requirement. The EU pays 100% of eligible costs and takes nothing — you keep full ownership of the company and the IP (intellectual property).

A €50K booster sits behind the grant.

Grantees can apply for a fixed-amount booster grant of up to €50,000 for complementary commercialisation work — market studies, IP strategy, investor readiness — on top of the main grant.

The process

How to apply — step by step

  1. 1
    Create EU Login account10 min

    Go to the EU Authentication Service and create an account. This is your gateway to all EU portals. Use an institutional email if you have one.

    Create EU Login →
  2. 2
    Register your organisation1–2 hours

    Register your organisation in the Participant Register and obtain a PIC (Participant Identification Code). If your org already has one, search for it instead of creating a new entry.

    Participant Register →
  3. 3
    Identify your precursor project1–2 weeks

    Confirm your eligible precursor project — the EIC Pathfinder, ERC Proof of Concept, Pillar II RIA, or Research Infrastructure project whose results you'll build on. Gather the grant number, reporting data, and IP documentation. If you weren't part of the original project, secure a commitment letter from the IP rights holder.

  4. 4
    Build your team (if consortium)Weeks–months

    For multi-beneficiary proposals: assemble 2–5 partners from at least 2 different EU/associated countries (3+ countries for 3+ partners). At least one must be in an EU Member State. Single entities can apply — SMEs, startups, spin-offs, or research organisations.

    Partner Search →
  5. 5
    Write your proposal6–12 weeks

    Part B is your technical proposal — maximum 22 A4 pages. Cover page identifies your precursor project. Section 1: Excellence (technology breakthrough, feasibility). Section 2: Impact (business plan, market analysis, IP strategy). Section 3: Implementation (work plan, milestones, team, budget). Must include a comprehensive business development plan.

  6. 6
    Submit electronicallyBefore deadline

    Submit via the Funding & Tenders Portal before 16 September 2026 at 17:00 Brussels time. The system closes automatically — late submissions are physically impossible. Submit a draft early and update until the deadline.

  7. 7
    Remote evaluation + interview~4–5 months

    Three EIC experts score your proposal (~9 weeks). Top proposals (approximately 2.2× the available budget) are invited to a face-to-face jury interview in Brussels — up to 5 team members can present. The jury gives a GO or NO GO decision.

  8. 8
    Grant agreement + project startMarch–May 2027

    If you receive a GO, the Grant Agreement is signed within 6 months of the call deadline (~March 2027). Pre-financing (typically 40–60%) is paid within 30 days. Your project starts within 2 months of signing — expected May 2027.

Where to applyCreate EU Login →
Evaluation

What evaluators look for

Excellence

Threshold 4.0 / 5

Is the technology breakthrough genuine? Is it feasible based on prior research results? Are the objectives well-defined for validation?

  • A genuine technological breakthrough — novelty, applicability to potential breakthrough uses and functionalities
  • Strong feasibility evidence based on results from your precursor project
  • Well-defined objectives suited to technology maturation and planned validation activities
  • Appropriate methodology addressing timing, interdependencies, and risks

Impact

Threshold 4.0 / 5

Is there a real market? Can this team commercialise it? Will it benefit Europe's economy and society?

  • Credible business and market fit — market analysis, target segments, competitive positioning, business model
  • Clear economic and societal benefits — jobs, growth, sustainability, European strategic autonomy
  • Strong entrepreneurship — capability and motivation of the team for commercial execution
  • Partnership and investment readiness activities — go-to-market strategy, IP protection plan, scale-up potential

Quality & Efficiency of Implementation

Threshold 3.0 / 5

Is the work plan realistic? Does the team have the right skills? Are resources well-allocated?

  • Quality of the team — required expertise, ability, and motivation to advance commercial value
  • Clear milestones, KPIs, and deliverables leading to deployment readiness
  • Effective allocation of resources across partners, equipment, and activities
  • Proper risk mitigation strategy
Paperwork

Documents you'll need

Essential
EIC Work Programme 2026PDF · ~188 pages

The master document defining all EIC calls — pages 29–42 cover EIC Transition specifically.

Contains:
Defines every EIC call for 2026. Pages 29–42 cover EIC Transition — the scope, €100M budget, eligibility rules, precursor project requirements, consortium compositions, and what 'technology maturation and business validation' means in practice.
Length:
~188 pages (pp. 29–42 for Transition)
Why:
This is the source of truth. Everything else references this document. Read the Transition section to confirm your project fits what the EIC is looking for.
When:
Read first
View document
EIC Transition proposal templatePDF

Official Part B template — the 22-page technical proposal structure for Transition.

Contains:
The exact template you'll fill in for Part B — cover page (precursor project details) + 22-page technical proposal. Sections: Excellence (technology breakthrough & feasibility), Impact (business plan & market), Implementation (work plan & team).
Length:
22-page limit for Part B + cover page
Why:
This is where your actual proposal lives. The cover page identifying your precursor project is unique to Transition — start here to understand what's needed.
When:
When writing your proposal
View document
Annotated proposal template — Transition (Access2EIC)PDF · ~50 pages

Colour-coded expert annotations — EC instructions, NCP tips, reviewer insights for Transition.

Contains:
The Transition template covered in colour-coded expert annotations. Blue = official EC instructions. Yellow = NCP tips from reviewing thousands of proposals. Purple = what evaluators actually care about. Includes Transition-specific guidance on business plans and market readiness.
Length:
~50 pages with annotations
Why:
The single most useful document for writing a winning Transition proposal. Tells you exactly what to write in each section and what evaluators penalise.
When:
Keep open while writing
View document
Evaluation form — EIC TransitionPDF

The exact form evaluators use to score your Transition proposal.

Contains:
The exact scoring sheet for Excellence (threshold 4/5), Impact (threshold 4/5), and Implementation (threshold 3/5). Shows specific sub-criteria including technology feasibility, business & market fit, entrepreneurship capability, and team quality.
Length:
~8 pages
Why:
Structure your proposal to match this form point-by-point. If an evaluator can't find the answer to their question, you lose marks.
When:
Before and during writing
View document
Reference
Standard application form — Transition (Part A + B)PDF

Shows the full structure of both parts of the Transition application.

Contains:
The complete picture — Part A forms and Part B technical proposal structure. Part A includes the precursor project identification section unique to Transition.
Length:
~15 pages
Why:
Understand the full scope of what you're submitting — not just the technical narrative.
When:
Before starting your application
View document
Lump sum funding guidePDF

Transition uses lump sum grants — no detailed cost reporting.

Contains:
How lump sum works: define work packages with agreed costs, declare 'completed' or 'not completed'. No timesheets, no individual expense reports. Covers budgeting rules and audit implications.
Length:
~20 pages
Why:
Changes how you think about budgeting. Much simpler than traditional cost-reporting grants.
When:
When planning your budget
View document
Annotated Grant Agreement (AGA)PDF

Comprehensive guide to the Horizon Europe grant contract. Every clause explained.

Contains:
Every clause of the grant contract explained with examples. IP ownership, reporting, financial rules, amendments, subcontracting.
Length:
~300 pages (reference only)
Why:
Consult when you have a specific legal question or after being selected.
When:
After selection / when needed
View document
Horizon Europe General Annexes 2025PDF

Cross-cutting rules: eligibility, evaluation, funding rates, ethics, open science.

Contains:
Eligible countries, entity types, funding rates (100% for Transition), ethics requirements, open science mandates, gender equality plans.
Length:
~50 pages
Why:
Check if your country or organisation is eligible.
When:
If unsure about eligibility rules
View document
Helpful
F&T Portal submission manualPDF

Step-by-step guide for the electronic submission system.

Contains:
Screenshots of every screen in the submission system. Creating submissions, uploading documents, managing partners.
Length:
~60 pages
Why:
Read in the last week before the deadline so nothing surprises you.
When:
Week before deadline
View document
F&T Portal online manualPDF

Comprehensive guide to the Funding & Tenders Portal covering all workflows.

Contains:
Everything you can do on the portal — accounts, searching, proposals, tracking results.
Length:
~100 pages (reference)
Why:
Useful reference when doing anything on the portal for the first time.
When:
When using the portal
View document
Budget split

Typical Budget Breakdown

Personnel45–55%
Prototyping & validation15–25%
IP & business development10–15%
Subcontracting5–10%
Indirect costs (25% flat rate)15–20%
Calendar

2026 Deadlines

Next Cut-off16 September 2026
From submission to money
  1. 22 Apr 2026Call opens

    HORIZON-EIC-2026-TRANSITIONOPEN opens on the Funding & Tenders Portal; one Open call, no thematic priorities, €100m budget for roughly 40 grants of €0.5m–€2.5m (lump sum, 100% funding rate).

  2. 16 Sep 2026, 17:00 BrusselsSingle cut-off

    Submit Part B (max 22 A4 pages for sections 1–3 plus cover page identifying the feeder project) via the portal. One cut-off per year — miss it and the source-project 24-month window keeps ticking.

  3. by ~18 Nov 2026 (T+9 weeks)Remote evaluation results

    At least three EIC expert evaluators score each proposal; you get the result with written feedback indicatively within 9 weeks of the deadline. The best-ranked pool (about 2.2x the available budget, topped up to 30% women-led applicants where possible) goes to interview.

  4. ~Dec 2026 (T+11–13 weeks)Jury interviews

    Online pitch to a panel of 4–6 EIC Jury members (max 5 team members, all named in the proposal); the European Patent Office supplies a non-binding novelty assessment to the Jury.

  5. ~Jan 2027 (4 weeks from interview start)Funding decision letters

    Verdicts are GO, GO Reserve (reserve list) or NO GO, communicated indicatively within 4 weeks of the start of interviews, with Jury feedback and possibly resubmission advice.

  6. by ~16 Mar 2027 (T+6 months, indicative)Grant agreement signed

    Grant agreement preparation — legal entity validation, financial-capacity check on the coordinator, bank account validation — concludes with signature indicatively within 6 months of the call deadline.

  7. ~30 days after signature/startFirst pre-financing lands

    A pre-financing float is paid under the grant agreement (the standard Horizon formula is 160% of average EU funding per reporting period, less for single-period actions), minus a 5–8% retention for the Mutual Insurance Mechanism.

  8. within 2 months of signatureProject must start

    Projects of 1–3 years begin; coaching is mandatory unless well justified, and awardees gain access to Business Acceleration Services, €50,000 booster grants and the Fast Track route into the EIC Accelerator.

After the grant

After you're funded

EIC Programme Manager

A dedicated Programme Manager — a domain expert employed by the EIC — follows your project, provides strategic guidance and can flag you for follow-on opportunities. They are an asset, not just an overseer.

Business Acceleration Services

All grantees enter a mandatory coaching programme (waivable only if you can demonstrate equivalent support), plus optional Tech2Market services: market analysis, business-model development, investor introductions and access to the EIC corporate-partnership network.

Fast-track to the EIC Accelerator

Successful Transition projects get privileged fast-track access to the EIC Accelerator — up to €2.5M grant plus €1M–€10M equity for market entry. The EIC pipeline is designed so each stage feeds the next: Pathfinder → Transition → Accelerator.

Booster grant

Up to €50,000 in additional fixed-amount funding for complementary commercialisation activities, available during the project.

Light-touch reporting — but real milestones

Projects run 1–3 years under the lump-sum model: you report work packages as completed rather than filing expense claims. Periodic reports still gate the interim payments, and the final tranche (roughly 10%) is paid only at project end.

On the ground

Practical notes

You don't have to own the upstream project to apply on it.

EIC Transition must build on results from an eligible prior project (EIC Pathfinder, FET, ERC Proof of Concept, Pillar II R&I Actions, and from 2026 also Research Infrastructures projects). The EIC explicitly states you do NOT need to have been a participant, PI, or result owner of that project - new participants are welcome. Hunt eligible results via Innovation Radar, CORDIS, ERC's ERIS, and the Horizon Results Platform, then approach the owner.

The make-or-break attachment is the commitment/result-owner letter.

Before you write the proposal, secure a commitment letter from the owner(s) of the underlying results - without it the eligibility link breaks. Also verify the prior project meets the timing rule (active at least 12 months, or finished less than 24 months before deadline) and sits at TRL 3 or TRL 4 specifically; results at other TRLs are simply not eligible.

NCPs and Access2EIC give you free templates and pre-checks - use them before paying a consultant.

Your National Contact Point offers free guidance on eligibility and the application, and the Access2EIC network publishes the official annotated proposal template for EIC Transition (2025 version is the latest published) - the closest thing to an evaluator's scoring guide. The EIC also runs free Info Days (the Work Programme 2026 sessions ran 13-17 November 2025; recordings remain available).

Apply alone or stay small - and budget for the jury interview and post-grant BAS.

Unlike most Horizon calls, a single SME, spin-off, university or research org can apply alone; consortia are capped at 2-5 partners from different Member/Associated States, and large companies cannot apply solo. Evaluation is three-step with a jury interview roughly 11-13 weeks after the deadline, and all funded projects get free EIC Business Acceleration Services (coaches, mentors, investor/corporate connections) plus booster grants up to €50,000.

Verified by our agents · updated 9 days ago
Live opportunities

Open calls

Live from the EU Funding & Tenders Portal.

Track record

Who's been funded

128 projects funded · €297.3M in EU contribution · sourced from CORDIS.

At a glance

Key Features

Bridges the 'valley of death' between research and market
Up to €2.5M per project
Duration: up to 3 years
Covers technology validation, prototyping, IP, and business development
Direct pathway to EIC Accelerator for successful projects

Frequently Asked Questions

You can apply as a single organisation (an SME, start-up, spin-off, university, or research institute) or as a consortium of up to 5 partners. The key requirement is that your work must build on results from an earlier EU-funded project: EIC Pathfinder, an ERC Proof of Concept grant, a FET Flagship, or Horizon Europe Pillar II projects. You either include a participant from that earlier project or prove you hold the IP rights to develop the technology further.

EIC Transition gives a pure grant of up to €2.5 million, covering 100% of your eligible costs plus a 25% flat rate for indirect costs. Unlike the EIC Accelerator, there is no equity component and no co-financing requirement, so you keep full ownership of your company. A separate fixed booster grant of up to €50,000 is also available for complementary commercialisation activities.

You do not need a consortium. Single applicants are fully eligible and many funded projects are individual SMEs, spin-offs, or research organisations. If you do partner up, the consortium can have a maximum of 5 legal entities. Choose the structure that fits the technology rather than adding partners just to look bigger.

There is a single cut-off date in 2026: 16 September 2026. EIC Transition runs as one annual call rather than multiple rounds, so missing this date means waiting roughly a year for the next one. The total budget for the 2026 call is €100 million.

It is highly competitive. In the 2025 call, 40 projects were selected from 611 submissions, a success rate of about 6.5%. A further 228 strong proposals received a Seal of Excellence but no funding because the budget ran out, so a good proposal alone does not guarantee money.

Evaluation takes roughly 3 months after the deadline. If you are selected, grant preparation adds another 2 to 3 months, so the grant agreement is typically signed around month 6 and the project starts around month 7. Plan your cash flow on the basis that funding from a September submission begins the following spring.

You need a credible technology maturation plan that moves a validated lab result (TRL 3 to 4 at entry) toward TRL 5 or 6 by the end of the project. Evaluators want to see a clear link to the earlier EU-funded research, a realistic path to market with early business case and IP strategy, and a team able to deliver both the technical and commercialisation work. Vague science with no route to a fundable product is the most common reason for rejection.

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