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Grant Analysis

Purpose & Target

Grant Purpose and Target

Core Objective: Qualify, quantify, and test advanced 5G/6G technologies' enablement effect and impact in and for vertical sectors through trials and pilots.
Target Recipient Type and Size: Legal entities established in specified eligible countries, with a strong emphasis on the involvement of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs).
Designation: SECTOR-SPECIFIC
Geographic Scope: EU Member States, Iceland, Norway, Canada, Israel, Republic of Korea, New Zealand, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.
Key Filtering Criteria: Focus on 5G/6G technology application to specific vertical industries, adherence to country eligibility, and no involvement of 'high-risk suppliers' or entities controlled by non-eligible countries.
Grant Program Context: This is part of the Horizon Europe Smart Networks and Services (SNS) Joint Undertaking program, specifically 'Stream D'. It leverages and contributes to existing SNS platforms and open-source repositories.

Financial Structure

Funding is provided through 'Innovation Actions' (IA), specifically 'HORIZON Action Grant Budget-Based' grants.
The budget range per individual project is fixed at €6,000,000.
The total budget allocated for this call in 2025 is €24,000,000.
Currency: EUR.
Eligible and ineligible costs: These are generally described in Annex G of the 'Horizon Europe Work Programme 2023-2025', which applies to this call.
Co-financing requirements: At least 70% of the project's budget should be implemented by an SNS JU member (other than the Union) and their constituent or affiliated entities, which implies a co-funding or collaborative financial structure.
Payment schedule and mechanisms: Details are governed by General Annex G of the 'Horizon Europe Work Programme 2023-2025'.
Financial reporting and audit requirements: These are also detailed in General Annex G of the 'Horizon Europe Work Programme 2023-2025'.

Eligibility Requirements

Organizational Type and Legal Structure

Legal entities must be established in one of the eligible countries.
Public bodies, research organizations, or higher education establishments (including private ones) are required to provide a Gender Equality Plan.
A mandatory table of compliance must be filled at the proposal stage in the 'Application Form Technical Description (Part B)'.

Geographic Location Requirements

Entities must be established in: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Iceland, Norway, Canada, Israel, Republic of Korea, New Zealand, Switzerland, or the United Kingdom.

Exclusion Criteria

Entities directly or indirectly controlled by a non-eligible country or non-eligible country entity are excluded, unless they can provide guarantees, positively assessed by their eligible country of establishment, that their participation will not negatively impact the Union's strategic assets, interests, autonomy, or security.
Entities assessed as 'high-risk suppliers of mobile network communication equipment' (or entities fully or partially owned or controlled by such suppliers) are not eligible.
Legal entities established in Russia, Belarus, or non-government-controlled territories of Ukraine are not eligible to participate in any capacity.
Legal entities established outside Russia but whose proprietary rights are directly or indirectly owned for more than 50% by legal persons established in Russia are also not eligible (in accordance with Council Regulation (EU) 2024/1745).

Financial and Operational Capacity

General Annex C of the 'Horizon Europe Work Programme 2023-2025' applies for financial and operational capacity assessment.

Consortium Requirements

At least 70% of the project's budget must be implemented by an SNS Joint Undertaking (JU) member (other than the Union) and their constituent or affiliated entities.

Application Process

Application Timeline

Application Submission Window Opens: 2025-06-18.
Application Deadline: 2025-09-18 00:00:00+0000.
Evaluation Process Timeline: The indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement is described in Annex F of the 'Horizon Europe Work Programme 2023-2025'. Specific dates are not provided within the topic description.

Application Procedure

Proposals must be submitted via the Electronic Submission Service available through the Funding & Tenders Portal.
A call-specific application form will be used, which will be accessible within the Submission System.
The submission process is a 'single-stage' procedure.

Required Documentation and Materials

The limit for a full proposal is 70 pages for Innovation Actions (IAs) submitted under Stream D.
Applicants must fill a mandatory 'table of compliance' at the proposal stage, which is part of the 'Application Form Technical Description (Part B)'.
Public bodies, research organizations, or higher education establishments are required to provide a 'Gender Equality Plan'.

Post-Award Requirements

Selected projects' participants will be requested to cooperate within the SNS Programme for topics of common interests.
This cooperation will be formalized by signing a 'collaboration agreement', as referenced in the specific provisions of the 'Model Grant Agreement (Annex 5 of the MGA)'.
For projects under Stream D, AI/ML training data sets created and used must be made available through a common, openly accessed repository for use by other SNS projects over the program lifecycle.

Application Assistance and Support

Applicants can find guidance through various resources:
- JU SNS FAQ
- SNS Brokerage Platform (for finding partners)
- Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual and FAQ
- Horizon Europe Programme Guide
- Research Enquiry Service
- National Contact Points (NCPs)
- Enterprise Europe Network (for SMEs)
- IT Helpdesk for technical submission issues
- European IPR Helpdesk for intellectual property issues
- CEN-CENELEC Research Helpdesk and ETSI Research Helpdesk for standardization advice
- Partner Search tools to help find collaborators.

Evaluation Criteria

General Award Criteria

Evaluation is based on the award criteria described in Annex D of the 'Work Programme General Annexes' to Horizon Europe.

Impact Section Complements

Proposals will be assessed on their contribution to the overall SME objective.
Proposals will be assessed on their contribution to the IKOP objectives (Innovation, Knowledge, Openness, Participation - inferred meaning).

Tie-breaking Rules

When two Innovation Action (IA) proposals are equally ranked, and initial criteria (coverage, impact, excellence) are insufficient to separate them:
- The level of SME participation will be used as the first tie-breaker.
- If still inconclusive, the level of IKOP will be considered.

Portfolio Balancing within Stream D

To ensure a balanced portfolio across key vertical priorities, grants will be awarded not only by ranking but also to at least one highest-ranked project within each of the following vertical priorities, provided all thresholds are met and budget is available:
- Industry/Manufacturing (including robotics)
- Media (including gaming, broadcasting)
- Transportation/Logistics
- Emergency and Safety Services
- Health
If a project addresses two verticals, only its declared 'centre of gravity' (main vertical focus) will be considered for topic coverage during evaluation.

Project Scope and Quality Expectations

Proposals should demonstrate clear benefits for a limited number of verticals (one or maximum two per project).
Tangible results for environmental, societal, and economic aspects are expected by the end of the project.
Trials and pilots should be carried out from an end-to-end perspective, covering the full value chain (devices, connectivity, service delivery).
Integration of different IoT/cloud/edge/computing environments is expected.
Strong involvement of SMEs is targeted, as they are expected to play a key role in developing new market-driven applications.
Performance and sustainability capabilities must be assessed against Key Value Indicators (KVIs) and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), clearly indicating target sets and how they advance the state-of-the-art.
Software entities implementing target services should use Open-Source Code and open interfaces.
Participation of vertical and industrial actors with demonstrated strong standardization impact is desired.
Projects should engage key vertical stakeholders to monetize and valorize project results.
Leveraging previously developed SNS platforms, national initiatives, or other preliminary 6G network solutions is encouraged.

Cross-cutting Themes

The 'gender dimension' in research and innovation content should be addressed where appropriate, especially if research results are expected to differ when applied to different gender populations of users.

Compliance & Special Requirements

Regulatory and Legal Compliance

Compliance is required with various General Annexes of the 'Horizon Europe Work Programme 2023-2025/2025' including those related to admissibility (Annex A), eligible countries (Annex B), financial and operational capacity (Annex C), evaluation and award (Annex D & F), and legal/financial set-up (Annex G).
Specific compliance with Council Regulation (EU) 2024/1745 is required, particularly regarding restrictions on participation of entities with Russian ownership.

Data Protection and Intellectual Property (IP) Policies

Guarantees must substantiate that control over the applicant legal entity does not restrict its ability to carry out the action or deliver results, nor impose restrictions on its infrastructure, assets, IP, or know-how.
Access by a non-eligible country or non-eligible country entity to sensitive information relating to the action must be prevented. Employees or other persons involved may require a national security clearance.
Ownership of IP arising from and results of the action must remain within the recipient, not be subject to control or restrictions by non-eligible countries/entities, and not be exported outside eligible countries or accessed from outside without approval.
AI/ML training data sets created within the projects must be made available through a common, openly accessible repository for other SNS projects.

Risk Management and Security Requirements

Actions must avoid technological dependency on non-EU sources and address strategic weaknesses or high-risk dependencies.
Entities assessed as 'high-risk suppliers of mobile network communication equipment' are explicitly excluded to protect European communication networks.

Unique Aspects and Strategic Opportunities

The grant highly encourages strong involvement of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs), recognizing their role as critical enablers for European innovation, rapid adoption, and stimulation of private sector investment.
Projects are expected to make impactful contributions towards standardization bodies, particularly for 6G use cases and technologies.
There's an emphasis on attracting participation from key vertical industries and engaging vertical stakeholders for the monetization and valorization of project results.
Projects should leverage and, if needed, upgrade existing SNS platforms (from previous Stream B, C, and D projects), national initiatives, or other preliminary 6G network solutions.
Visible events that are widely open and inclusively accessible to the public, showcasing European 5G Advanced and 6G know-how, are particularly relevant.
Contribution to a repository of open-source tools and modules is expected.

Grant Details