For applicants

Who can apply for grants?

The EEA Grants (€988.5 million) are available to 15 European countries, while the Norway Grants (€800 million) are earmarked for the 12 newest EU member states.

Grants are available for NGOs, research and academic institutions, and the public and private sectors in the 12 newest EU member states, Greece, Portugal and Spain. Scholarships and grants for cultural exchanges are open for individuals.

What can be supported?

Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway have presented the beneficiary states with a choice of 32 programme areas. In negotiations between the three donor states and each individual beneficiary state, an agreement is made to set up an estimated 10 programmes in each country. Each programme will be within one of the programme areas. The country pages include overviews of what will be supported.

What is the timeline?

So far, 2 programmes are up and running, but 135 are expected all in all. The aim is to get the programmes approved in 2012 in order to get projects started on the ground as soon as possible. The open calls are expected to start in spring and summer 2012. Projects can be awarded support until end-April 2014 and be implemented until 2016. See timeline

How to apply?

Programme operators, mostly public institutions in the beneficiary states, are given the responsibility to award funding to projects and follow up on their implementation. Grants will be awarded to projects following calls for proposals that will be organised by the respective programme operators. 

Each programme operator will set up a website in the national language and in English. Once these have been established, links will be provided on this website. The programme operators' websites will contain detailed information about how to apply (including application forms), ongoing or planned calls for proposals and selection procedures.

Information on all open calls for proposals will be published on this website. Currently, the Fund for Decent Work and Tripartite Dialogue has an ongoing open call.

What preparatory steps may be taken?

An open call typically allows interested entities two months to prepare their applications. It is therefore advisable to use time before the call goes out to prepare the ground.

As well as ensuring adequate resources for the work ahead, potential applicants should start by studying the objective and expected outcome(s) of a programme (see the programme area pages). 

What about bilateral partnerships?

Entities from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway can participate as project partners.

Bilateral partnerships between entities in the beneficiary states and Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway are encouraged. Measures will be introduced alongside the launch of the programmes to facilitate these.

A potential applicant for funding may already explore possibilities for developing partnerships with entities from the donor states. Bilateral cooperation is an explicit objective of the Grants, and funds for networking and partner search will be made available in funds both at the national level and at the programme level.