For applicants

Who can apply for grants?

Grants are available to applicants in 15 European countries: Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain.

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

Eligible applicants include any public or private, commercial or non-commercial, and non-governmental organisations, established as a legal entity in the respective beneficiary country, as well as international organisations operating in the beneficiary country. Scholarships and grants for cultural exchanges are open for individuals.

What can be supported?

An expected 135 programmes are currently being set up in Central and Southern Europe under the EEA and Norway Grants. More than 70 of these programmes will be implemented in cooperation with public entities in Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.

Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway have presented the beneficiary states with a choice of 32 programme areas. Key areas of support include environmental protection and climate change, research and scholarships, civil society, health and children, gender equality, strengthening judicial affairs and cultural heritage.

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.

Country-specific agreements have been made with 13 of the 15 countries benefiting from EEA and Norway Grants. Hopefully, agreements with remaining Portugal and Romania can be signed early 2012.

How will the funding be made available?

So far, two 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.

Grants will be awarded to projects following calls for proposals that will be organised by the respective programme operators in the beneficiary states, most likely starting in spring and summer 2012. Information on all open calls for proposals will be published on this website.

Projects can be implemented until 30 April 2016.

What preparatory steps may be taken already?

Potential project promoters may already take some preparatory steps. 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. Any project supported must be in line with this. The programme areas are presented here.

What are the possibilities to take part in bilateral partnerships?

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. Where donor programme partners are involved, they can also be of assistance.

Donor programme partners are expected to take part in more than half of the around 135 programmes to be established. They will cooperate closely with the national Programme Operators in preparing and implementing the programmes.