EIC Accelerator October cut-off moved two weeks to 19 October; 12 month rule extended for affected Step 1 applicants

Brussels, August 3rd 2023

Summary

›The EIC Accelerator full proposal (Step 2) cut-off originally set for 4 October 2023 has been postponed to 19 October 2023.
›The 12 month deadline for submitting a full proposal after a successful short proposal (Step 1) is exceptionally extended for applicants affected by the June platform disruption.
›The move follows the discontinuation of the EIC AI Platform and migration of full proposal submissions to the Submission and Evaluation Platform on the Horizon Europe Funding & Tenders portal.
›Short proposals (Step 1) were subject to a temporary moratorium from 2 June to 3 July 2023 and reopened on a separate new IT platform on 3 July.
›Applicants should verify PIC and EU Login credentials, review the updated financial template and consider coaching and due diligence implications for any investment component.

EIC Accelerator October cut-off postponed to 19 October 2023

The European Innovation Council has moved the submission deadline for the final EIC Accelerator full proposal cut-off of 2023 from 4 October to 19 October. The change is intended to give applicants extra time to finalise and submit Step 2 proposals after a temporary interruption to the short proposal channel between 2 June and 3 July 2023.

Why the deadline was changed

On 2 June 2023 the EIC discontinued its dedicated Artificial Intelligence application platform and migrated full proposal submissions to the Submission and Evaluation Platform, SEP, hosted on the Horizon Europe Funding & Tenders portal. Step 1 submissions were placed on a separate new IT platform and experienced a short moratorium that ended on 3 July. Because some successful Step 1 applicants were only able to submit their short proposals after the platform re‑opened, the Commission delayed the October Step 2 cut-off by two weeks to allow those applicants sufficient time to prepare full proposals.

Step 1 and Step 2 explained:Step 1 is the short proposal phase. Successful Step 1 applicants receive a GO and may be invited to prepare a full Step 2 proposal. Step 2 is the full proposal stage that can result in grant and/or equity investment support through the EIC Accelerator. Step 1 uses a short form, slide deck and video pitch. Step 2 uses the longer Part B form and financial annexes.

What the extension covers

The Commission also applied an exceptional extension of the rule that normally requires a full proposal to be submitted within 12 months of a positive Step 1 evaluation. Successful Step 1 applicants who would have exceeded the 12 month limit between the 7 June 2023 cut-off and the new 19 October 2023 cut-off are allowed to submit their Step 2 proposals to the 19 October deadline. Otherwise successful Step 1 applicants remain free to submit a full proposal to any cut-off within 12 months of their GO notification.

Event	Original date or period	New date or note
EIC AI Platform discontinued	2 June 2023	Platform migration announced
Short proposal moratorium	2 June to 3 July 2023	Reopened on 3 July on a separate new Step 1 platform
Original Step 2 cut-off	4 October 2023	Postponed
Revised Step 2 cut-off	19 October 2023	Final 2023 full proposal deadline
Interviews for June cut-off	Scheduled	Planned for first week of October; outcomes end of October
2024 cut-off dates	To be published	Expected with the 2024 EIC work programme in November 2023

Background on the platform change and operational impact

The discontinuation of the EIC AI Platform was driven by a contractual dispute leading to an urgent migration of processes to the Horizon Europe SEP. The SEP is the central funding portal used across Horizon Europe. The short proposal process required a separate platform because of the specific Step 1 assets such as slide decks and video pitches. The migration created a brief interruption of service for Step 1 applicants and a transition period for organisations to recompose their Step 2 submissions in the new submission environment.

Submission and Evaluation Platform (SEP):SEP is the Funding & Tenders Portal's submission tool. From June 2023 onwards all full Step 2 proposals for the EIC Accelerator are to be submitted through SEP. The platform uses EU Login authentication and interacts with Participant Identification Codes, PICs. SEP also includes interfaces for evaluators and for administrative processing of grant and investment preparations.

Practical changes applicants should note

Beyond the deadline shift, several functional and form changes accompany the move to SEP and the revised templates. The EIC has streamlined the Step 2 proposal structure and simplified the financial annex. Evaluators will be able to see Step 1 material and previous evaluation comments where relevant. The EIC has also published updated financial templates with a corrected method for calculating total investment needs and clarified where to report the requested EIC grant and any requested equity.

Financial template updates and key points:The financial form has been simplified. The previous practice of adding a 30 percent top-up for co‑financing to the total investment estimate was removed. Investment needs should be calculated from cash flow data and the costs of work packages to be financed by the investment component. The maximum grant remains 70 percent of eligible costs and grant requests should be under €2.5 million unless justified. The template asks for forecasts through year N+5 and Year N corresponds to 2023 in the current template. Applicants should input expected EIC funding as grant revenue in the P&L and cash flow lines indicated in the template. Smaller companies will find the multi‑year balance sheet forecasts demanding but evaluators use them to gauge funding and scaling plans.

Interviews, evaluation timing and related services

Full proposals submitted and evaluated are assessed remotely by independent experts. Companies that receive a GO at remote evaluation are invited to pitch at jury interviews in front of investors and business experts. The June cut-off interviews were scheduled for the first week of October with final decisions communicated at the end of October. Applicants chosen for funding enter grant and investment agreement preparation and may undergo due diligence for any EIC Fund equity component.

Coaching, Seal of Excellence and Fast Track:Successful Step 1 applicants can request business coaching via the SME Dashboard. Applicants may also opt to share some application data with National Contact Points and regional public organisations to access additional services or to seek alternative funding under the Seal of Excellence procedures. Fast Track and Plug In referrals from national programmes remain recognised in SEP.

What applicants should do now

The slipstream created by the platform change compresses the timeline and increases administrative friction. Applicants should act deliberately to avoid avoidable errors and to preserve eligibility.

Immediate administrative checks:Ensure your EU Login works and that your Participant Identification Code, PIC, is valid. Confirm access to SEP and any separate Step 1 platform used for short proposals. If you rely on third parties to upload documents or to handle the financial template, verify they have access and current credentials.

Financial and valuation work:Download the updated financial template and follow the revised method for calculating total investment needs. Use the latest closed year data and set Year N to 2023. Be prepared to justify post‑money valuation figures with reference to your most recent financing round. Provide realistic forecasts to year N+5 and document key assumptions. Make sure requested EIC funds are placed in the P&L and cash flow lines indicated in the template.

Documentation for interviews and due diligence:If invited to an interview you may be asked for identity documents for representatives, company registration acts and payroll or contract evidence to confirm legal links. Prepare these documents in case of physical or online interviews. If selected for an investment component expect additional due diligence by EIB, Alter Domus or other partners working on behalf of the EIC Fund.

Risks, questions and broader context

The migration and temporary moratorium exposed operational fragility in application infrastructure. The discontinuation of a previously used AI platform because of a contractual dispute underlines that delivery of programme processes depends on stable procurement and vendor relationships. Applicants should be aware this kind of interruption can create fairness and timeline issues even with retrospective remedies such as deadline extensions.

Data protection and platform use:Application platforms use EU Login and store personally identifiable information. EISMEA and the Commission process personal data under Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 and publish data protection notices. Where third party tools are used by the EIC ecosystem, check the relevant privacy and processing information. If you give explicit consent to share data with National Contact Points or investors be aware of the recipients and purposes.

Fairness and evaluative continuity:The EIC says prior GO results will be recognised and that SEP will show Step 1 material and previous evaluator comments. That increases transparency between stages but also creates expectations that evaluators will straightforwardly reconcile previous feedback. Applicants resubmitting a previously rejected Step 2 should use the rebuttal and improvement sections of Part B to address prior evaluator comments directly.

Where to get help and reference material

The EIC and EISMEA have published guidance, FAQs, training recordings and downloadable templates. The agency ran an online training session on 12 June covering the new application processes. For platform support contact the EIC helpdesk at support@eic.eismea.eu or consult your National Contact Point. Applicants eligible for coaching can request it through the SME Dashboard.

Resource	What it contains	How to access
EIC Accelerator Work Programme and Apply page	Call details, templates and application guide	EIC website and Funding & Tenders Portal
EIC FAQs and technical guidance	Answers on SEP, Step 1 and Step 2, financial form guidance	EIC website FAQs and EIC Accelerator application platform FAQs
Recording of SEP training session	Walkthrough of the new submission process	EIC or EISMEA training recording link
Helpdesk	Platform and submission support	support@eic.eismea.eu
National Contact Points	Local advisory and Fast Track support	Contact via Funding & Tenders Portal guidance

The EIC's revised timetable and platform changes aim to be pragmatic remedies for an operational interruption. Applicants should treat the extension as limited and prepare Step 2 submissions promptly. At the same time managers and policy watchers should view the disruption as a reminder that the EU innovation support infrastructure depends on robust IT procurement and contingency arrangements if high stakes programmes are to operate fairly and predictably.

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