Library FAQ
What coaching is offered to EIC Accelerator applicants?
At full proposal stage for the EIC Accelerator, applicants can receive three days of optional remote coaching.
What core services are included in the EIC BAS catalogue?
Core BAS include access to EIC Ecosystem Partners’ services (incubation, acceleration, legal/IP, testing infrastructure) with up to 50% cost coverage, coaching, support for trade fairs, global soft-landing, corporate partnership support, innovation procurement...
What does the Ecosystem Partnership Programme include regarding ESG reporting?
This action engages Ecosystem Partners via an open call, maintains the EIC Service Catalogue, promotes offers and co-organises activities, and develops training, tools and promotion to support ESG reporting for EIC Awardees; indicative budget EUR 1.5 million f...
What expert and support actions are funded for EIC governance and operations?
Funded actions include honoraria and expenses for the EIC Board (e.g. EUR 2,200 full attendance; EUR 1,100 partial), external expertise for monitoring/ethics/policy advice (with EUR 450/day special allowance for certain personal-capacity experts), communicatio...
What funding and structure apply to Women TechEU third-party grants?
Grants to third parties must represent at least 75% of the initiative’s total budget, with a maximum of EUR 75,000 per third party for activities like product/service refinement, UX, business model updates, partner/investor search and market validation. Third...
What is the EIC Women Leadership Programme?
The programme provides training, business coaching and mentoring to women-(co)founded or led EIC companies, women researchers from EIC Pathfinder and Transition aspiring to leadership, and Women TechEU Awardees, as part of BAS offerings.
What is the European Prize for Women Innovators and what are the prize amounts?
The prize celebrates women entrepreneurs behind game-changing innovations with two categories: Women Innovators (three prizes of EUR 100,000 / EUR 70,000 / EUR 50,000) and Rising Innovators under 35 (three prizes of EUR 50,000 / EUR 30,000 / EUR 20,000).
What is the Global Soft-landing programme?
A public procurement action to support EIC Awardees in expanding to markets outside the EU through customised guidance, coaching, training, pitching, partner identification and market hub insights; indicative budget EUR 2 million from Q1 2025.
What is the Women TechEU initiative and who is eligible?
Women TechEU supports early-stage women-led deep-tech start-ups; eligible companies must be registered/established in an EU Member State or Horizon Europe Associated Country for at least six months and founded/co-founded by women holding top management positio...
What support exists for attending trade fairs and exhibitions?
An action will support EIC Awardees (SMEs) to attend European and international trade fairs, including exhibition space in an ‘EIC Pavilion’, market training, business meetings, promotion, and side events; indicative budget EUR 2.5 million starting Q2 2025.
Where are BAS services listed and accessed?
All BAS services are listed on and accessed through the EIC Community Platform.
Who is eligible to receive Business Acceleration Services (BAS) from the EIC?
All EIC Awardees (EIC Accelerator, EIC Transition, EIC Pathfinder, EIC STEP Scaleup), beneficiaries and associated partners of EIC grants, recipients of EIC Fund investments (including EIC Pilot and Phase 2 SME Instrument), companies selected under EIC Scale U...
Who provides EIC business coaching and how are coaches selected and paid?
Coaches are highly qualified business coaches registered via an open call (EIC Coach Platform); selection follows Article 242 of the Financial Regulation. Coaches receive EUR 1,000 per day (EUR 500 per half day). The coaching action is an expert contracts acti...
Can a Member State or Associated Country choose not to implement the Plug-In scheme?
Yes. A Member State or Associated Country may decide not to implement the Plug-In scheme or to introduce it at a later stage.
Do selected Plug-In projects and companies receive EIC coaching?
Yes. Selected projects and companies have the same access to EIC coaching as proposals selected in the EIC Accelerator short application phase.
How are Booster grant proposals invited and assessed?
Potential beneficiaries can be invited to apply following a positive recommendation from an EIC Programme Manager, a project review, or participation in EIC Tech2Market BAS actions. Each proposal is assessed under Article 29(2) of Horizon Europe, taking into a...
How are full proposals originating from the Plug-In treated in assessment?
They are assessed as set out in Section V and treated exactly the same way as all other full proposals.
Is there a limit to the number of Plug-In proposals per country?
Yes. The number of proposals that can be given access via the Plug-In is limited at the level of Member States and Associated Countries.
On what basis should companies be selected for the Plug-In proposals?
Companies should be selected based on criteria equivalent to the EIC Accelerator short application and through a process that guarantees an independent assessment of proposals.
Under what circumstances may the Commission withdraw Plug-In certification?
If false information was used to obtain certification or if the project review does not comply with the provisions set out in the most recent EIC work programme.
What activities are Booster grants not intended to fund?
They do not fund research, activities already foreseen in the original project, or activities already funded by other EIC instruments.
What are Booster grants and what is their maximum amount?
Booster grants are fixed-amount awards not exceeding EUR 50,000, given outside any call to support portfolio coordinating activities or to nurture innovation from projects already selected under EIC Pathfinder or relevant Transition calls.
What are the award criteria for Booster grants for innovation and for portfolio activities?
For innovation activities: timeliness and pertinence (Excellence), potential to create markets or solve societal problems (Impact), and applicants' expertise and motivation (Quality and efficiency). For portfolio activities: contribution to EIC Portfolio objec...
What are the limits on the number of Booster grants per project?
A maximum of three Booster grants can be awarded for each EIC Pathfinder project (with exceptional justified cases possibly exceeding this). A maximum of one Booster grant can be awarded for each EIC Transition project (with exceptional justified cases possibl...