The standard minimum requirements for eligible consortia in Horizon Europe collaborative R&I projects will differ slightly from those in Horizon 2020.
Research and Innovation Actions (RIA)/Innovation Actions (IA)
In Horizon Europe, unless otherwise provided for in the specific call conditions, legal entities forming a consortium are eligible for participation in collaborative RIA/IA projects provided that the consortium includes:
at least one legal entity established in a Member State of the EU, and
at least two other independent legal entities each established either in a different Member State (MS) or an Associated Country (AC).
This means that while the basic eligibility condition remains the same as in Horizon 2020 (at least three independent legal entities based in different MS/AC) there is now an additional condition that requires at least one of them to be based in a Member State of the EU. As long as these basic conditions are met, the consortium can include organisations based anywhere in Europe and beyond (unless the call conditions specifically preclude the participation of entities based in the so-called third countries).
In practical terms, this means that a consortium composed of legal entities based only in the UK, Norway and Iceland, for example (once their association processes are concluded) would not be eligible in Horizon Europe, although the same partnership would have been eligible under Horizon 2020.
It is important to note that the call text might include additional requirements for consortia. For example, if a Horizon Europe call is intended to support EU-Africa cooperation in R&I, the consortium might need to include a specific number of organisations from African countries to be eligible. Such additional requirements will be clearly stated in the relevant Work Programme part and in the 'Topic conditions and documents' section of the respective topic on the Funding & Tenders Portal.
Coordination and Support Actions
Applications for Coordination and Support Actions (CSA) may be submitted by one or more legal entities, which may be established in a Member State of the EU, Associated Country, or in exceptional cases and if provided for in the specific call conditions, in a third country.
This means that, for example, a single legal entity from the UK would be eligible to apply to this type of call.
Eligibility conditions for specific types of projects
There are many different schemes in Horizon Europe that will have specific eligibility conditions related to the composition of consortia or the type of applicants - these will be clearly stated in the relevant Work Programme and reiterated in the call conditions on the Funding & Tenders Portal. One example is the European Innovation Council (EIC) where the eligibility conditions vary depending on the funding scheme (i.e. EIC Transition, EIC Accelerator). In addition to these, the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) and the European Research Council (ERC) grants follow different eligibility rules for the applicants, which will again be stated in the respective Work Programme parts.