EU funding

Only institutions in the European Union, and non-EU countries participating in the Horizon program (known as ‘Associated Countries’), can apply for and receive Horizon Europe grants directly. All other countries are known as 'third countries', and cannot lead applications. Australia is not currently an Associated Country.

Non-EU institutions with an establishment in an Associated Country or European Country can apply as lead organisations (e.g., the University of Sydney’s Australian Archaeological Institute at Athens, RMIT Europe).

Most Associated Countries are associated only with Pillar II, so they can participate fully in Research & Innovation calls, but cannot lead applications for ERC or MSCA grants. The Australian government confirmed in March 2026 that it is in treaty negotiations to Associate with Horizon Europe Pillar II from early 2027.

Click here to view the list of current Associated Countries.

We encourage you to work with your networks  and collaborators to develop globally relevant or comparative research projects that need a genuine multi-country approach from an international team. You may also like to consider applying to become an Expert Evaluator to see applications and the process of review from the 'inside'.

Horizon Europe

Third countries can receive ‘exceptional funding’ from Horizon Europe if the application makes a strong case that their participation is essential for implementing the project. This may be because of:

• outstanding competence/expertise
• access to particular research infrastructures
• access to particular geographical environments
• access to particular data.¹

However, this general guideline can be overridden by clauses in specific Pillar II calls, which may state that third country participants cannot claim costs in the budget.

Macquarie researchers can still be subcontracted to perform specific research tasks. Where permitted, Macquarie negotiates a sub-award with the lead institution to be reimbursed for eligible research costs.

European Research Council

Under the ERC Work Programme, third country institutions (e.g. Macquarie) are eligible for funding when:

• they are one of the host institutions in a Synergy Grant at any one time, or
• they host additional team members bringing scientific added value to the project, or
• their participation is deemed essential for carrying out the action.

Marie Skłodowska Curie Actions (MSCA)

For MSCA Global Fellowships, usual practice is to negotiate with the lead organization to receive a proportion of the funding paid to them to support research training, networking and administrative costs. However, there is no obligation for the lead institution to reimburse Macquarie for hosting the Fellow, so this amount can vary.

Click here to read information for non-European researchers applying for ERC grants.

Click here to read more on Horizon Europe’s strategy for international collaboration

¹HE Programme Guide, p.14

The Australian Government announced on 24 March 2026 that it is entering treaty negotiations on association to Horizon Europe, which will allow Australian institutions to participate in Pillar II Research & Innovation calls from early 2027, providing greater access to funding and the ability to lead projects.

To date 20 non-EU countries are associated to Horizon Europe, including Canada, New Zealand, the UK and Korea (the full list of country profiles is available on the European Commission website).

Current opportunities announced under each of the Pillar II clusters can be found here. Opportunities opening in 2027 will be under Horizon Europe's new phase for 2028-2034, with revised clusters and strong alignment with the new European Competitiveness Fund.

Note that association to Horizon Europe will not change Australia's participation in European Research Council or Marie Skłodowska Curie Actions under Pillar I.

The ERC has four funding opportunities in which non-EU/Associated Country researchers can participate. The ERC's grants operate on a 'bottom-up' basis without predetermined priorities, and are discipline agnostic. Interdisciplinary projects are particularly welcome.

Synergy Grants (SyG) are for teams of 2-4 researchers, one of which can be based in a third country as a Co-PI (international). Macquarie can participate as a host institution and receive funding.

Researchers or any nationality can also be employed on Synergy Grant, and vacancies are advertised on the Euraxess-Jobs portal.

Starting, Consolidator and Advanced Grants are directed at individual researchers from anywhere in the world at ECR, MCR and senior career stages. The project funding in these grants can be used to pay the applicant’s salary and can be undertaken part time, alongside other employment.

• Applicants do not need to be employed by the lead institution at time of application
• Successful applicants must be ‘engaged’ by the lead institution for the duration of the grant, for at least the percentage of time they will dedicate to the project (minimums apply and vary by grant).
• Applicants must spend at least 50% of their time (over the life of the grant) in an EU or Associated Country.
• Awardees can retain association or employment with another institution for the percentage of their time not dedicated to the ERC project
• Additional relocation funding is provided for applicants and their families who need to move to Europe.

View application information for researchers

MSCA fellowships and programs support research education and training in a global context. The key actions in which non-EU/Associated Country (third country) institutions can collaborate are:

MSCA Doctoral Networks fund doctoral programs run by cross-sector, international consortia. They include funding for cotutelle PhDs.

MSCA Global Postdoctoral Fellowships fund ECRs’ project, travel and living costs for 3 years, up to 2 years of which must be spent in a third country.

MSCA Staff Exchanges fund staff exchanges within cross-sector, international consortia. Consortia may include third country participants, but funding is not provided to staff from third country organisations.

View application information for researchers

These are competitive open calls focused on specific research topics. They are discipline agnostic, but applications are assessed by expert panels depending on the disciplinary approach of the proposal.

In the 2021-2027 program, R&I calls are divided into 7 ‘Clusters’, of which 6 are broadly open to non-EU/Associated Country participants:

• Cluster 1 Health
• Cluster 2 Culture, Creativity and Inclusive Society
• Cluster 3 Civil Security for Society
• Cluster 4 Digital, Industry and Space
• Cluster 5 Climate, Energy and Mobility
• Cluster 6 Food, Bioeconomy, Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment

Horizon issues 'work packages' every two years that outline their research priorities for these clusters, the full suite of calls that will be opened and an indicative timetable. The final work packages under HE 2021-27 can be viewed here.

Specific calls will indicate whether and in what capacity non EU/Associated Countries can participate.

Visit the Horizon Funding and Tenders page to search for R&I Calls.

You can also find Horizon Europe calls through Pivot-RP, which has an easier interface.

Horizon Europe 2028-2034

In 2025, the European Commission announced a new structure and doubled budget for Horizon Europe beyond 2027. In this proposal, ERC and MSCA  opportunities remain under Pillar I 'Excellent Science', while Pillar II will become 'Competitiveness and Society' and be reorganised into 7 clusters in two groups:

Competitiveness

1. Clean transition and industrial decarbonisation
2. Health, biotech, agriculture and bioeconomy
3. Digital leadership
4. Resilience and security, defence industry and space

Society

1. Global societal challenges
2. EU Missions
3. New European Bauhaus Facility

Further information will be released as the new Horizon Europe phase is finalised.

The NHMRC-Horizon Europe Scheme supports Australian participation in collaborative research funded by Horizon Europe.

Australian researchers listed on successful applications to specific Pillar II calls (usually in Cluster I: Health) can apply for funding to support the Australian component of the research.

The specific calls are listed each year on the NHMRC funding web page, and invitations are made by the NHMRC through the Grant Development Team.

2025 Pillar II calls eligible for the NHMRC-EU Collaborative Research Grant Scheme were announced in September 2025.

If you are listed on an application in any of these calls and the application is successful, the NHMRC will invite you to submit an application for additional funding of up to $4m for up to 5 years. The Grant Development Team will contact you and support the application.

Horizon Europe’s global network, Euraxess, helps researchers build relationships and experience through networking, grant assessment and jobs boards.

There are Euraxess contact points and representatives across the world, and the representative for Euraxess Australia and New Zealand can be contacted direct at australianz@euraxess.net

Click here to go to the Euraxess Australia-New Zealand website. You will find links there to region-specific information and webinars, and their YouTube channel, which contains recordings of previous presentations and information sessions.

Employment on funded project teams can be found on the Euraxess portal. You can also post an opportunity listing there if you wish to host an MSCA Global Fellow.