Following the announcement on 7 September 2023, UKRO in our role as UK National Contact Point (NCP) for Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) has received a number of questions from potential applicants to, and those involved in, current MSCA calls.
This article attempts to address the most common questions submitted to date to the MSCA NCP helpdesk. Additional guidance can be found in the dedicated explainer published by the UK Government.
What does the announcement mean for MSCA?
The announcement last week confirmed the UK’s association in principle to the Horizon Europe and Copernicus programmes from 1 January 2024.
UK organisations will be able participate in Horizon Europe calls for proposals on the same terms as institutions from many other associated countries, including leading consortia and receiving EU funding, from the 2024 Work Programme and onwards.
The UK Government’s Horizon Guarantee has been extended to cover all remaining Horizon Europe calls that are funded under Work Programme 2023, irrespective of the call closing or grant signature date.
This means that:
- All MSCA 2024 Work Programme calls will be covered by the UK’s association, with applicants receiving their funding directly from the European Commission (EC).
- All MSCA 2023 Work Programme calls will continue to be covered by the UK Guarantee
Further information can also be found on this UKRO website.
MSCA-funded projects that start in 2024
Under the terms of association, the UK will be able to fully participate and receive funding from the EC from the 2024 Work Programme. Projects funded from earlier call years, will receive funding through the Guarantee, even if they start in 2024.
MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships (PF) 2023 call
Successful applicants to the 2023 PF call (deadline of 13 September 2023), with a UK- based host organisation will receive funding for the duration of their fellowship from the UK Guarantee.
MSCA Doctoral Networks (DN) 2023 call
UK-based organisations can participate in the current 2023 DN call with a deadline of 28 November 2023. At the proposal stage, participants in the UK who wish to recruit doctoral candidates will need to apply as a beneficiary, in accordance with the EU’s transitional measures.
If successful, during the grant agreement preparation phase, UK beneficiaries will become Associated Partners, as they will be participants from a third country. They will no longer count towards the minimum eligibility criteria and will no longer be able to award PhDs for beneficiaries outside of the UK. They will not be able to coordinate the project and – if initially assigned to UK organisations – the coordination role will need to move to an eligible consortium partner. UK participants recruiting doctoral candidates will receive funding through the Horizon Guarantee for the lifetime of the project.
UK-based organisations that do not want to recruit doctoral candidates, can host secondments, and otherwise be involved in providing training as Associated Partners. Funding for these activities can be claimed directly from the sending beneficiary.
Staff Exchanges (SE) 2023 call
As with previous SE calls under the EU’s transitional measures, UK-based organisations should apply as a beneficiary to the 2023 SE call with a deadline on 28 February 2024.
Applicants from the UK can be assigned the coordination role. However, if successful, during the grant agreement preparation phase, they will become associated partners and will not be able to coordinate the project. UK partners will no longer count towards the minimum eligibility criteria. Funding to UK partners will come from the Horizon Europe Guarantee and will cover:
- Secondments from the UK-based associated partner to a beneficiary in an EU Member State or Associated Country
- Secondments from the UK-based associated partner to a third country eligible for EU funding
- Secondments from the UK-based associated partner to a third country not eligible for EU funding
- Secondments from a third country eligible for EU funding to the UK-based associated partner
COFUND 2023 Call
UK based researchers and organisations can participate in the 2023 COFUND call with a deadline of 8 February 2024, in line with the EU’s transitional measures. UK-based applicants can coordinate either a mono beneficiary application, or an application involving implementing partners. Applicants in the UK can also participate as implementing partners in projects coordinated within or outside of the UK.
UK based implementing partners in a successful COFUND which is not a mono-beneficiary COFUND will need to become an associated partner during the grant agreement preparation phase. Successful COFUND proposals with a UK coordinator which involve non-UK based implementing partners will no longer be able to coordinate the project in line with the EU’s transitional measures and will become an associated partner based in a third country during the grant agreement preparation phase. Coordination will need to be moved to another non-UK-based partner. UK associated partners will receive funding through the Horizon Europe Guarantee.
UK mono-beneficiary COFUND projects, which are successful will be funded by the Horizon Europe Guarantee as was the case with previous calls.
UK-based organisations that do not want to recruit researchers, can host secondments, and otherwise be involved in providing training as associated partners. Funding for these activities can be claimed directly from the beneficiary or the sending implementing partner.
MSCA and Citizens (CITIZENS) 2023 call
In line with the EU’s transitional measures, UK based organisations can participate in the (CITIZENS) call with a deadline of 28 October 2023 as a beneficiary. Applicants in the UK can coordinate a mono-beneficiary application, or a collaborative project. If successful, UK-based applicants will not be able to sign the grant agreement with the EC. UK-based beneficiaries will need to become associated partners during the grant agreement preparation phase and will receive funding for the lifetime of the project from the Horizon Europe Guarantee. Coordination will need to move to a non-UK based partner.
UK mono-beneficiary projects that are successful will be funded by the Horizon Europe Guarantee as was the case with the previous call.
2022 MSCA calls
Beneficiaries in the UK currently going through the grant agreement preparation phase will need to become associated partners in line with the EU’s transitional measures. Funding will be provided through the Horizon Europe Guarantee.
Horizon Europe Guarantee and MSCA
The Horizon Europe Guarantee will follow the rules and spirit of MSCA. Further guidance, including the terms and conditions and requested documentation can be found on the dedicated UKRI website.
Where can I go for help?
If you have questions related to MSCA calls, funding rules, implementation issues etc. please contact mariecurie-uk@ukro.ac.uk.
If you have any question regarding the implementation of the Guarantee, or the Guarantee in general, please contact eugrantsfunding@ukri.org.