UK participation in Horizon 2020 after Brexit
Updated 24 October 2019
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The UK should be able to participate in Horizon 2020 as a non-EU country (a third country if we leave the EU without a deal.
Third countries can bid to, participate in and lead the majority of Horizon 2020 projects, but cannot access:
- mono-beneficiary schemes
- some space and security projects which only allow participants from EU countries
- some multi-beneficiary schemes (for example Fast Track to Innovation (FTI))
Funding overview
Guarantee and extension funding
UK participants may be unable to access funding from the EU after Brexit if the UK becomes a third country.
The UK government has committed to provide funding for all successful eligible UK bids to Horizon 2020 that are submitted before the end of 2020. This funding will apply for the lifetime of projects.
This funding guarantee and extension to the guarantee will be delivered by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI).
UKRI will also deliver the funding guarantee to UK recipients of funding through the following programmes if required:
- Framework Programme 7 (FP7)
- Research Fund for Coal and Steel (RFCS)
- Euratom Research and Training (Euratom R&T)
Funding for ‘In-flight’ applications
UKRI will manage the independent assessment of relevant UK bids to mono-beneficiary Horizon 2020 calls submitted before Brexit if they are not assessed by the European Commission. Government funding will be made available to support successful projects for their lifetime.
Funding for COST Actions
COST Actions are funded through Horizon 2020. As a result, the government funding guarantee and extension will fund eligible UK participation in COST Actions until the end of 2020.
Guidance on how this funding will be delivered will be provided in due course.
Current UK participants
Funding
Your participation in Horizon 2020 will be covered by the government’s funding guarantee. The funding will apply for the lifetime of your project.
UKRI is ready to deliver the guarantee if it’s needed.
Delivering your project after Brexit
Actions that are open to third country participation
Our expectation is that you will be able to deliver your project as agreed with the European Commission.
UK project coordinators should still be eligible to coordinate projects. The guarantee includes funding for coordination tasks.
Some projects are open to third country participation but require a minimum number of participants to be from EU countries or associated countries. Find out what to do if your project has a minimum eligibility requirement.
Actions that are not open to third country participation
The Commission may terminate your grant after Brexit, if you are a participant in a grant that is not open to third country participation.
The National Contact Point (NCP) for your action type will be able to clarify whether the action type you have bid to is open to third country participation if you’re not sure.
Find out what to do if your project is not open to third country participation.
What you need to do to prepare
You should register any grants that you hold (including EDCTP2, EMPIR and EIT-KICs grants).
UKRI will contact you using the details provided with further information about the guarantee, if needed.
In the event of a no-deal Brexit, UKRI will request evidence of your grant in order to make guarantee payments to you. Grant holders will need to ensure that they have the relevant evidence and are in a position to provide this after Brexit. We recommend storing copies of your grant documentation securely in your own filing system.
You will need to provide:
- proof that you hold a grant
- proof of your grant amount
- proof of any payments already received from the Commission
- any financial statements submitted to the Commission since the last grant payment you received (with proof of submission)
- proof of any project costs incurred since your last payment from the Commission
UK participants that have non-standard Horizon 2020 grants (for example EDCTP2, EMPIR and EIT-KICs) will be asked to provide equivalent documents to those requested for standard grants to support their claim. UKRI will provide more information about the types of evidence needed.
Do not submit your documents until invited to do so by UKRI.
Guidance about how and when you should submit your documents will be available on the UKRI website in due course.
UK applicants who submit new bids before Brexit
Assessment
Most Horizon 2020 projects are accessible to third country participants. If you have submitted a bid for a collaborative project, we anticipate that the Commission should complete assessment of your bid and notify you of the outcome.
The National Contact Point (NCP) for your action type will be able to clarify whether the action type you have bid to is open to third country participation if you’re not sure.
Funding
Your participation in Horizon 2020 will be covered by the government’s funding guarantee if your bid is successful. The funding will apply for the lifetime of your project.
UKRI is ready to deliver the guarantee if it’s needed.
For all activities that include a match funding element, the guarantee will only apply to funding secured through Horizon 2020. Any other match funding should still be provided by industry or other partners.
Delivering your project after Brexit
Our expectation is that you will deliver your project as agreed with the European Commission, if you’re a participant in a project that is open to third country participation.
In the event of a no-deal Brexit, funding for your participation in Horizon 2020 will be provided through the guarantee if Commission funding stops (or never starts in the case of newly awarded grants). If the Commission asks you to sign an agreement, you should still do so.
UK project coordinators should still be eligible to coordinate projects. The guarantee includes funding for coordination tasks.
What you need to do to prepare
The actions you will need to take will depend on whether:
- the Commission notifies you that your bid has been successful before Brexit
- the Commission notifies you that your bid has been successful after Brexit
- you have submitted an application before Brexit to a call not open to third country participation that is due to be assessed after Brexit
If you’re notified that your bid has been successful before Brexit
You should register any grants that you hold (including EDCTP2, EMPIR and EIT-KICs grants).
In the event of a no-deal Brexit, UKRI will request evidence of your grant in order to make guarantee payments to you. Grant holders will need to ensure that they have the relevant evidence and are in a position to provide this after Brexit. We recommend storing copies of your grant documentation securely in your own filing system.
You will need to provide:
- proof that you hold a grant
- proof of your grant amount
UK participants that have non-standard Horizon 2020 grants (for example EDCTP2, EMPIR and EIT-KICs) will be asked to provide equivalent documents to those requested for standard grants to support their claim. UKRI will provide more information about the types of evidence needed.
If you’ve just been awarded a new grant the evidence that you are able to provide will vary. UKRI are aware of this and will take it into account.
Do not submit your documents until invited to do so by UKRI.
Guidance about how and when you should submit your documents will be available on the UKRI website in due course.
You should continue to deliver your project in line with EU processes.
If you’re notified that your bid has been successful after Brexit
Check the UKRI website for details of the information that you’ll need to submit.
In the event of a no-deal Brexit, UKRI will request evidence of your grant in order to make guarantee payments to you.
Once you have been notified of success, you may find it useful to start gathering:
- proof that you hold a Horizon 2020 grant offer
- proof of your grant amount
UK participants that have non-standard Horizon 2020 grants (for example EDCTP2, EMPIR and EIT-KICs) will be asked to provide equivalent documents to those requested for standard grants to support their claim. UKRI will provide more information about the types of evidence needed.
Do not submit your documents until invited to do so by UKRI.
Guidance about how and when you should submit your documents will be available on the UKRI website in due course.
Applications to calls not open to third country participation that are submitted prior to Brexit but are due to be assessed after Brexit (‘in flight’ applications)
If you have submitted or are planning to submit a bid to a mono-beneficiary element of one of the calls below before the UK leaves the EU, you should wait for the Commission’s response.
- European Research Council (ERC)
- Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
- European Innovation Council (EIC) Accelerator (formerly known as SMEi)
Funding
Proposals evaluated as successful by the Commission will be covered by the government’s funding guarantee.
However, if the Commission notifies you that it will not continue to assess your bid after Brexit you will be able to re-submit your proposal to UKRI for independent assessment.
UKRI will only accept proposals that have been submitted to Horizon 2020 before Brexit, regardless of the EU call deadline. Evidence of this prior submission will be required.
Bids deemed successful as a result of this independent assessment process will be funded for their lifetime through the government’s ‘in-flight’ funding.
For all activities that include a match funding element, UK government funding will only cover funding secured through Horizon 2020. Any other match funding should still be provided by industry or other partners.
‘In flight’ funding does not cover calls within ERC and MSCA that the UK can still access as a third country (for example ERC Synergy, MSCA RISE or MSCA ITNs). In the event of a no-deal Brexit, we expect the European Commission to continue to assess UK bids to these calls. Successful UK bids will be funded through the government’s guarantee.
Delivering your project after Brexit
The independent assessment of your bid will be carried out using procedures as close to the European Commission’s processes as possible. Funding for successful bids will be issued by UKRI under UKRI Terms and Conditions and any project outputs and impacts should acknowledge UKRI funding.
What you need to do to prepare
You can continue to submit bids up until the day we leave the EU. Make sure you have evidence that your bid was submitted before Brexit.
You will need to submit this evidence to UKRI, along with your funding application, if the Commission informs you that it will not continue to assess your bid.
Applying to Horizon 2020 after Brexit
Most Horizon 2020 calls are accessible to third country applicants. Check with the relevant National Contact Point (NCP) if you’re unsure whether the call you want to apply to is open to third countries.
Funding
Your participation in Horizon 2020 will be covered by the government’s guarantee extension if your bid is successful. The funding will apply for the lifetime of your project.
UKRI will deliver the funding.
For all activities where there is a requirement for matched funding, match funding should still be provided by industry or other partners. This funding is not covered by the guarantee.
What you need to do to prepare
Check the UKRI website for details of the information that you’ll need to submit.
Ongoing projects that may become ineligible after Brexit
Ongoing mono beneficiary projects which are only open to EU countries or associated countries
The Commission may terminate your grant after Brexit if it’s not open to third country participation. Unless you receive notification that your grant will be terminated you should continue to deliver your project.
In the event of a no-deal Brexit, we want to ensure that UK projects can continue to deliver their research where viable. If it’s not viable to deliver the project on a standalone basis, funding will be provided to cover the necessary costs associated with the closure of the project (the level of funding will be capped at the remaining value of the grant).
More details on these arrangements will be provided in due course.
What you need to do to prepare
UKRI will contact you with information on the actions you need to take to access guarantee funding, if it’s required.
You should not terminate your agreement with the Commission at any point.
Ongoing projects with a minimum EU country or associated country membership requirement
Some projects are open to third country participation but require a minimum number of participants to be from EU countries or Associated Countries.
In the event of a no-deal Brexit, the UK will become a third country participant in Horizon 2020. If your project has a minimum eligibility requirement, this change in status may result in your project becoming ineligible, and there is a risk that the Commission may terminate your grant after Brexit. Unless you receive notification that your grant will be terminated you should continue to deliver your project.
Not all projects with a minimum eligibility requirement will be affected if the UK becomes a third country. The change in the status of the UK will only impact your project if you currently have the minimum number of EU country or associated country participants as stipulated in your Grant Agreement. Check with the National Contact Point for your grant type if you’re unsure.
We want to make sure that UK projects can continue to deliver their research where viable if there’s a no-deal Brexit.
More information on this standalone assessment process will be available on the UKRI website in due course.
If it is not viable to deliver the project on a standalone basis, funding will be provided to cover the necessary costs associated with the closure of the project (the level of funding will be capped at the value of the outstanding grant).
More details on these arrangements will be provided in due course.
What you need to do to prepare
UKRI will contact you with information on the actions you need to take to access guarantee funding, if it’s required.
You should not terminate your agreement with the Commission at any point.
Delivery of government funding
The type of funding you will receive depends on whether:
- your project is ongoing or you will have submitted a bid before Brexit (guarantee funding)
- you’re planning to submit a bid after Brexit (guarantee extension funding)
- you’ve submitted or are planning to submit a bid to a mono-beneficiary call before Brexit (‘in-flight’ funding)
Guarantee funding
You will receive guarantee funding if you:
- are a UK organisation
- are currently delivering a Horizon 2020 project or submit a bid to Horizon 2020 before Brexit that is subsequently judged successful by the European Commission
If you have submitted a bid for a mono-beneficiary scheme, see the guidance on funding for applications outstanding at the point of exit.
The government’s no-deal guarantee will be delivered by UKRI. UKRI will contact UK grant holders registered on the portal to set out in more detail the next steps that grant holders will need to take to access guarantee funding following a no-deal Brexit and the triggering of the guarantee.
In the event of a no-deal Brexit, UKRI will request evidence of your grant in order to make guarantee payments to you. Grant holders will need to ensure that they have secured relevant evidence and are in a position to provide this to UKRI after Brexit. We recommend storing copies of your grant documentation securely in your own filing system.
You will need to provide:
- proof that you hold a grant
- proof of your grant amount
- proof of any payments already received from the Commission
- any financial statements submitted to the Commission since the last grant payment you received (with proof of submission)
- proof of any project costs incurred since your last payment from the Commission
EDCTP2, EMPIR and EIT-KICs grant holders will be asked to provide equivalent documents to those requested for standard H2020 grants to evidence their claim. Further information about the types of evidence that will be required will be available on the UKRI website. We recommend storing copies of your grant documentation securely in your own filing system.
If you’ve just been awarded a new grant UKRI is aware that the evidence that you are able to provide will vary and will take that into account. You should continue to comply with your obligations to the EU and should proceed with signing a grant agreement with the European Commission if you are invited to do so.
Do not submit your documents until invited to do so by UKRI.
Further guidance on how and when you should submit your documents will follow.
Once you have submitted your documents, UKRI will need to ‘onboard’ your grant on to their existing grant management systems. Once your grant has been onboarded, you will be required to sign a contract with UKRI. UK beneficiaries should not terminate existing contracts with the EU and should continue to sign grant agreements if requested to do so by the Commission.
Guarantee payments are expected to be made in pounds sterling (£). UKRI will use its existing grant payment systems (IFS and Je-S) to deliver guarantee funding if it is required.
Current domestic grant holders will know these systems and guidance will be provided for those who are not familiar with them. Payments through Je-S will happen quarterly and payments through IFS will be made on a claims basis, in line with ‘business as usual’ processes. This payment schedule is different to the standard Horizon 2020 grant payment schedule. If you have any questions about this, contact UKRI at EUGrantsFunding@ukri.org.
Guarantee extension funding
You will receive guarantee extension funding if you:
- are a UK organisation
- submit a bid to a Horizon 2020 call that is open to third country participation anytime between Brexit and the end of 2020
If you have submitted an application to one of the mono-beneficiary schemes before Brexit, see the guidance on funding for applications outstanding at the point of exit.
The government’s no-deal guarantee extension will be delivered by UKRI.
Applications outstanding at the point of exit (‘in flight’ funding)
If you submit an application to a Horizon 2020 mono-beneficiary scheme before Brexit and the Commission notifies you that you have been successful, your project will be funded through the guarantee for its lifetime.
However, if you have submitted an application to one of the mono-beneficiary programmes before Brexit and the Commission notifies you that it will not continue to assess your bid after Brexit, you will be able to re-submit your bid to UKRI for independent assessment.
Only proposals that have been submitted to Horizon 2020 before Brexit, regardless of the EU call deadline, can be accepted. Evidence of this prior submission will be required.
If your bid is submitted to UKRI and judged successful, you will receive government ‘in flight’ funding for the lifetime of the project.
Successful applicants will be required to sign a grant agreement with UKRI that adheres to the standard terms and conditions common to all domestic UKRI grants (subject to some call-specific additions).