Strengthening EU cybersecurity capacities & capabilities in line with legislative requirements

Personnel costs

Costs of training, awareness raising, and organizing seminars/workshops

Costs for development and implementation of digital tools, software, platforms, and documentation

Costs for certification/conformity assessment activities

Travel and accommodation costs related to project activities

Subcontracting and procurement costs

Overheads (indirect costs as per DIGITAL Europe Programme rules)

Other eligible expenses in line with the Model Grant Agreement and call document

Excellence: Clarity and relevance of the objectives, credibility of the proposed methodology, innovation potential, and ambition.

Impact: Contribution to achieving expected outcomes, scale and significance of the impacts, leverage of EU investment, and measures to maximize project impact.

Implementation: Quality and effectiveness of the work plan, activities, management structure, quality of the consortium, and allocation of resources.

General Thresholds: Projects must meet required thresholds in all award criteria as described in section 9 of the call document.

Applicants and activities not conforming to the eligible countries or participant criteria outlined in the call document are excluded.

Activities not related to strengthening EU cybersecurity capacities, not in line with the objectives of the Cyber Resilience Act, NIS 2 Directive, GDPR, DORA, Cybersecurity Act or the AI Act; or not contributing to cross-border capability or capacity building will not be considered.

Entities failing financial and operational capacity checks or subject to exclusion grounds under the EU Financial Regulation are ineligible.

Projects not complying with the admissibility, eligibility, and ethics requirements described in the call documentation will be excluded.

Interim and final reports must be submitted as specified in the Model Grant Agreement, typically including technical, financial, and impact reporting.

Detailed guidance and reporting templates will be provided to successful applicants via the Funding & Tenders Portal.

Applications must be submitted electronically via the EU Funding & Tenders Portal using the online submission system; only applications received before the deadline will be considered.

Proposals must follow the required format, page limits, and content requirements as described in the call document and online forms.

The application process includes provision of administrative, technical, and financial details, a project proposal, and supporting documents (e.g., declarations, letters of support, etc.).

Completed proposal via the online application form (including Part(s) A and B with annexes as required in the system).

Compliance with all admissibility and eligibility conditions set out in the call document.

Legal entity determination and validation (including SME status where applicable).

Declaration on ownership control, financial capacity, and, if required, supporting documents proving status or eligibility.

Preparation and submission of all required documentation using templates from the Funding & Tenders Portal.