In April 2024, the European Commission published an amended version of the MSCA Work Programme , which includes updates to the MSCA COFUND scheme. Ahead of the 2024 COFUND Call deadline on 26 September, we have provided an overview of the key updates in the new Work Programme that will take effect from the 2024 Call onwards.
- The fixed amount contribution provided by the EC to successful COFUND programmes has increased for 2024. For doctoral researchers, it has risen from EUR 2,800 in 2023 to EUR 3,300 for 2024, and for postdoctoral researchers, from EUR 3,980 to EUR 4,700 per month. This budget increase is primarily attributed to the UK’s financial contribution to the programme following its association to Horizon Europe on 1 January 2024.
- As with the other MSCA schemes, from the 2024 COFUND Call onwards, environmental considerations in line with the MSCA Green Charter will constitute an additional potential criterion to help decide between equally excellent and impactful proposals. An additional section (Section 6) has been added into Part B2 to reflect this addition. Please note that the MSCA Green Charter is not binding.
- The exception to the 50% working time requirement for medical reasons, which was previously only applicable to postdoctoral fellowships, has been extended to COFUND projects. This means that researchers involved in COFUND projects can also be granted an exception to the 50% working time limit if they have a valid medical reason.
- The requirement to include letters of commitment at the application/proposal stage has been removed. Letters of commitment are still required from COFUND implementing partners, but only for proposals selected for funding and not until the Grant Agreement Phase (GAP). Associated Partners are no longer required to provide a letter of commitment at any stage.
- An additional column has been added to the example budget table (Table 1.1a of Part B1), so that applicants can clearly identify and describe which costs will be covered by the EC contribution and which costs will be covered by their own contributions/top-up funding.
For any questions relating to the 2024 COFUND Call, please email the UK MSCA NCP at mariecurie-uk@ukro.ac.uk.