On 4 July, the European Commission and the European Research Council announced that researchers from Switzerland are eligible for the three ERC calls 2025, opening in 2024: ERC grants – Eligibility of Swiss host institutions | ERC (europa.eu)
The Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation confirmed this decision, extending the transitional arrangement foreseen in the Common Understanding endorsed by the Swiss Federal Council and the European Commission in November 2023.
Swiss researchers can now submit applications to the 3 following ERC calls: Starting Grant 2025 (opening on 10 July 2024), Synergy Grant 2025 (opening on 11 July 2024) and Consolidator Grant 2025 (opening on 26 September 2024): Horizon Europe: Extended access for researchers in Switzerland (admin.ch).
This is a positive step towards the association of Switzerland to Horizon Europe. However, the eligibility of Switzerland still needs to be extended to ALL calls from the work programmes 2025. Negotiations are underway to reach an association as soon as possible.
The Stick to Science campaign welcomes this positive step which strengthens Europe’s scientific capacity. It reiterates its call for Switzerland’s full association to EU R&I programmes as soon as possible.