FAQ
How much is the co-financing rate for partners receiving ERDF and IPA funds?
All ERDF partners (including the ones coming from the old member states of the programme area) and all IPA partners of the programme area will receive up to 85% of co-financing. The 15% has to be covered following each country?s rules.
Can partners located in EU countries outside the programme area participate as project partners by using the so called "ERDF 20% flexibility rule" as indicated in the article 21 of the Reg. (EC) 1080/06?
For this first call for proposal, partners located within EU countries outside the programme area cannot participate as project partners by using the ERDF 20% flexibility rule as this rule won?t be applicable.
Are the eligible expenditures the same for ERDF and IPA partners?
Not completely. While EU partners follow the rules of ERDF, the non-EU partners follow the PRAG rules. The main differences between the two rules are the following: a) IPA partners cannot implement activities which could produce revenues; b) common costs cannot be shared between ERDF and IPA partners; c) preparation costs are not eligible for IPA partners; d) in kind contributions are not eligible for IPA partners.
Within the full application (2nd step) the projects will deal with their budgets in a more detailed way. Will it be possible to increase the budget then?
Please avoid considering distinctive changes within your projects. Budget changes are possible only in duly justified cases (e.g. adding a new important partner or adding a new relevant activity).
Are there any restrictions regarding the national co-financing (15%)? Do they have to consist in public funding? What about private funding?
As the programme follows the "public costs" principle, private sector expenditure cannot generate EU co-financing. Each EU country from the programme area has specific rules on national co-financing, thus we suggest contacting the SCPs for receiving additional information.
How should the 10% flexibility rule of a project be calculated, should it be calculated including the overall amount, including IPA or just the ERDF requested fund?
Up to 10% of the ERDF budget of a project can be allocated for the benefit of non EU Project Partners of the programme area and/or for the implementation of activities of EU partners in non EU countries of the programme area.
