As of 17 June 2021, the European Commission considers Switzerland as a Third Country with regard to Horizon Europe calls. This categorisation applies retroactively for all 2021 calls. This status can be changed at any time, but will now apply for all calls in 2021.

As a result, researchers from Switzerland can still participate in most collaborative projects, unless a topic specifically excludes the participation of Third Countries. However, they do not count towards the minimum number of partners in a consortium.

If the proposal is successful, the  Swiss contribution will be funded by the Swiss State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI; “Financial Guarantee”).

Swiss organisations will be included in the project as “Associated Partners” and will not sign the grant agreement. Consequently, they cannot coordinate projects. 

More information can be found on the SERI website. 

Sources: Euresearch, SERI