DN: Are Doctoral Candidates entitled to receive daily allowances during secondments? Is this expense eligible in case of audit?

Doctoral Candidates in Doctoral Networks are employees, and they are entitled to daily allowances as per the law of the country. There is no audit of research, training and networking costs because it is a unit cost.

According to MSCA rules, it is not mandatory to pay daily allowances during secondments: only accommodation and travel cost must be covered by the beneficiaries for secondments which can have a duration of 6 months or less. However, it is possible for the beneficiaries to pay daily allowances if they wish and as foreseen by national rules.

DN: A fellow stopped their doctoral studies at a beneficiary in an Industrial Doctorates project after 12 months. How can the beneficiary proceed with a new Doctoral Candidate with only 24 eligible months left?

In Industrial Doctorates each Doctoral Candidate must spend at least 50% of their time in the non-academic sector. 

If the new DC is hired for 24 months under the project and will spend 12 months in the non-academic sector, then the rule is respected. 

The beneficiary can plan two employment contracts (one for 24 months within the project and one for 12 months funded by other funds leading to the award of a doctoral degree).

DN: Is it advisable for an applicant to include a small newly-established company with no annual turnover as a beneficiary in their consortium recruiting one Doctoral Candidate?

The European Commission actively promotes and encourages the participation of companies and organisations considered as “newcomers” in EU-funded projects. In the case of Doctoral Networks, there are spin-offs and start-ups participating successfully in funded proposals.

Evaluators will assess aspects such as their capacities, infrastructure, supervisory arrangements, and overall ability to contribute effectively to the project. If the company does not yet have a closed financial year, it would be advisable to include appropriate figures or explanatory information in the corresponding table, so that this aspect is not perceived by the evaluators as a potential shortcoming.

In addition, a new report of the European Commission entitled Is Horizon Europe attractive for new participants? states that, in general, for Horizon Europe: “Among participating SMEs, 25% were less than ten years old at the time of submitting their Horizon Europe application. Of these young SMEs, 43% were newcomers. This group also encompasses organisations that fit the definition of an innovative startup”.

All actions: Is it possible for a candidate to be selected for two MSCA grants at the same time or at different times?

It is not possible for a researcher to be employed in different MSCA projects at the same time.

However, it is possible for a researcher to be funded by MSCA at different stages of their research career, without overlap. 

DN/ COFUND: Is it possible to check if a candidate has already been selected for or employed within another MSCA call (MSCA Doctoral Networks or MSCA COFUND) before proceeding with recruitment? Is there a platform under the Horizon Europe Framework Programme to check this information?

It is not possible to check if a candidate has already been selected for or employed within another MSCA call before proceeding with recruitment. There is no such platform.

DN: Should all tables be filled in font size 11?

Font size 11 will be strictly applied to the sections subject to the 30-page limit (Sections Excellence, Impact, and Implementation) in Part B1 to ensure fairness and prevent formatting bypasses but for sections without a page limit, flexibility will be exercised regarding font size, though it is highly encouraged to adhere to the size 11 standard for readability.

PF: How should periods of unemployment be treated if a researcher continued to publish scientific papers or contributed to a research project without having any formal employment contract?

It is the formal contractual relationship (or lack thereof) that counts. Publishing or voluntary activities do not count towards the eight years, in case the researcher was not employed or was employed in a non-research position. Applicants can consult this FAQ.

All actions: What should an organisation do if it is registered and validated with an inaccurate sector in the F&T Portal?

If the organisation believes its sector classification in the F&T Portal is inaccurate, the organisation’s Legal Entity Appointed Representative (LEAR) must contact the EU Validation Service via the F&T Portal to update its validated data.

DN: In the recently amended MSCA Work Programme for 2026-2027 the award criteria for Doctoral Networks ‘The magnitude and importance of the project’s contribution to the expected scientific, societal and economic impacts’ is no longer included. Should applicants still include it in their proposals?

The newly approved amendment applies only to 2027 MSCA calls. There are no changes for the currently open Doctoral Networks call, where the statement still appears in the standard application form for the 2026 call (see Section 2 “Impact” under “aspects to be taken into account”.

SE: A Doctoral Candidate’s scholarship ends in Month X, while the thesis defence will take place in Month Z. According to internal organisation rules, the person retains Doctoral Candidate status until the thesis defence. During this period, however, Doctoral Candidates no longer receive a scholarship, although they may undertake missions funded through their supervisors’ research funds. Will a secondment of such a Doctoral Candidate be considered eligible and reimbursable in MSCA Staff Exchanges?

If being registered as a PhD candidate in a concrete country/organisation is sufficient to be considered as a staff member, they are eligible, even if they do not have a working contract.

Furthermore, this organisation must be in the consortium, must have signed the MSCA-Staff Exchanges Grant Agreement, and must send their staff (i.e., PhD candidate) within the project duration.

On the specific issue of thesis defence pending, the PhD candidate must still be a staff member of their sending organisation while on secondment.

‘Staff’ means there is a contractual link that gives the sending organisation the legal means in terms of control, supervision, and instructions to impose on the secondee compliance with the Grant Agreement obligations (e.g. full-time work for the activities of the project, IPR, visibility of EU funds, confidentiality, etc.).

Beneficiaries should also consider all other eligibility criteria mentioned in the relevant and applicable Work Programme.