DN: Is it possible to terminate a Doctoral Candidate’s contract in case the background of the researcher does not match the beneficiary’s needs?

There have been cases where the technical skills of the Doctoral Candidate do not match those described in the candidate’s CV. In most countries, employment contracts may include a probation period (3-6 months) in accordance with national labour legislation and the researcher’s contract can be terminated.

If the recruitment process was not implemented satisfactorily, another beneficiary can accept this Doctoral Candidate for their individual project. If that is not possible, the Doctoral Candidate should be replaced with a candidate from the reserve list.

 

DN: Is it possible in a DN proposal to have a fourth year of a PhD funded through a different contractual arrangement, such as a research fellowship or other university/departmental funding outside the MSCA project?

Yes, it is possible, but it is recommended to inform the fellow about that scheme during the recruitment interview, so that the researcher is aware of it and is ready to get a national scholarship during the last year of the doctoral programme. Moreover, it is not mandatory for fellows to complete their PhDs within the duration of the Doctoral Network.

For better management, many proposals indicate that the recruitment process will start before Month 1 and this has been accepted by REA, ensuring that the Doctoral Candidates can begin much earlier, typically around Months 3–4 of the project. This approach allows part of the fourth year (funded through other sources) to fall within the duration of the MSCA Doctoral Network project.

 

All actions: If an MSCA beneficiary offers to all its employees a mandatory complementary health insurance, would it have to be funded with the Living allowance?

If it is taken directly from the employees’ salary, then it should be deducted from the Living allowance. Moreover, all health insurance and social security contributions, including all benefits arising from the collective bargaining agreement, should be covered within the Living allowance.

DN: Is there a template for a declaration for respecting the mobility rule from Doctoral Candidates that will be recruited by a DN beneficiary?

There is no official declaration for respecting the mobility rule. Beneficiaries could include in their application forms a section where candidates confirm they meet the mobility rule, indicating their places of residence, study, and employment during the relevant 36-month period. In addition, beneficiaries could ask for extra documentation in order to double-check their mobility status (residence registration certificates or another official proof of address, as well as entry / exit records).

DN: Is it possible to have a Standard DN proposal with 12 doctoral candidates, 6 of them with co-supervisors and a double PhD degree, while the other 6 with 50% of time spent in the non-academic sector and only 1 PhD degree?

It is acceptable, but has to be argued very well, in order to demonstrate the added value of such a set-up and show that none of the PhD candidates will be disadvantaged.

However, as there can be challenges with the recruitment procedure, the different training paths and different supervision arrangements, the administrative burden should not be underestimated.

 

DN: Can applicants remove the remaining tags in the application form, or should they stay in the template?

REA confirms that all tags can be removed – they are no longer needed.

DN: Does the novelty in the Doctoral Networks 2026 template for the minimum font size of 11 points also apply to the tables in B2?

The minimum font size allowed throughout the proposal is 11 points. It applies to both B1 and B2, including the tables.

DN: How will RAISE projects be managed?

These projects will be managed by REA and the budget will be based on unit costs.

DN: Will fellows under RAISE be labelled as MSCA Fellows?

Fellows will not be called MSCA fellows but RAISE DN fellows because this is a second chance for projects that would not be funded otherwise (similarly to the ERA Fellows).

DN: Some institutions enroll PhD candidates in doctoral programmes only once a year (in October) but job contracts based on the Doctoral Networks Grant Agreement can start earlier. Can beneficiaries apply for funding of person-months before October if the fellow is involved in project activities and has signed a job contract?

Projects decide when they should enroll the doctoral candidates (usually around M6 but they have some flexibility between M1 and M12 of the project). 

The months from the start of the job contract become eligible as soon as the doctoral candidate is registered as a PhD.

All Actions: Applicants that have one PIC number (one legal entity), but have offices in different countries, how should they proceed with regard to eligibility and budget?

Staff Exchanges:

For the case of SE, please see footnote 101 on p. 88 of the Work Programme 2026-2027 which states:

“Secondments to and from branches and departments without separate legal personality that are part of legal entities established in EU Member States or Horizon Europe Associated Countries can take place with entities established in any country other than the country where they are physically located and the country of their mother legal entity.”

Doctoral Networks:

As mentioned in footnote 74 on p. 72 of the MSCA Work Programme 2026-2027:

“In exceptional cases, where a beneficiary is established in a country different from the place where the recruited researcher is hosted, the country correction coefficient of the hosting entity is taken into account during the grant agreement preparation process, in order to ensure the correct budget calculation.”

However, this exception should not be used to circumvent the Horizon Europe rules for participation.

Postdoctoral Fellowships:

As mentioned in footnote 84 on p. 78 of the MSCA Work Programme 2026-2027:

“In exceptional cases, where a beneficiary is established in a country different from the place where the recruited researcher is hosted, the country correction coefficient of the hosting entity is taken into account during the grant agreement preparation process, in order to ensure the correct budget calculation.”

However, this applies only to applicants with offices in EU Member States and Horizon Europe Associated Countries. Offices based in Third Countries will not be eligible.

All Actions: When applying the mobility rule, what should be considered as the ‘main activity’ in the case of applicants with double activity - for example, candidates studying for a double diploma or candidates studying in one country and working remotely in another one?

REA uses a strict approach, meaning that for both examples the recruiting entities should check the mobility rule against both countries (even for remote work).

For Doctoral Networks, the doctoral candidates should be eligible at their recruitment date.

For Postdoctoral Fellowships, the fellows should be eligible at the date of the call closure.

For COFUND, the fellows should be eligible at the deadline of the co-funded programme’s call.

DN: Are beneficiaries from non-associated third countries accepted in Doctoral Networks and do they receive funding?

Fellows employed in a third country no longer need to be enrolled in a doctoral programme in a EU Member State or Horizon Europe Associated Country, which used to be a requirement in previous calls. In Doctoral Networks, beneficiaries can be based in low- or middle-income third countries. Entities from high-income countries can receive EU funding only exceptionally if well justified in the proposal.

All Actions: Is it possible to edit the already submitted critical risks statements, or should the coordinator delete and replace them in the tab if changes are needed?

The risks have been already indicated at the Grant Agreement Preparation phase and, therefore, are automatically displayed in this tab. No more risks can be added at this stage of the flow.

However, in the continuous reporting module, the coordinator should update the risk section (materialisation / mitigation). If a new risk has occurred, they would need to add an Unforeseen risk.

All Actions: If there is a deviation during the implementation period that has resulted in an amendment, should this be reported as a deviation in the periodic report as well?

If an amendment took place, it is no longer considered as a deviation.

DN: In a doctoral Networks proposal, the PhD awarding organisation is located in a country different from the one of the organisation recruiting the PhD candidate. Does the mobility rule need to be applied to both countries, or only to the country of the recruiting beneficiary?

Point 1.3.2. regarding recruited researchers on p. 122 of the MSCA Work Programme 2023-2025 says:

“Recruited researchers can be of any nationality and must comply with the following mobility rule: they must not have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in the country of the recruiting beneficiary for more than 12 months in the 36 months immediately before their recruitment date.”

If the PhD-awarding organisation just delivers the PhD (and eventually hosts the Doctoral Candidate for a secondment), the mobility rule will indeed apply to the beneficiary.

However, if it is a more complex case, for example, a Doctoral Candidate is hosted by a French lab which is based in Japan (i.e. the research organisation is registered in France, but the lab is based in Japan), then the mobility rule applies to both countries.

DN: In a doctoral Networks proposal, the PhD awarding organisation is located in a country different from the one of organisation recruiting the PhD candidate. In this situation, should the country correction coefficient of the hosting organisation’s country be applied?

In case where a Doctoral Candidate is recruited by beneficiary A and goes on secondment to the associated partner B (which will award the PhD degree), it is the CCC of the beneficiary that will apply.

However, there are specific cases. For example, consider the case of a Doctoral Candidate that is hosted by a French lab which is based in Japan (i.e. the research organisation is registered in France, but the lab is based in Japan). Then footnote number 136 on p. 121 of the MSCA Work Programme 2023-2025 applies:

“In exceptional cases, where a beneficiary is established in a country different from the place where the recruited researcher is hosted, the country correction coefficient of the hosting entity is taken into account during the grant agreement preparation process, in order to ensure the correct budget calculation.”

DN: Is it possible to use the Management and Indirect contribution before the starting date of the employment of the relevant doctoral candidate?

Yes, it is possible. Those costs can be spent from day one of the project and even be used to cover costs retroactively (if they occurred before the official start). In many cases, a project manager is hired on day one of the project and is being paid by these amounts.

DN: Is it allowed to use the Research, Training and Networking contribution to cover the travel costs of a supervisor-to-be to go to the central interiewing session?

Yes, it is possible. Research, Training and Networking costs can be spent for anything related to the Doctoral Network project. Travel costs of the supervisors are always paid via the institutional unit costs, be it Research, Training and Networking contribution or Management and Indirect contributions.

DN: Is there an option to put part-time sick leave in the Doctoral Candidate’s Mobility Declaration?

“Long-term Leave Allowance” applies to situations of full-time absence due to medical reasons. Part-time work is calculated based on the sum of all parts of person-months worked during the period concerned. The Project Officer should be consulted for specific cases.