COFUND: Can vacation days be subtracted from the total time spent in the country of the beneficiary?

Days of holiday cannot be subtracted.

On p. 96 of the MSCA Work Programme 2026-2027 it is written that “Compulsory national service, short stays such as holidays, time spent by the researcher as part of a procedure for obtaining refugee status under the Geneva Convention  and time spent for obtaining EU temporary protection  are not taken into account.” This applies in another sense: if the candidate was living abroad but spent some days in the country of the beneficiary on holidays, these days will not be taken into account for the 12-months rule for application in this country.

PF: Should stays as a “visiting researcher” be calculated toward the mobility rule?

According to the MSCA mobility rule, the researcher must not have resided and/or carried out their main activity or studies in the country of the future beneficiary for more than 12 months in the 36 months before the call deadline.

Having said that, if a visiting researcher’s stay in country A involves the researcher spending the majority of their working time (above 50 %) on research, teaching or other academic duties there, this period would normally be considered part of their main activity in that country for the purposes of the mobility rule.

On the other hand, if the stay was secondary to their primary employment — for example, a researcher who made a short research visit to country A while they maintained their main employment contract and spent the majority of their working time with their main employer outside of country A — then the time spent in country A would not be considered as part of their main activity. This reflects the general interpretation that the mobility rule focuses on where the researcher principally carried out their work or studies during the reference period.

In practical terms, this means that a visiting researcher’s three-month stay in country A that did not constitute the researcher’s main professional activity (i.e. the researcher remained employed and primarily active with their home institution abroad) would generally not count towards their main activity in country A for the mobility rule. If, however, during that period the researcher was effectively based in country A and carried out the bulk of their work there, then those three months would count toward the 12-month threshold.

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: 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.

PF: A potential applicant has their main activity and residence in Country A, but spends each weekend in Country B where they are officially registered. Would they be eligible to apply for a Postdoctoral Fellowship in Country B?

The approach recommended by the Commission in case of “double residency / double activity” is the following:  the country where the researcher has spent the highest cumulative number of months over the reference period should be considered as main residency / main activity country.

If their main residency and main activity is in country A, short stays in country B for private purposes such as weekends should not be taken into account.

PF: Do secondments have to comply with the mobility rule?

Secondments do not have to comply with the mobility rule; the mobility rule is applicable only to the country of the host organisation (beneficiary).

PF: If an applicant was employed by an organisation based in the country of application, how should the time of maternity leave spent outside the country be considered for the mobility rule?

If the researcher had a contract with an organisation in the country of application covering the period of the maternity leave, this time will be taken into account for the mobility rule, even if the researcher was not physically present in the country of application during the maternity leave.

PF/ DN/ COFUND: How should the refugee status be considered towards the mobility rule? Should the time spent in the country with the refugee status already accorded count for the mobility rule?

This wording is interpreted more broadly in practice to also exclude the period during which the refugee status is held, in alignment with the approach to the eligibility rule related to long-term residence and the mobility limitations of refugee researchers. Neither the time spent during the procedure for obtaining refugee status nor the period during which the status is held are taken into account when assessing compliance with the mobility rule.

PF: How should the status of honorary researcher be considered towards the mobility rule if it is a mere association to a lab, with no working contract and no salary, but an agreement ensuring necessary social coverage to officially exercise a research activity in this lab?

If, besides the activity of honorary researcher, the applicant also has a working contract with another lab, the activity of honorary researcher shall not be taken into account for the mobility rule, as it is not a 'main activity'. According to the MSCA Work Programme 2023-2025 ‘Recruited researchers 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 beneficiary (for European Postdoctoral Fellowships), or the host organisation for the outgoing phase (for Global Postdoctoral Fellowships) for more than 12 months in the 36 months immediately before the call deadline’. When taking into consideration the country of the activity (work, studies, etc.), what counts is the country where the main activity (main activity understood as an activity above 50%) is taking place.

PF: Is a researcher with a contract of more than 12 months in country A eligible to apply with an organisation in the same country, even if they have been physically present in the country for less than 12 months?

Both the contract and physical presence are considered for the mobility rule, so they would be ineligible.

Footnote 145 in the MSCA Work Programme 2023-2025 (p. 121) says that the country of the main activity is “the country where the researcher is physically based when carrying out the main activity and the country of the institution for which the main activity is performed (e.g., employer).”

COFUND: Does the eligibility of chosen candidates in a COFUND Programme have to be proven with a document?

It is the obligation of the beneficiary/ recruiting organisation in MSCA to request and keep proof that the selected candidates were eligible. Usually for auditors, self-declaration is not sufficient proof.

PF: Regarding the mobility rule, would any 12 months spent in the country of the host institution within the last 36 months make the fellow ineligible for that country?

Yes. For example, 7 months residing in country A in 2022 and 6 months working in the same country in 2023 would make the applicant ineligible for country A in 2024. 

PF: Regarding the mobility rule, is there an automated check following the submission of an application in the Funding and Tenders Opportunities Portal?

The check for compliance with the mobility rule is not automated at the time of submission. Applicants must declare their compliance with the mobility rule in their application, and it is the responsibility of the applicants to ensure that this information is accurate. The eligibility clearance for all proposals is managed by the European Research Executive Agency after the call deadline.

PF: How can situations where the actual place of residence differs from the legal place of residence be approached?

According to the definition, if either the residence or main activity of the researcher is in the country of the potential beneficiary, that country would be considered towards the 12-month mobility rule period.

The legal residence and the actual place of residence of a researcher can sometimes differ. The actual place of residence refers to the location where the researcher is physically present and carries out their primary activity. When considering the mobility rule, both the actual place of residence and the place of main activity must be taken into account.

It is crucial to emphasize that the clearance of proposal eligibility will be conducted by the European Research Executive Agency after the call deadline, considering the numerous potential scenarios. Consequently, eligibility for individual applicants (both researchers and institutions) prior to the call deadline cannot be assessed or confirmed. It is the sole responsibility of the applicants to diligently review all eligibility criteria and ensure the provision of accurate information in the submission forms.

PF: A potential applicant arrived in the country of the host organisation on 13/09/2022. With the call deadline for 2023 being 13/09/2023, would they be considered eligible, or would they have been in the country one day too long to satisfy the rule?

To be considered eligible, applicants can have resided in the country of the host organisation from 14/09/2022 onwards (no more than 365 days).

Applicants can use the Postdoctoral Fellowships Self-assessment tool for eligibility and for the calculation of the 8-years research experience.

PF: Can periods of unpaid leave and work outside ERA with an employment contract in place be deducted for the mobility rule or are they counted still as living and working in the country?

It should be underlined that the eligibility clearance of the proposals will be done by the European Research Executive Agency, only after the call deadline.

If either the residence or main activity of the researcher is in the country of the potential beneficiary where the fellow has an employment contract, that country would be taken into account towards the 12-month mobility rule period. Absences from that country, which do not result in a change of both the country of residence and the country of main activity, are not to be deducted from this period. Please bear in mind that in case of remote work performed from country A, for an employer located in country B, the place of main activity is considered as country B.

Additionally, if the researcher applies for Global Postdoctoral Fellowships the work or residence outside of ERA could have an impact on the mobility rule with respect to the host organisation for the outgoing phase. 

PF: Does the mobility rule in Global Fellowships refer to the outgoing host?

Indeed, for the Global Postdoctoral Fellowships, the mobility rule concerns the outgoing phase. The researcher cannot have resided or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in the country of the associated partner hosting the outgoing phase for more than 12 months in the 36 months immediately before the call deadline. (p. 8 of the PF Guide for Applicants).

PF: Is a researcher who is affiliated with one university in country A, within the scope of a joint doctorate and wants to apply for a Postdoctoral Fellowship with another university in country A eligible?

It is the physical presence (residence or main activity) in a given country that is taken into account when considering the mobility rule. If they have not resided or carried out their main activity in country A for more than 12 months in the last 36 months, they are eligible.