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: A beneficiary in a Doctoral Networks proposal wants to enroll their PhD candidate in a PhD programme at another organisation which will not be a beneficiary in the consortium or participate in this project in any way. Is that possible?

A PhD candidate can be recruited by the beneficiary but enrolled in a PhD programme at another institution that provides PhD degrees, but that institution needs to be a beneficiary or at least an associated partner in the consortium. See also the Doctoral Networks Guide for applicants, page 7.