ERC Frequently Asked Questions

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July 15, 2025

Navigating the ERC grant application process can be complex, with numerous considerations regarding eligibility, proposal structure, budgeting, and evaluation criteria. To assist researchers in this endeavor, Enspire Science has compiled a collection of frequently asked questions addressing common issues while providing clear, practical answers.

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While there are no instructions against dedicating 100% of your time to your ERC project as the PI, in most cases, this would not be realistic. Most academics would have other institutional obligations such as teaching, participation in committees, etc. Furthermore, during the five years of the project, it is anticipated that the PI would apply to other grants and would need to dedicate at least some of their time to those grants as well.

Yes. The ERC grant is a personal grant and it can be transferred to another host institution if the PI chooses to do so.

You do not need to personally identify all team members at the time of proposal submission, though it is fine to indicate any specific individual you plan to recruit or those that are already part of your team. You are expected to have a solid plan for the personnel you need for successfully executing your proposal, including those to be recruited. It is good practice to specify their expected backgrounds and expertise while linking this to the project's objectives and tasks.

Both documents describe the same project, so it is not expected that they would be completely different. Clearly, there would be differences stemming from the level of detail, expanding the description of the methodology, diving deeper into discussions about the state of the art, and more. One could definitely use parts of the same text.

Personnel costs are eligible direct costs and can be requested in full from the ERC budget. In cases where the PI or team members commit only part of their time, please consider the actual time dedication to the project and request only the relative cost. Costs should be calculated based on the regular salaries in the host institution for each of the personnel categories.

Figures could be an excellent way to convey information and add colour and interest to the proposal. It could improve the overall reading experience for reviewers and is therefore highly recommended. Having said that, please consider the page limit (especially in the synopsis) and choose the figures wisely.

It is critical to show that the work is different from what the PI has done in the past (as well as the current state of the art) while building on previous PI’s skills and achievements, contributing to the project’s feasibility. The applicant should convince the reviewers that while it is highly ambitious, if anyone could do it, it is them!

The ERC publishes the full list of panel members when the evaluation process is over for a given call. We have gathered this information into a searchable tool which you are welcome to use. Visit our panelist database

No. At the time of submission, you do not have to be employed by the host institution permanently or temporarily. You only need to provide a commitment letter from the host institution in which you intend to conduct your ERC project (based in the EU or Associated country). The commitment letter states that should your project get selected for funding, the Host institution will “host and engage the PI” for the duration of the ERC project.

The total awarded grant cannot be larger than the amount written in the grant agreement. If additional budgetary needs arise during the project execution, the PI should discuss this with the host institution to find alternative funding options. 

The personnel that will be working on the ERC project do not have to be already part of your team at the time of submission. However, showing you already have a team has to do with showcasing your track record as a team leader. For very young StG applicants, this expectation may not be very strong, but for more senior applicants, one should be able to show active leadership of a research team. Naturally, this also depends on the discipline, whereas some disciplines traditionally work as larger teams while for others, independent work is more common.   

No. From a conceptual point of view, there is no differences in the expectations between the categories. The differences in the budget may result in differences in scope, but all ERC categories expect ground-breaking and ambitious research and the evaluation process in all three categories follows the same review questions.