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This article provides an introductory overview of the ERC Plus scheme. A companion article follows, examining in greater detail the open questions associated with this new funding instrument.

Overview

ERC Plus is the new European Research Council (ERC) funding scheme introduced under the Horizon Europe Work Programme 2026. It complements the existing ERC portfolio (Starting, Consolidator, Advanced, and Synergy Grants) by supporting a very small number of exceptionally ambitious frontier research projects led by single Principal Investigators (PIs).

  Key features

• ERC Plus applies the same definition of scientific excellence as all other ERC schemes. 
• The scheme is fully bottom-up, open to all disciplines, including Social Sciences and Humanities.
• Single-PI leadership; collaboration is possible, but ERC Plus is not a collaborative or multi-PI grant
• It extends the ERC framework to support exceptionally ambitious scientific visions whose pursuit is difficult to structure coherently within existing ERC schemes.
• ERC Plus is particularly suited to projects whose path toward transformative potential is complex, staged, or involves substantial enabling work.

With approximately 30 grants awarded per year, ERC Plus is the most competitive individual funding instrument in the ERC portfolio.

Why was ERC Plus introduced?

ERC Plus addresses a structural gap in the European funding landscape: the lack of an instrument capable of supporting large, long-term scientific visions led specifically by individual researchers (and not consortia).

While existing ERC schemes provide robust and effective frameworks for frontier research, ERC Plus expands this portfolio by allowing more complex research structures. In particular, it accommodates scientific visions that unfold over extended time, involve staged or parallel exploratory pathways, or require substantial enabling work before their full transformative potential can be realized.

Because ERC Plus is centered on the pursuit of a coherent long-term vision, the scheme places additional emphasis on the applicant's capacity for scientific leadership evidenced by specific, attributable breakthroughs or paradigm-shaping contributions for which the applicant can credibly claim intellectual responsibility.

Reflecting its role as a vision-defining instrument, ERC Plus may be held only once per researcher.

Technical framework

(based on published information in the ERC website, the introductory ERC Plus webinar and the Work Programme 2026)

Eligibility highlights

Who can apply

• Researchers based in, or moving to, an EU Member State or Associated Country.
• Researchers of any age and career stage.
• Researchers that already completed a previous ERC grant or researchers with less than 2 years remaining on an ongoing ERC grant, can apply as well to ERC Plus.
• Researchers able to commit at least 30% of their working time (with at least 50% spent in the EU/AC). 

Who cannot apply

• Researchers cannot hold more than one ERC grant concurrently. Therefore, researchers who currently hold another ERC grant with more than two years remaining cannot apply.
• Researchers that already applied to another ERC grant at the same Work Programme year cannot apply to ERC Plus (technically they can, but only the first application will undergo evaluation). 
• Researchers restricted from ERC calls due to Step 1 scores (B or C).
• ERC Advanced Grant panel members applying in the same year.
• Researchers who have already held an ERC Plus grant (ERC Plus may be held only once).

Application and evaluation

The application structure follows standard ERC formats (Part I and Part II), with an additional Vision Statement(0.5–2 pages) explaining why the proposed research cannot be supported by a regular ERC grant. The call is expected to open in early summer 2026 (no later than June), with a tentative deadline on September 2nd 2026 (stay tuned for official notifications from the ERC).

Evaluation takes place in two steps:

Step 1
Part I,PI's profile and the Vision Statement are evaluated by field-specific panels aligned with Advanced Grant panels. As in other ERC schemes, both the project and the applicant are assessed; however, in ERC Plus the leadership of the applicant is explicitly evaluated, reflecting the scale and duration of the funding. Proposals are assessed on a retained / not retained basis, with no predefined cap on the number of applications advancing to Step 2.

Step 2
The full proposal is evaluated by one out of three interdisciplinary dedicated ERC Plus Panels, composed of highly experienced scientific leaders, including former ERC panel chairs and heads of research institutes. At this stage, proposals are compared across scientific domains, with the focus on the coherence, ambition, and credibility of the long-term vision. Additional remote experts may be consulted. Shortlisted applicants are invited to an interview.
Approximately 30 projects will be selected for funding.

ERC Plus offers an unprecedented opportunity for researchers with compelling scientific visions to pursue ambitious, long-term research trajectories with substantial and sustained support. As the first call approaches, important open questions remain, including the precise distinction from individual ERC grants, expectations regarding PI profiles and scientific leadership, its fit for the Social Sciences and Humanities, and its positioning relative to ERC Synergy Grants – we discuss these questions in the companion article - check it out here.