NordForsk

The NordForsk Application Portal can also be viewed without registering as a user and without logging in.  Please use the “Preview form” function to do this. The application must contain all required information, including annexes, which have a limited number of pages, a specific font and size. All annexes must be uploaded as PDF.

There is no limit to the number of applications in which an institution can be involved.

This depends on the role the PI takes on in the consortium: as a lead partner (project leader/owner), the PI can only submit one application, while as a regular partner, the number of participations of the PI is not limited. Thus, a PI can submit one application as a lead partner and be involved in other application(s) as a regular partner. An institution may participate as a coordinator and/or partner in several applications.

NordForsk funds regional research cooperation and therefore the consortium must consist of research performing organisations from at least three countries. Depending on the conditions of the call, other types of institutions/organizations can also participate as partners. The rules on de minimis and state aid must be followed, and the support cannot be used for the company’s economic activities. The project leader/owner must always be established research performing institution. There are no restrictions on the status of research institutions (positively evaluated or non-evaluated research institutions).

The Nordic countries in NordForsk calls are Finland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Iceland, together with the autonomous regions of the Faroe Islands, Greenland and Åland. Institutions from all Nordic countries and autonomous regions can be involved in the project as partners (all costs are covered by NordForsk), but the lead partner can only be from those Nordic countries whose research funding organisations (research councils) have joined the respective call.

Estonia participates in the NordForsk application under the virtual common pot scheme, which means that Estonian participants are funded only by the Estonian Research Council and, if relevant, by a sectoral ministry (e.g. Ministry of the Interior, Ministry of Regional Affairs and Agriculture). NordForsk funding only covers the costs of Nordic participants, even if the coordinator (lead partner) is from Estonia.

Estonian participants are subject to the ETAG eligibility requirements, which are set out in Annex 1 of the call text  and on the ETAG website. In addition, the general requirements of the NordForsk call apply to all participants.

The Estonian partner can have overhead costs of up to 15% of the personnel costs. This can be shown in the application form under personnel costs, adding overhead costs to the salary costs. In this case, the budget explanation must specify how much overhead costs have been calculated for the Estonian partner. Personnel costs include both the salary costs of the researchers and possible grants for doctoral students and postdoctoral fellows (hence the first two cost categories in the application form).

Both partners could participate in the project with their own budget and tasks, keeping in mind the upper limit established by ETAG for one project: the total budget of the partners in one project may not exceed 150,000 or 300,000 euros, respectively. 300,000 euros can be the budget of the Estonian participants in the project only if one of the partners assumes the role of the lead partner of the entire consortium (project leader/owner). If both partners participate in the consortium as regular partners, their total budget cannot exceed 150,000 euros. It should also be noted that the principal investigator of both participating institutions must meet the qualification requirements outlined in the ETAG compliance requirements.

This is often referred to in the call text, but if this information is missing, it will take approximately 6-7 months from the closing of the call to the funding decisions. So if the call for proposals deadline is in May-June, the projects could start in the first quarter of the following year.

Projects generally last 3-4 years.

Regarding the budget, the applicant is asked to provide an overview of both the costs related to the implementation of the project, the coverage of which is requested from the funder of the call for proposals (requested funding), as well as all other sources of funding (other funding) that will be used to implement the project, including own contribution, for which no requirement has been established (unless specifically referred to in the call text).

If you enter the EUR vs. NOK exchange rate in the budget file (“Budget per partner”), it is possible to enter a budget in euros, after which the amounts in Norwegian kroner will automatically appear. The total budget of all project partners must be submitted in Norwegian kroner.

Yes, the ETAG grant can be used to cover both domestic and foreign travel expenses during the implementation of the project.

NordForsk calls also allow the participation from third countries (except Russia and Belarus), but at their own expense (as associated partners). Nordic/Baltic partners can cover the travel costs of participants from third countries from the NordForsk grant.

Confirmation letter requirements are specified in the NordForsk application form. There is no specific form for the letter. The institution should confirm that should the specific proposal recieve funding, the institution will implement the project under the leadership of the respective PI. The call title and deadline should also be stated. The letter of confirmation must be signed by an authorised person. Only files in PDF format can be uploaded to the application portal. Depending on the call, NordForsk may request a letter of confirmation from each partner or only from the lead partner. If NordForsk does not request a letter of confirmation from the Estonian partner, the condition of the Estonian compliance requirements applies, according to which the institution’s letter of confirmation must be submitted directly to ETAG no later than the time of eligibility check.