LUKE Joint Call

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Call launch update: LUKE Joint Call opens 27 February 2026 – Start building your consortium and project idea in advance

Following an updated timeline, the LUKE Joint Call will be launched on 27 February 2026, bringing together funding parties across Europe to support research and innovation collaboration with Ukraine.

Potential applicants are invited to begin developing project ideas and building consortia.

The Call aims to build research and innovation partnerships, with Ukraine as the central partner. It is jointly implemented by 13 funding parties, ensuring participation of 11 countries. The EU Horizon Europe LUKE project is a platform to support administrative implementation of the LUKE Joint Call. The LUKE funding parties pool resources and support Ukraine’s integration into the European Research Area.

The Call will use a centralised submission procedure. In a limited number of cases, applicants may also be required to submit the proposal in parallel to the relevant funding parties. The consortium must prepare one joint proposal in English.

The budget available in each country will depend on the resources allocated by the respective funding party.

The project duration is up to two years.

Who can apply and how should consortia be organised?

The Call is open to legal entities registered in one of the following countries: Austria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, the Republic of Moldova, Poland, Romania, Türkiye and Ukraine.

Eligible applicants may include:

  • Research and higher education institutions established in accordance with the relevant national legislation
  • Research-performing small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)
  • Other entities eligible for funding under the applicable national rules

Different types of organisations from the research, innovation and business sectors can form consortia. Please note that partner eligibility criteria (i.e. eligible organisation types) vary depending on the national rules of the Funding Parties. Please see the list of funding parties and eligible partners below.

A project consortium must include eligible partners from Ukraine and at least two other participating countries. A Lead Partner organisation must be nominated within the consortium.

Please note that, depending on national rules, some funding parties (FWF, NASU and NRFU) accept only one applicant organisation from the respective country per consortium.

Call topics and scope

The Call covers the following four topics to strengthen Ukraine’s capacities in jointly identified priority areas:

1. Energy: Sustainable and renewable energy and energy security

2. Cybersecurity: Cyber resilience of critical infrastructures and adaptive cybersecurity systems

3. Medical and health research: Telemedicine, biomedical research

3.1: Adoption of telemedicine for remote healthcare solutions

3.2: Innovative research on cellular signaling pathways for biomedical applications

4. Social sciences and humanities: Social reconciliation, sustainable social development, and human capital restoration

Topic descriptions are available here: LUKE Joint Call: Topic Descriptions (pdf)

Calendar

  • Publication of the Call: 27 February 2026
  • Deadline for proposal submission: 15 May 2026 at 11:00 CET / 12:00 EET
  • Tentative date for starting the projects: January 2027 – March 2027
  • Tentative end date of the projects: December 2028 – February 2029

List of funding parties and eligible applicants

Austrian Research Promotion Agency, FFG, Austria
Eligible applicants: Austrian companies of all sizes, universities, and research institutions as well as R&D intermediaries.
Multiple applicants from Austria to this funding party within one consortium: Yes
Focus: Applied research (industrial research and experimental development)
Webpage: https://www.ffg.at/LUKE/Call2026

Austrian Science Fund, FWF, Austria
Eligible applicants: Austrian research institutions registered in the FWF’s research institution portal. Principle investigators must meet the FWF eligibility criteria as stated in the FWF guidelines for “Principle Investigator Projects”.
Multiple applicants from Austria to this funding party within one consortium: No
Focus: Basic research
Webpage: https://www.fwf.ac.at/en/funding/portfolio/subject-specific-funding/luke-ukraine

Technology Agency of the Czech Republic, TA CR, Czech Republic
Eligible applicants: Czech research organisations/universities, SMEs or large companies.
Multiple applicants from the Czech Republic to this funding party within one consortium: Yes
Focus: Applied research
Webpage: https://tacr.gov.cz/en/

Estonian Research Council, ETAG, Estonia
Eligible applicants: Estonian universities and higher education institutions, public and private research and development organisations, as well as other legal entities established in Estonia that are capable of conducting research and meeting the national eligibility requirements defined for participation in multilateral transnational partnerships.
Multiple applicants from Estonia to this funding party within one consortium: Yes
Focus: Basic and applied research.
Webpage: https://www.etag.ee

Research Council of Finland, RCF, Finland
Eligible applicants: Applicants must hold a doctoral degree, demonstrate significant scientific merits (typically at professor or docent level), and have a strong connection to Finland to enable a multi-year project. Funding is awarded to Finnish entities, mainly universities and research institutes, and decisions follow the “Principles of RCF funding decisions.”
Multiple applicants from Finland to this funding party within one consortium: Yes
Focus: Basic research and applied research
Webpage: https://www.aka.fi/en

Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space, BMFTR, Germany
Eligible applicants: German universities/higher education institutions, non-university research institutions, commercial enterprises, in particular SMEs, as well as local authorities and other institutions in Germany that provide research contributions.
Multiple applicants from Germany to this funding party within one consortium: Yes
Focus: Basic and applied research.
Webpage: https://www.bmftr.bund.de

Latvian Council of Science, LZP, Latvia

Eligible applicants: Latvian universities/higher education institutions, state research institutes, research centres as well as enterprises, in particular SMEs.
Multiple applicants from Latvia to this funding party within one consortium: to be specified
Focus: Basic and applied research projects.
Webpage: https://www.lzp.gov.lv

National Agency for Research and Development, NARD, Republic of Moldova
Eligible applicants: Public research organisations, universities, accredited laboratories, alone or in partnership with private organisations engaged in research and innovation activities (SMEs, NGOs etc.) in Moldova
Multiple applicants from the Republic of Moldova to this funding party within one consortium: Yes
Focus: Basic and applied research.
Webpage: https://ancd.gov.md

National Science Centre, NCN, Poland
Eligible applicants: Researchers holding at least a PhD will be eligible to apply for funding through a broad range of research-conducting institutions recognised under Polish law, including universities, federations of higher-education institutions, institutes of the Polish Academy of Sciences, research institutes, and centres within research networks such as Łukasiewicz, among many others.
Multiple applicants from Poland to this funding party within one consortium: Yes
Focus: Basic research.
Webpage: www.ncn.gov.pl

The Executive Agency for Higher Education, Research, Development and Innovation Funding – UEFISCDI, Romania
Eligible applicants: Legal entities established in Romania are eligible to get funding, i.e. public and private accredited universities, national R&D institutes, other research organisations, SMEs, large industrial enterprises with R&D activity within their domains.
Multiple applicants from Romania to this funding party within one consortium: Yes
Focus: Exploratory and applied research.
Webpage: https://uefiscdi.gov.ro/

The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye, TÜBİTAK, Türkiye
Eligible applicants: Universities and higher education institutions, public and private research organisations, and private sector companies, including SMEs, established in Türkiye.
Multiple applicants from Türkiye to this funding party within one consortium: Yes
Focus: Basic and applied research.
Webpage: https://www.tubitak.gov.tr

National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, NASU, Ukraine
Eligible applicants: NASU entities.
Multiple applicants from Ukraine to this funding party within one consortium: No
Focus: Basic and applied research.
Webpage: https://www.nas.gov.ua/

The National Research Foundation of Ukraine, NRFU, Ukraine
Eligible applicants: Organisations that are legal entities registered and operating in Ukraine in accordance with national legislation. Such organisations may include institutions of higher education, as defined by the Law of Ukraine “On Higher Education”, or research institutions, as defined by the Law of Ukraine “On Scientific and Scientific-Technical Activities”, regardless of their legal form or form of ownership.
Multiple applicants from Ukraine to this funding party within one consortium: No
Focus: Basic/applied research (developments) projects only.
Webpage: https://nrfu.org.ua/

Useful information

The Q&A list will be available soon. Should you have any questions, please reach out to the relevant funding parties directly, as national rules vary between funding parties.

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