ERC changes eligibility for 2027 work-programme grant competitions

The European Research Council (ERC) has announced significant revisions to the 2027 Work Programme grant competitions, which are being held between July 2026 and June 2027.

The changes are designed to manage an influx of applications and preserve the integrity of the peer-review process by reducing the burden on peer-reviewers.

The ERC has seen a significant increase in applications, with some panels now assessing more than 250 proposals, well above the historical average of 50 to 150. To safeguard the quality of the evaluation process, the Scientific Council is moving beyond "soft measures" to more direct restrictions on applications and resubmissions.

New eligibility windows for starting and consolidator grants will now be determined by the date of a researcher's doctoral defence rather than a fixed range of years. For starting grants, the PhD must have been defended no more than 10 years before 01/01/2027. For consolidator grants, the PhD defence must have occurred between 5 and 15 years before 01/01/2027.

The ERC is implementing stricter submission criteria, allowing candidates…