Briefly
Program description
The IMPACT NETWORKS programme is implemented under the EUroBridge_UA_MD – "Building Collaborative Pathways for Regional Development and Improved Administrative Capacity for EU Cohesion Policy Adoption in Ukraine and Moldova" project, funded by the European Union through the Technical Assistance for ERDF, CF and JTF (ERDF-TA-2024-SUPPORTUMBR) programme. The project is implemented by a consortium from Ukraine, Moldova and Romania and aims to strengthen cross-border cooperation, institutional capacity, joint initiatives and knowledge exchange. IMPACT NETWORKS is the first of two cascade funding calls and focuses on building and strengthening cross-border networks. Expected outputs include the Joint Strategic Plan, Portfolio of Projects and Pool of Experts, providing the foundation for the second CAPACITY & INNOVATION call.
Main Information
Eligibility
The call is open to organisations that meet the eligibility requirements, submit their applications through the official digital platform, and comply with all application conditions. Only projects that are approved and sign a Sub-Grant Agreement are eligible to receive funding.
Key eligibility requirements include:
- Applications must be submitted electronically before the deadline using the official templates and include all required documents.
- The applicant (Lead Partner and Project Partners) must be a legal entity established under the national legislation of Ukraine or Moldova.
- Eligible legal entities include public organisations, associations, foundations, chambers of commerce, public institutions, regional development agencies, limited liability companies, and other eligible legal forms specified in the call.
- The organisation must represent one of the eligible entity types: Cluster Organisation, Digital Innovation Hub (DIH), or Regional Development Agency (RDA).
Applicants must also:
- establish a cross-border partnership consisting of at least two core partners, including one from Ukraine and one from Moldova;
- demonstrate sufficient operational, managerial and financial capacity to implement the project;
- have no outstanding public budget debts at the time of application;
- not be subject to insolvency, liquidation or similar legal proceedings.
The partnership proposed in the application is generally expected to remain unchanged throughout the evaluation and contracting process unless otherwise approved by the Contracting Authority.
Financing
Under the IMPACT NETWORKS Open Call, financial support is provided as a non-reimbursable grant exclusively for activities approved in the Development Plan and the Sub-Grant Agreement. The maximum grant available for a joint project involving at least two partners is up to €50,000.
Eligible costs must:
- be directly linked to the approved project;
- be necessary, reasonable and supported by appropriate documentation;
- be incurred during the project implementation period;
- comply with applicable national legislation, EU rules and the Sub-Grant Agreement.
Funding may cover:
- personnel costs;
- subcontracting for specialised services;
- travel and subsistence;
- equipment (provided that it does not exceed 20% of the total eligible project budget);
- other goods, works and services required for project implementation.
The grant does not support, among others:
- personal expenses, debts or financial liabilities;
- activities not included in the approved project;
- political or electoral activities;
- double funding of the same eligible expenditure;
- the purchase of land or buildings;
- vehicles, construction, rehabilitation or modernisation of buildings or infrastructure;
- second-hand equipment, fines, litigation costs, foreign exchange losses or financial transfers to third parties;
- activities related to tobacco products, most alcoholic beverages, gambling, or the manufacture or trade of weapons and military equipment.
Supported Activities
The call supports projects that strengthen cross-border cooperation, enhance the institutional capacity of participating organisations, and improve regional competitiveness. All activities must be implemented jointly by the Lead Partner and Project Partners and demonstrate a genuine cross-border dimension.
Each partnership is required to implement a Development Plan delivering three mandatory outputs:
- Joint Strategic Plan;
- Portfolio of Projects;
- Pool of Experts.
Eligible activities may include:
- preparation of joint strategic documents, analyses and a portfolio of future project concepts;
- identification and documentation of a Pool of Experts to support future cooperation;
- communication and visibility activities, including dissemination of results, preparation of communication materials, networking events and online communication;
- organisation of cross-border meetings, conferences, study visits, exchange programmes and thematic working groups;
- research, strategic planning, analyses, development of joint strategies and institutional capacity-building activities;
- digital and technological cooperation, including the deployment of digital tools and solutions, as well as the purchase of small-scale equipment where permitted under the programme rules.
Roadmap
The grant programme follows a defined implementation timeline covering the application, evaluation and project launch phases. Applications may be submitted until 31 October 2026, after which the evaluation and selection process will begin.
Key milestones:
- Call launch — 1 August 2026.
- Application deadline — 31 October 2026.
- Evaluation and selection — from November 2026 to January 2027.
- Project implementation start — no later than 31 January 2027.
Applications submitted after the deadline or through channels other than the official digital platform will not be considered or evaluated.
How to Apply
Applications must be submitted exclusively through the official EUroBridge_UA_MD platform before the application deadline. Applications may be submitted in English, Ukrainian, or Romanian.
Main application steps:
- Register and submit the application through the official programme platform.
- Complete the Development Plan directly on the digital platform (submitted by the Lead Partner on behalf of the partnership).
- Upload all mandatory supporting documents, including:
- Declarations of Honour signed by all partnership members;
- registration documents confirming legal status;
- documents confirming the organisation's entity type;
- financial statements for the latest closed financial year or interim financial statements;
- a tax certificate confirming no outstanding public debts;
- CVs of at least two key staff members;
- the organisation's activity report for the previous year.
Important:
- Each partnership may submit only one proposal, and an organisation may participate as either a Lead Partner or a Project Partner in only one application under this call.
- If clarifications are requested, applicants must provide the required information within 5 working days of receiving the notification. Failure to respond within the specified period may result in rejection of the application.
Official registration and application submission are availa
Evaluation Criteria
Project applications are evaluated in two stages. The process begins with an administrative and eligibility review, after which eligible applications proceed to a qualitative assessment conducted by the independent Evaluation Quality Board (EQB).
Evaluation stages:
- Stage 1 – verification of timely submission, compliance with the call requirements and completeness of the required documentation.
- Stage 2 – qualitative assessment by independent EQB experts.
The qualitative evaluation is based on five criteria, each scored from 0 to 15 points:
- relevance and alignment;
- technical quality of the Development Plan;
- expected results and sustainability;
- partnership capacity;
- budget and cost-effectiveness.
The maximum score is 75 points, while the minimum passing score is 37.5 points.
The final score is calculated as the average of the assessments provided by two independent evaluators. If the difference between their scores exceeds 15 points, a third evaluator is appointed. In the event of a tie, priority is given to proposals with higher scores for Relevance and Alignment, followed by Expected Results and Sustainability, and Technical Quality of the Development Plan.
After the evaluation process is completed, applicants are notified of the results by email. Selected applicants must confirm acceptance of the funding offer and sign the Sub-Grant Agreement within 5 working days of receiving the notification.
Required Documents
Applicants are required to prepare and submit a complete set of mandatory documents in accordance with the programme requirements. All documents must be submitted together with the application through the official digital platform.
The application package includes:
- Development Plan, completed directly on the official platform.
- Declaration of Honour (Eligibility Conditions), signed by each partnership member and uploaded in PDF format.
- Documents confirming the organisation's registration and legal status.
- Documents verifying the organisation's entity type, such as external audit certificates, an ECCP profile, national or European recognition, or other supporting evidence specified by the call.
- For certain Ukrainian organisations operating at national level, evidence of activities in the designated target regions (where applicable).
- Financial statements for the latest closed financial year or interim financial statements for each partnership member.
- A tax certificate confirming the absence of outstanding public budget debts.
- CVs of at least two key staff members responsible for preparing and implementing the project, each with a minimum of two years of relevant experience.
- An activity report for the previous year demonstrating the organisation's operational continuity and relevance to the objectives of the call.
Reporting and Compliance
After receiving funding, beneficiaries are required to comply with the programme's reporting, financial management and compliance requirements throughout the entire project implementation period.
Key requirements include:
- 50% of the grant is provided as pre-financing within 30 days after the Sub-Grant Agreement is signed, while the remaining 50% is reimbursed after submission and approval of the final report.
- All project expenditures must be properly documented and comply with the programme rules.
- In-kind contributions may support project implementation; however, they are not considered eligible expenditure, are not reimbursed by the grant, and must not be included in the financial report.
Where clarification or review is required, applicants may:
- submit the requested administrative clarifications within 5 working days of receiving the notification;
- submit a written request for review of the evaluation results within 5 calendar days after receiving the notification.
A review request must clearly identify the alleged procedural or factual error. The review decision is communicated within 10 working days after receipt of the request and represents the final stage of the programme's internal complaints procedure.
Legal Terms
The programme establishes rules governing intellectual property, personal data protection, and the use of information provided during the application process. Submission of an application constitutes full acceptance of these requirements.
Key provisions include:
- Intellectual property rights to project outputs, reports, methodologies, tools, and other materials produced with grant funding remain with the beneficiary or beneficiaries who created them.
- Publications and communication materials related to the project must acknowledge funding from the European Union and EuroBRIDGE, including the use of the relevant logos.
- Personal data are processed in accordance with the GDPR (Regulation (EU) 2016/679), as well as applicable EU and national legislation.
- The collected information is used solely for application evaluation, management of the open call, project implementation support, and monitoring, reporting, and dissemination purposes.
- By submitting an application, applicants consent to the processing of their personal data and accept that anonymised or aggregated data may be used for reporting, monitoring, and dissemination in line with programme requirements.