EU values, grave professional misconduct, and conflict of interest

The applicants need to be aware that if they are awarded the grant, the grant agreement obliges the involved parties to carry out the action in line with the highest ethical standards and the applicable EU, international and national law on ethical principles. During the implementation of the action, the beneficiaries must commit to and ensure the respect of EU values (such as respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and human rights, including the rights of minorities). In case of breach, the granting authority may reduce or recover the grant and terminate the grant agreement.

Incitement to discrimination, hatred or violence against a group of persons or a member of a group, or similar activities that are contrary to the values on which the Union is founded, as enshrined in Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union, are unacceptable and incompatible with the values and objectives of the programme, regardless of whether such actions occur before, during or after project implementation. In line with EU Financial Regulation, such behaviour can qualify as a ground for exclusion from EU funds where it has been established by a final judgment or a final administrative decision that the person or entity is guilty of grave professional misconduct by having violated applicable laws or regulations or ethical standards of the profession to which the person or entity belongs, or by having engaged in any wrongful conduct which has an impact on its professional credibility where such conduct denotes wrongful intent or gross negligence ¹ . Excluded entities cannot receive EU funds ² .

The applicants should also take note that after the grant is awarded and grant agreement signed, they must take all measures to prevent any conflict of interests where the impartial and objective implementation of the agreement could be compromised for reasons involving family, emotional life, political or national affinity, economic interest or any other direct or indirect interest. They must formally notify the granting authority without delay of any situation constituting or likely to lead to a conflict of interests and immediately take all the necessary steps to rectify this situation. The granting authority may verify that the measures taken are appropriate and may require additional measures to be taken by a specified deadline. The same obligation to prevent any situation of conflict of interest applies to subcontractors.

Overall, the action must be implemented by the participating organisations as described in their application and in compliance with the provisions of the grant agreement, the call conditions, the applicable quality standards, as well as all legal obligations under applicable EU, international and national law.

Financial guarantee

If the financial capacity is considered weak, the National or Executive Agency may require any beneficiary which has been awarded a grant exceeding EUR 60 000 to provide a guarantee in advance in order to limit the financial risks connected with the pre-financing payment. This guarantee can be requested for up to the same amount of the pre-financing payment(s).

The purpose of such guarantee is to make a bank or financial institution stand as irrevocable collateral security or first-call guarantor of the beneficiary’s obligations deriving from the grant agreement. 

This financial guarantee, in euro, shall be provided by an approved bank or financial institution established in an EU Member State. When the beneficiary is established in a non-EU country, the National or Executive Agency may agree that a bank or financial institution established in such country provides the guarantee, if it considers that the bank or financial institution offers equivalent financial security and characteristics as those offered in an EU Member State. 

The guarantee may be replaced by a joint third-party guarantee, or from several third-party guarantees from the participating organisations who are parties to the same grant agreement. 

The guarantee will be released after the pre-financing is gradually cleared against an interim payment or payment of the balance to the beneficiary, in accordance with the conditions laid down in the grant agreement. In case the payment of the balance takes the form of a recovery, either the guarantee will be released after the beneficiary is notified or will remain explicitly in force until the final payment and, if the final payment takes the form of a recovery, until three months after the debit note is notified to a beneficiary.

Subcontracting and award of procurement contract

In principle, limited subcontracting of services is allowed, provided it does not cover core activities on which the achievement of the objectives of the action directly depends. As a rule, tasks performed by the coordinator under the grant agreement cannot be subcontracted ³ . The beneficiary may resort to subcontracting for non-core activities, such as specific technical services, which are part of the action tasks, requiring specialised skills (relating to the legal, accounting, tax, human resources fields, IT, etc.) or implementation contracts. The costs incurred by the beneficiary for this type of services may therefore be considered eligible costs provided they meet all the other criteria described in the grant agreement, such as best value for money and absence of conflict of interest.

Where implementation of the project requires the procurement of goods, works or services (contract), beneficiaries must award the contract to the economically most advantageous offer, i.e. the bid offering the best value for money, or, as appropriate to the tender offering the lowest price, ensuring that there is no conflict of interest and that documentation is retained in case of audit.

In the event of implementation contract exceeding a value of EUR 60 000, the National or Executive Agency may impose special rules on the beneficiary, in addition to those referred to in the previous paragraph. Those special rules would be published on the websites of the National Agencies or the Executive Agency.

Information on the grants awarded

In line with the principle of transparency and the requirement for ex-post publicity, information on the recipients of the Union funds must be published on the website of the Commission, the Executive Agency and/or the National Agencies during the first half of the year following the closure of the financial year for which they were awarded. 

The information may also be published in any other appropriate medium, including the Official Journal of the European Union.

The National Agencies and the Executive Agency will publish the following information:

• name and locality of the beneficiary
• amount of grant awarded
• nature and purpose of the award

Upon a reasoned and duly substantiated request by the beneficiary, the publication shall be waived if such disclosure risks threatening the rights and freedoms of individuals concerned as protected by the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union or harm the commercial interests of the beneficiaries. 

As far as personal data referring to natural persons are concerned, the information published shall by removed two years after the end of the financial year in which the funds were awarded. 

The same shall apply to personal data indicated in the official titles of legal persons (e.g. an association or company having as title the names of their founders).

This information shall not be published for scholarships paid to natural persons and other direct support paid to natural persons in most need (refugees and unemployed persons). Also the beneficiary organisations are not authorised to publish this type of information in relation to persons receiving a mobility grant under Erasmus+.

Visibility of Union action

Specific requirements regarding the visibility of the project, sharing of project results and project impact, as well as the obligation to ensure publicity for each granted project

 are detailed in the particular calls/actions and grant agreements. Beneficiaries must clearly acknowledge the European Union’s support in all communications or publications, in whatever form or whatever medium, including the Internet, or on the occasion of activities for which the grant is used.

This must be done according to the provisions included in the call and the grant agreement. If these provisions are not fully complied with, the beneficiary’s grant may be reduced.

Checks, audits and monitoring

The National or Executive Agency and/or the European Commission may carry out technical and financial checks and audits in relation to the use of the grant.

Where issues are encountered in a particular project or for a given participant (for example operational or financial capacity issues), these might require closer monitoring and taking of measures as described in the grant agreement. The purpose of such monitoring is to help the beneficiaries manage risk so that it does not materialise and the action can be successfully finalised. The granting authority may also check the statutory records of the beneficiary (or co-beneficiary) for the purpose of periodic assessments of lump sum, unit cost or flat-rate financing. The beneficiary (or co-beneficiary) will undertake, with the signature of its legal representative, to provide proof that the grant has been used correctly. The European Commission, the Executive Agency, National Agencies and/or the European Court of Auditors, OLAF, EPPO or a body mandated by them, may check the use made of the grant at any time up to five years, or for up to three years for grants not exceeding EUR 60 000, after final payment. Therefore, beneficiaries shall keep records, original supporting documents, statistical records and other documents connected with the grant during this period.

Different types of audit procedures may be applied according to the type of Action concerned, the size of the grant awarded and the form of the grant.

The detailed provisions concerning checks and audits are described in the grant agreement.

Risk assessment and monitoring

Risk assessment is a fundamental part of managing EU grants, as it helps to safeguard public funds, enhance project success, and promote accountability and transparency. It is a critical component of both the application process and the management of EU funded projects and helps to ensure that funds are allocated and used effectively, efficiently, and in compliance with the relevant policies and regulations.

Risk identification and mitigation is often required from applicants when preparing their applications. It is also relevant at the stage of project selection. The EU Financial Regulation allows the authorising officer in several instances to waive an obligation or request additional documents from an applicant based on its risk assessment. Some actions also require the applicants to present a risk management plan, and where this is the case, the plan itself is part of the project’s evaluation. Finally, risk monitoring relating to the beneficiary and the project takes place during project implementation in the context of checks, reviews, audits or investigations carried out under a particular grant agreement.

Collaboration and consistent Programme implementation through information technology system used by the Commission, EACEA and National Agencies

In order to ensure consistent implementation of the Programme across all participating countries ⁴ and the protection of EU financial interests ⁵ , the information concerning the applicant, the application, compliance with eligibility and exclusion criteria, the related operational and financial capacity assessments and other relevant information, including on previously funded projects and, if the grant is awarded, information concerning the implementation of the project and any reinforced monitoring thereof, can be made accessible to authorised persons of the European Commission, EACEA and the National Agencies in the context of selection and award, prevention of double funding, monitoring, and other instances in the context of supervisory controls and primary checks pursuant to Erasmus+ Regulation.

All access to information is subject to rules of personal Data Protection notice specified below.

Concerning the EACEA, data can be made accessible through the Funding and Tenders Portal in line with the applicable privacy statements. The sharing of information between EACEA and the National Agencies must comply with the provisions of the Memorandums of Understanding signed between them.

Protection of the financial interests of the Union

The Commission takes appropriate measures to ensure that, when actions financed under the Erasmus+ Regulation are implemented, the financial interests of the Union are protected by the application of preventive measures against fraud, corruption and any other illegal activities by effective controls and, if irregularities are detected, by the recovery of the amounts wrongly paid and, where appropriate, by effective, proportionate and dissuasive administrative and financial penalties ⁶ . This includes carrying out supervisory controls with regard to the Programme actions and activities managed by the national agencies, setting the minimum requirements for the controls by national agencies and independent audit bodies, processing of data as described below, and cooperating closely with the national agencies who are responsible for the primary controls of grant beneficiaries.

Applicants for grants need to be aware that any person or entity receiving Union funds is required to fully cooperate in the protection of the financial interests of the Union and shall, as a condition for receiving the funds, grant the necessary rights and access required for the authorising officer responsible, for the EPPO in respect of those Member States participating in enhanced cooperation pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2017/1939, for OLAF, for the Court of Auditors, and, where appropriate, for the relevant national authorities, to comprehensively exert their respective competences ⁷ .

Data protection

Any personal data included in the application form or in the grant agreement shall be processed by the National or Executive Agency, or by the European Commission in accordance with:

• For all processing that is required by any official guidance or instructions from the European Commission or necessary for the implementation of the Erasmus+ Programme: Regulation (EU) 2018/1725 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2018 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data by the Union institutions, bodies, offices and agencies and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 and Decision No 1247/2002/EC (Text with EEA relevance.);
• For all processing for other purposes, not required by any official guidance or instructions from the European Commission nor necessary for the implementation of the Erasmus+ Programme:
  • the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR or EU Regulation 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016) for:
    • all personal data processed by a controller or processor in the EU/EEA;
    • all personal data on data subjects who are in the EU/EEA at the start of the processing;
  • the national data protection legislation for all other processing.

In these cases, the entity deciding on the means and purposes of the processing for these other purposes shall replace the European Commission as accountable and responsible Data Controller under their applicable data protection legislation.

Unless marked as optional, the applicant's replies to the questions in the application form are necessary to evaluate and further process the grant application in accordance with the Erasmus+ Programme Guide. Personal data will be processed solely for that purpose by the department or Unit responsible for the Union grant programme concerned (entity acting as data controller). Personal data may be transferred on a need-to-know basis to third parties involved in the evaluation of applications or in the grant management procedure, without prejudice of transfer to the bodies in charge of monitoring and inspection tasks in accordance with European Union law or to bodies mandated to undertake evaluations of the Programme or any of its Actions. In particular, for the purposes of safeguarding the financial interests of the Union, personal data may be transferred to internal audit services, to the European Court of Auditors, to the Financial Irregularities Panel, to the European Anti-Fraud Office or to the European Public Prosecutor's Office and between authorising officers of the Commission and the executive agencies. The applicant shall have the right of access to their personal data and the right to rectify any such data.m In case of conflicts, the applicant also has the right of recourse at any time to the European Data Protection Supervisor.

Concerning the processing of personal data under the Erasmus+ Programme, a detailed privacy notice, including contact information for any queries concerning the processing of their personal data, is available here.

See actions managed by EACEA

The applicant shall inform the individuals whose personal data is contained in the proposal of the relevant privacy statement as indicated above, before submitting their proposals.

Within the framework of Erasmus+ actions managed by the National Agencies or the Executive Agency EACEA, applicants – and, if they are legal entities, persons who are members of the administrative, management or supervisory body of that applicant or who have powers of representation, decision or control with regard to that applicant, or natural or legal persons that assume unlimited liability for the debts of that applicant – are informed that their personal data (name, given name if natural person, address, legal form and name and given name of the persons with powers of representation, decision-making or control, if legal person) may be registered in the Early Detection and Exclusion System (EDES) by the Authorising Officer of the Agency, should they be in one of the situations mentioned in the EU Financial Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2024/2509.

Footnote

1. Article 138 (1) c) vi) of the EU Financial Regulation ↩ back
2. For more details, see exclusion criteria section ↩ back
3. In case of public bodies, coordinators may delegate some of their tasks as per grant agreement to an entity with ‘authorisation to administer’. ↩ back
4.  See Article 128 of the EU Financial regulation as well as Article 28(7) and (8) of the Erasmus+ Regulation. ↩ back
5. See in particular Article 194 of the EU Financial Regulation on the prohibition of double funding. ↩ back
6. Article 30 (1) of the Erasmus+ Regulation ↩ back
7. Article 129 of the Financial Regulation ↩ back