Information for those interested in funding

All projects are subject to the "Directive on the Granting of Funding from the ERDF/JTF NRW Program" (ERDF/JTF Framework Directive). This sets out regulations resulting from the special features of funding with EU funds:

• All projects must be climate and environmentally compatible.
• All projects must be carried out in whole or in part in North Rhine-Westphalia (ERDF). Funding from the JTF is only possible in its program area. This includes the Rhenish mining district (excluding the district of Euskirchen) or the cities of Bottrop, Dorsten, Gladbeck and Marl in the northern Ruhr area, the northern Ruhr area and the Rhenish mining district.
• All projects must meet the selection criteria.
• Certain expenditure is not eligible for funding.
• The amount of eligible personnel and overhead expenditure is based on flat rates.
• Special ancillary provisions (ANBest-EU) apply.
• It is publicly visible that you are receiving EU funding and to what extent.
• Target achievement, effectiveness and efficiency are monitored.
• The expenditure reimbursement principle applies. This means that you must pre-finance the expenditure in full.

All of this can be found in the current version of the EFRE/JTF Framework Directive.

For the selection of funded projects, the managing authority of the ERDF/JTF program NRW has proposed criteria that have been approved by the Monitoring Committee. They serve to evaluate the projects in accordance with the defined project objectives in a transparent and comprehensible procedure and thus to select projects with the greatest possible benefit and the greatest European added value. Each project must be clearly assigned to one of the priority axes defined in the program, a specific objective and a category of measures. It must contribute to the expected results defined there.

The selection criteria are divided into three categories:

• Category 1: 40% of the evaluation is based on selection criteria that are the same for all specific objectives.
• Category 2: 40% of the evaluation is based on two criteria for each specific objective.
• Category 3: 20% of the selection criteria can be awarded on a call or competition-specific basis by the ministries responsible for the respective call/competition.

The criteria are evaluated using a points system. You can find out exactly which selection criteria fall under the various categories in Annex 1 to the ERDF/JTF Framework Directive.

The "General ancillary provisions for grants for project funding using funds from the European Regional Development Fund and the Just Transition Fund" (ANBest-EU for short) are part of the grant notification and can be supplemented by further ancillary provisions. The ANBest-EU covers the following aspects in particular:

• Time commitment of the financing plan
• Obligation to maintain production activities in the case of productive investments
• Regulations for the awarding of contracts
• Earmarking of the subsidized assets
• Notification and verification obligations
• . and verification obligations
• Time and procedure of the call for funds
• Reporting on the progress of the project
• Proof of the use of funds
• Note, that an audit will also be carried out on site and by the European Commission, the European Court of Auditors, the State Court of Auditors or the audit authority
• Regulations on when and how the grant must be reimbursed
• Special regulations for construction measures
• Commitment, to refer to the funding from the European Union and the state of North Rhine-Westphalia

For more information, please refer to Annex 2 to the ERDF/JTF Framework Directive.

The so-called Overarch Regulation (EU) 2021/1060, together with the ERDF and JTF regulations, forms the legal basis for the ERDF/JTF NRW 2021-2027 program. Our funding offers are designed accordingly.

Personnel expenses can only be claimed for employees who are directly employed by you and work under your responsibility. The prerequisite is that the respective funding announcement permits funding for personnel expenses. The amount of personnel expenses that can be invoiced is based on a monthly or hourly flat rate depending on the activity performed and the scope of employment. If employees are working on several publicly funded projects, a maximum of 1,720 hours per year may be invoiced for all projects. In the case of members of management and employees on fixed-term contracts in accordance with the German Academic Fixed-Term Contract Act (WissZeitVG), it should be noted that a maximum of 70 percent of the contractually agreed working hours may be billed.

For detailed information including specific examples, please visit the page "Implementing the funding"

In general, it can be said that a project is always eligible for funding if the funding objective and the funding object are suitable, you are eligible to apply and the funding requirements are met.

The funding offers are generally aimed at small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), municipalities, municipal companies and research and educational institutions, associations, chambers and foundations. Large companies are only eligible to apply for certain funding offers. Individual funding measures are explicitly aimed at start-ups. However, the specific funding objectives, target groups and funding requirements depend on the funding measure you are interested in. Please refer to the respective funding announcement for more information. You can find an overview of all funding measures on the "Find funding" page.

In the ERDF/JTF NRW 2021-2027 program, innovative projects and approaches with the following priorities can receive funding from the European Regional Development Fund in North Rhine-Westphalia (ERDF.NRW):

• Innovative NRW
• SME-friendly NRW
• Sustainable NRW
• Mobile NRW
• Liveable NRW
• Competitive NRW
• Resource-efficient NRW

From the Fund for a Just Transition in the Northern Ruhr Area and the Rhenish Revier in North Rhine-Westphalia (JTF.NRW) can be used to support projects and approaches with the following priorities:

• Future-proof coal regions
• Resilient coal regions

This results in the thematic priorities:

• Innovation and research
• Foundation and digitalization
• Climate protection and climate adaptation
• City and region
• Transformation in coal regions
• Strategic technologies

The priority assigned to your project depends on the measure for which you are applying for funding. Find out more on the relevant page. Information on all funding measures and calls can be found on the "Find funding" page

For all questions regarding the preparation of project outlines, the application process and the implementation of funding in the ERDF/JTF NRW 2021-2027 program, you can get in touch with the contact persons responsible for the respective funding measure.

You can find the contact information on the page for the relevant funding measure. The "Find funding" page lists all funding opportunities.

Support from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) covers the entire state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Funding from the Just Transition Fund (JTF) is limited to areas that are particularly affected by the coal phase-out. In the Rhenish mining area, these are the Aachen city region, the independent city of Mönchengladbach, the districts of Düren and Heinsberg, the Rhine-Erft district and the Rhine district of Neuss, as well as the independent city of Bottrop and the district towns of Dorsten, Gladbeck and Marl in the northern Ruhr area. The JTF funding areas were defined on the basis of territorial plans, which are part of the ERDF/JTF program NRW 2021-2027 approved by the EU Commission.

The Rhenish lignite mining region and parts of the northern Ruhr area are heavily characterized by the extraction of fossil fuels. They therefore face particular challenges on the path to a climate-neutral and sustainable economy. The EU Just Transition Fund (JTF) in North Rhine-Westphalia is intended to provide support. A territorial just transition plan (TJTP) has been drawn up for the northern Ruhr region and the Rhenish mining area in order to distribute the funds in the best possible way and enable sustainable investments. They identify the areas most affected by the transformation process and describe and assess the development needs until 2030 to achieve a climate-neutral Union by 2050.

Only investments that comply with the territorial just transition plans can receive financial support from the JTF. The territorial just transition plans are part of the ERDF/JTF NRW 2021-2027 program approved by the EU Commission.

Read the territorial plans:

Territorial Just Transition Plan (TJTP) - Northern Ruhr

Territorial Just Transition Plan (TJTP) - Rhenish Ruhr

Funding from the ERDF/JTF NRW 2021-2027 program is provided either in the form of calls and competitions (funding announcements) or via guideline funding according to the first-come-first-served principle. A detailed step-by-step explanation of the application process can be found on the page "Ways to funding".