The 2024 Erasmus+ call will focus on the common values of the EU
The European Commission has opened the 2024 application round of the Erasmus+ programme on 28.11.2023. The application deadline for Learning Mobility actions (KA1) is 20.2.2024 at 13.00 Finnish time, and the application deadline for Erasmus+ Cooperation Projects (KA2) is 5.3.2024 at 13.00 Finnish time. In addition, some actions have a second application round in the fall; the deadline for these applications is 1.10.2024 at 13.00 Finnish time.
The application periods for actions applied directly from the European Commission vary from action to action, with deadlines running from February to June 2024.
The application deadline for Erasmus+ cooperation projects in the field of sport is almost the same as for cooperation projects in other sectors, i.e. 5.3.2024 at 18.00 Finnish time, although the funding for this action is applied directly from the European Commission's Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA).
Investing in green travel and activities in line with EU values
The actions and application deadlines will remain more or less the same as in previous years, but there will be changes to some of the grant rules and grant amounts. For example, higher education students will now receive a separate travel allowance when participating in a European mobility period. The supplementary allowance is intended to cover the increased costs of travel and living.
The European Commission also wants to further promote environmental responsibility. For this reason, the grant amounts for green travel will be increased. To qualify for the green travel allowance, at least 50% of the journey must be made by green travel, for example via train.
The 2024 call for applications will also limit the number of applications per organisation. From this round onwards, an organisation can only be involved in a maximum of 10 Erasmus+ cooperation project applications. The exception to this is higher education institutions, where there is no limit on the number of applications for Cooperation partnerships in the higher education sector. This limitation is to ensure that organisations have the resources to carry out the projects for which they have received funding.
The programme now places greater emphasis on respect for the EU's core values of human dignity, human rights, freedom, democracy, equality, and the rule of law. Beneficiaries must commit themselves to these common EU values, and they will be mentioned in the grant agreements. A beneficiary's grant agreement may be terminated, or the amount of the grant reduced, if the project activities are not in line with EU values.
Budget increases targeted for mobility projects
In the 2024 application round, at least EUR 60 million in Erasmus+ grants will be allocated in Finland through the Finnish National Agency of Education; this is about EUR 2 million more than in the 2023 application round. Of this amount, a good EUR 51 million will be allocated to Mobility Projects (KA1) and EUR 9 million to Cooperation Projects (KA2). The final amount to be allocated will be confirmed in January when the Erasmus+ Programme Committee decides on the national Erasmus+ budgets. In addition, Finnish organisations can apply for funding for Erasmus+ actions managed directly by the European Commission.
The budget increases will be targeted at Erasmus+ mobility actions, where the budget will increase by around 10%. On the other hand, the budget for Erasmus+ Cooperation Projects will return to the 2022 level, as the additional funding for Ukraine available in 2023 will be phased out.
– Finnish organisations have been encouragingly eager to apply for Erasmus+ funding. There is also a high level of accreditation of organisations' mobility activities. Global mobility in vocational education and training and higher education has made progress since the pandemic, too. In addition, the Finnish organisations have been very successful in their applications for centralised projects, i.e. actions funded directly by the European Commission. For example, we are among the European leaders in the European Universities action, says Mika Saarinen, Director of the Finnish Erasmus+ National Agency. – I hope this trend continues, he adds.
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