Erasmus+ Cooperation Partnerships (KA220-HED) improve quality of higher education. The aim is international and inter-disciplinary cooperation among organisations and production of innovative results. In these projects organisations can share ideas and develop new practices and methods.

Kuva kolmen hengen juttutuokiosta, jossa osallistujista näkyy vain kädet
Photo: Satu Haavisto

The objective of Cooperation Partnerships is to enhance internationalisation and quality of higher education. Priority will be given to actions that are key to achieving the objectives of the European Education Area in international cooperation. Applicants need to consider following horizontal aspects when planning the content and working methods of their project: inclusion and diversity, environmental sustainability, digital dimension and participation and civic engagement.

The Erasmus Programme Guide contains common policy priorities i.e. topical objectives for development. In the application form you need to select 1-3 priorities and describe how your project will contribute towards achieving them.

Priorities in the Erasmus+ programme:

  • Inclusion and diversity in all fields of education, training, youth and sport (Inclusion and diversity)
  • Environment and fight against climate change (Environmental sustainability)
  • Addressing digital transformation through development of digital skills and digital readiness, resilience and capacity (Digital dimension)
  • Common values, civic engagement, preparedness and participation (Participation and civic engagement)

Priorities in the field of Higher Education:

  • Rewarding high-quality learning, teaching and skills development
  • Supporting STEM and the participation of women in STEM
  • Promoting interconnected higher education systems
  • Supporting higher education institutions in their cooperation with Ukrainian counterparts to respond to the war in Ukraine

You will find more detailed descriptions of the objectives and priorities of Cooperation Partnerships in the Erasmus+ Programme Guide.

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Diverse cooperation is possible in a Cooperation Partnership. The activities in each project are selected on the basis of the objectives that have been set, and activities such as the following are possible:

  • development of teaching methods, materials and tools
  • development of curricula and joint degree programmes
  • organisation of learning, teaching and training activities including intensive study programmes for students
  • promotion of flexible forms of learning, including blended learning and blended mobility
  • cooperation with local and regional actors
  • project management and dissemination of results

The project results must be innovative, re-usable and transferable also outside the project partnership. The projects are expected to disseminate these results and to make their products openly available after the project has ended.

The duration of a Cooperation Partnership is between 12 and 36 months.

The size and scope of a Cooperation Partnership can vary depending on the objectives and the expected impact of the project. Erasmus+ grant awarded to selected projects is a lump sum: 120,000, 250,000 or 400,000 €. Applicants will choose between the three amounts according to the activities planned and results pursued.  

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Any public or private organisation active in the field of higher education can participate in Cooperation Partnerships e.g.:

  • higher education institutions
  • companies
  • NGOs
  • authorities
  • research institutes

At least three organisations from three different countries must be involved in a Cooperation Partnership:

  • EU Member States and/or
  • Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Republic of North Macedonia, Serbia and Turkey (third countries associated to the Programme)

Any organisation established in any of the countries above may act as the coordinator of the project. All higher education institutions participating in Cooperation Partnerships must hold a valid Erasmus Charter for Higher Education (ECHE). Applicant organisations must have been legally established at least 2 years before the application deadline.

In addition, organisations from third countries not associated to the Programme from regions 1-3 (Western Balkans, Neighbourhood East and South-Mediterranean countries) can be involved as partners in a Cooperation Partnership if their participation is well justified and brings an essential added value to the project. Remember to describe this added value clearly in the application. NB. organisations from Belarus (region 2) are not eligible to participate in this action. At the moment, also some Hungarian organisations cannot participate in new Cooperation Partnerships.

Cooperation Partnerships may also involve associated partners. The associated partners contribute to specific project tasks or activities and they do not receive funding from the Programme.

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The organisation coordinating the Cooperation Partnership will draw up the application and submit it to the Erasmus+ National Agency of the country where the coordinating organisation is located. The National Agency in Finland is the Finnish National Agency for Education (EDUFI). We will update the website during November 2025 with information about the 2026 application round.

Application deadline

The 2026 call deadline is 5 March 2026 at 13 Finnish time (12.00 CET). 

The opening of the call will also be announced through EDUFI_HigherEd mailing list.

The preliminary budget for 2026 call for Cooperation Partnerships in higher education is about 1,2 million euros (will be confirmed later).

The basic principles of Cooperation Partnerships and the funding rules are described in the Erasmus+ Programme Guide. In Finland, there are no national priorities for applying for Cooperation Partnerships in higher education. Handbook on the lump sum funding model provides information on the funding model, work packages and indicators. 

In the electronic application portal, select the right application form. The code for Cooperation Partnerships in higher education is KA220-HED on the application form. The aims and activities of a Cooperation Partnership can be relevant for different levels of education and/or the youth sector (projects addressing several target groups, cross-sectoral projects). The most relevant sector can be identified based on objectives, content and concrete results of the project and the sector-specific application form should be selected accordingly.

When filling in the application form you need the organisation code (OID) of each participating organisation. Please check that your project partners' OIDs are correct and valid. See the links below for more detailed instructions.

Handbook on the lump sum funding model ( not yet updated)
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EDUFI gives advice to applicants of Cooperation Partnerships. During the call, we organise guidance events for applicants and also give advice by email and over the telephone. See our contact information at the bottom of the page!

We will organise five guidance webinars in Finnish and one in English for applicants for Cooperation Partnerships in the spring 2026 call. More information available on the event pages.

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Independent external experts evaluate the applications using the evaluation criteria described in the Erasmus+ Programme Guide. EDUFI makes the grant decisions on the basis of the evaluations made by the external experts.

The applicants will be informed of the decisions in July-August 2026. The projects will be launched between 1 September and 31 December 2026.

Award criteria

  • relevance of the proposal (max. 25 points)
  • quality of the project design and implementation (max. 30 points).
  • quality of the partnership and the cooperation arrangements (max. 20 points)
  • impact (max. 25 points)

The minimum number of points required is 70.

Erasmus+ Guide for Experts on Quality Assessment 2025 (not yet updated)
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On the application round 2025 six Cooperation Partnerships in the field of higher education received funding. Information on the funded Cooperation Partnerships 2021-2025 under the current Erasmus+ programme period and on the Strategic Partnerships funded during the previous programme period 2014–2020 can be found in the files below.

In addition, you can familiarise yourself with the projects funded under Erasmus+ and their results on the Erasmus+ Project Results Platform. The Cooperation Partnerships in the field of higher education in the current programme period 2021-2027 can be found with the project code KA220-HED. The Strategic Partnerships in the field of higher education in the programme period 2014–2020 can be found with the project code KA203 and with the code KA226 of the 2020 additional call for proposals.

Lists of accepted projects
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Instructions and material for the management of projects are available on a separate web page.

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Read about participants’ experiences of Erasmus+ Cooperation Partnerships.

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