EU Programme · 2021–2027

InvestEU funding

InvestEU

Provides EU-backed guarantees to financial intermediaries, mobilising private and public investment in sustainable infrastructure, research, SMEs, and social sectors.

Budget: €26.2 billion guaranteePeriod: 2021–2027
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Part of our complete EU funding guide.

Who InvestEU is for

Typical eligible applicant profiles. Each guide links through to open calls and eligibility notes.

How to apply

The standard EU funding process. Each InvestEU call publishes its own detailed requirements.

  1. 1

    Find open calls that match your profile

    Search by country, sector, applicant type, and deadline. EU funding is published across dozens of portals, so consolidation saves significant time.

  2. 2

    Check eligibility before investing effort

    Review applicant mode (single vs consortium), entity type requirements, geographic restrictions, and co-financing obligations. Disqualify early to protect team bandwidth.

  3. 3

    Build your consortium if required

    Many Horizon Europe calls require partners from multiple EU countries. Identify complementary organisations early — consortium formation often takes longer than proposal writing.

  4. 4

    Write and submit your proposal

    Follow the call documentation precisely. Most EU proposals require a work plan, budget breakdown, impact statement, and consortium description. Submit via the Funding & Tenders Portal.

  5. 5

    Evaluation and grant agreement

    Proposals are evaluated by independent experts against published criteria. Successful applicants negotiate a grant agreement that defines deliverables, reporting, and payment schedule.

Common questions

What is InvestEU and how does it work?

InvestEU is a guarantee programme, not a grant programme. The EU provides a €26.2B budgetary guarantee to financial partners (the European Investment Bank Group, national promotional banks, the European Investment Fund) who use it to back loans, equity, and guarantees to final beneficiaries — mobilising over €372B in additional investment.

How do I access InvestEU financing?

Final beneficiaries do not apply to InvestEU directly. Instead, you apply to a financial intermediary (a bank, fund, or guarantee institution) that has signed an InvestEU agreement with the EU. The intermediary handles credit assessment and disbursement using their normal commercial process, backed by the EU guarantee.

What are the four InvestEU policy windows?

Sustainable Infrastructure (€9.9B) covers transport, energy, digital, water. Research, Innovation and Digitisation (€6.6B) supports R&D commercialisation. Small and Medium Businesses (€6.9B) provides SME debt and equity. Social Investment and Skills (€2.8B) funds social enterprises, microfinance, education, and skills.

Who can benefit from InvestEU?

SMEs, mid-caps, large companies, public bodies, and project promoters established in EU member states can access InvestEU-backed financing through eligible intermediaries. Some windows extend to certain associated countries. Final eligibility depends on the specific intermediary product.

Is InvestEU financing a grant?

No. InvestEU products are repayable: loans, guarantees on loans, or equity investments. The EU guarantee improves the terms (lower rates, longer tenors, looser collateral) but the principal is repaid by the beneficiary. For grant funding for innovation, see Horizon Europe or the EIC Accelerator instead.

Other EU programmes

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One workflow for monitoring, qualifying, and shortlisting InvestEU opportunities.

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