FAQ

The platform will guide you through the process of establishing a joint project proposal for the National Research Fund and the Ministry of the Economy. Depending on the scope of the thematic calls and the maturity of the projects, two entry levels are possible: “1. Matchmaking: finding adequate project partners” or “2. Apply for a thematic call: define a project and prepare a proposal”.

Further details on the different thematic calls can be found in the targeted call text and the respective FAQ sections on the platform. The FAQ sections will be updated with answers to questions received so that all participants can have access to the same level of information.

The first thing to have in mind is that the “Matchmaking” platform is an open platform and confidential information should not be published. When describing a project idea, your objective as the project initiator is to raise awareness and to encourage stakeholders to share their suggestions and to connect if relevant. The description should thus enable understanding what your objectives are and what the underlying concept is without providing any technical information. It is also recommended to describe well the expertise needed and what type of synergies you are looking for.

Project initiators are often interested in getting access to relevant contributions but are sometimes concerned by the fact that some stakeholders would use this opportunity to market less suitable services. Initiators always have the possibility to decide at their own discretion whether they want to pursue discussions with a party.

The aim of the “Matchmaking” platform is to connect people and to add transparency to the process of forming a consortium. Main discussions will take place in bilateral exchanges with the project initiator, preferably under non-disclosure agreements. Instead of directly entering into contact with the project initiator, the use of the public platform allows the contributor to increase visibility around its expertise. In some cases, it is understandable that a stakeholder interested in a project idea does not want to be identified. The possibility to publish anonymous comments is an encouragement to use the open platform even in such cases, as the transparency on the expertise suggested brings added value to other platform users.

No. Consortia can immediately start a project when the call opens. Select a call, go to the “Browse ideas” section. When the call opens, there will be an option: “Start a project”. We recommend using the “Matchmaking” section as this gives the opportunity to the project initiators to tap into a formidable knowledge pool. Consortia should always beware of publishing any confidential information.

In the context of open innovation, the protection of intellectual property (IP) plays a crucial role. Without IP protection, you may not want to share any ideas. Open innovation does not imply a free sharing of ideas and know-how. Open innovation and protecting ideas as well as intellectual property can go hand in hand, if relevant measures are in place. Do not disclose confidential, non-obvious, novel and detailed information about your ideas or solutions when posting an idea. Sign a non-disclosure agreement before entering into discussions.

For technical support on the platform, you can contact the support team. For further questions on the platform or the thematic calls, which are not already covered in the respective FAQ sections, you can also fill in the contact form on the platform . Luxinnovation will contact you to discuss your questions.

We recommend that any question about the call be submitted in writing via the contact form. Luxinnovation will redirect the question to the Funding authorities if needed. The FAQ section will be updated with answers to questions received so that all participants have access to the same level of information.

No. The FNR will fund the costs of the eligible research organisations in Luxembourg, up to 500.000 € per project covering all project specific costs. The Ministry of the Economy will co-finance costs borne by Luxembourg eligible companies up to ±700.000 € per project, using the R&D aid scheme. It is expected that the projects will be considered as experimental development projects. In this case, the maximum co-financing rates for companies through collaboration are as follows: Small company: 60%; Medium company: 50%; Large company: 40%.

For FNR funding, hospitals need to be accredited by the Ministry of Higher Education and Research to be eligible. For Directorate of Health funding, hospitals need to conduct clinical research. The Joint Call general eligibility criteria require one FNR-eligible participating organisation to be part of the consortium. Further details on the Directorate of Health funding scheme can be found here. (in French only). Further details will be announced at the end of phase 1.

In an “effective collaboration” at least two independent parties pursue a common objective based on the division of labour and jointly define its scope, participate in its design, contribute to its implementation and share its financial, technological, scientific and other risks, as well as its results. (…) The terms and conditions of a collaboration project, in particular as regards contributions to its costs, the sharing of risks and results, the dissemination of results, access to and rules for allocation of IPR, must be concluded prior to the start of the project (as defined within section 2.2.2 of the EU RDI Framework).

Yes. However, entities outside Luxembourg cannot receive funding from either the Ministry of the Economy or the FNR. They can either self-fund their contribution or should guarantee their ability to cover the contribution in a project. Consortia should bear in mind that if a participant bases its contribution on an external source of funding which would be declined, this would jeopardize the entire project.

There is no fixed limit but the funding authorities foresee for this call a limited number of consortia. It is up to the entities to define how much effort they can put into different proposals. Only projects that will reach a certain quality threshold will have the possibility to be funded.

No. The objective of the platform is to support collaborative research. It is a minimum requirement to make sure that at least one research organisation and one company are involved in a project before starting it. When starting a project, the project initiator will be asked to communicate the e-mail address of a user in a partner organisation. The consortium can start preparing a project only when that user will have registered on the platform and accepted to join the project.

Yes. To add a partner, you only have to mention the email address of the invited user. The invitation will be sent out only after all consortium members have approved the invitation. To remove a consortium member, send a request to the contact point for the call.

Phase 1: During phase 1, the applicants need to prepare and submit a project outline directly on the research-industry-collaboration platform. By clicking on “Apply”, the applicants can start creating their applications and will get access to the questions and required attachments for phase 1.
 
Phase 2: Applicants, who have been invited to proceed to phase 2, will need to prepare a full project proposal (FPP) to be submitted by each project applicant to the Ministry of the Economy (Myguichet platform) for companies or to FNR (FNR grant management system) for accredited research organisations. The FPP as well as the financial appendices to be attached by each partner to the aid application can be downloaded from the research-industry-collaboration platform at the beginning of phase 2.  

All entities participating need to create an account on the platform and need to be validated in order to be able to submit a project. At least one person from the different participating entities is invited within the project and validates the participation of that entity in the consortium. However, the submission itself can be done by a single person from the consortium. The platform will request the necessary information for each participating entity within the consortium.

No, consortia do not need to address all steps, and can apply for funding at any of the three steps, which can be considered as key R&D milestones towards market access for health technologies. Although it would be possible to cover more than one step within the same project, consortia should select the predominant step within their project outline.

Yes, this Joint Call provides a financial incentive to consortia that have a specific digital product or service at prototype stage for which they wish to demonstrate its relevance and benefit for human health and society. The solution must be at prototype stage latest by the submission of the final proposal at the end of phase 2.

We recommend that any question about the call text be submitted in writing through contact form. Luxinnovation will redirect the question to the Funding authorities if needed. The FAQ section will be updated with answers to questions received so that all participants can have access to the same level of information.

FNR will fund the costs of the eligible research organisations in Luxembourg, up to 500.000 € per project covering eligible project specific costs. If the research organisation establishes an effective collaboration with a company, the FNR will fund up to 700.000 € per project. The Ministry of the Economy will co-finance costs borne by Luxembourg eligible companies up to 700.000 € per project, using the R&D aid scheme, for both individual and collaborative projects. The funding rate depends on the size of the company and the type of R&D activity (industrial research or experimental development). In case of an effective collaboration, the maximum funding rates provided by the Luxembourg Ministry of the Economy may be increased by up to 15%. Companies will be eligible to an upfront payment of max 35% of their grant. In general, the upfront payment will be applied based on the conditions and potential milestones set in the funding agreement with the Ministry of the Economy.

In an “effective collaboration” at least two independent parties pursue a common objective based on the division of labour and jointly define its scope, participate in its design, contribute to its implementation and share its financial, technological, scientific and other risks, as well as its results. (…) The terms and conditions of a collaboration project, in particular as regards contributions to its costs, the sharing of risks and results, the dissemination of results, access to and rules for allocation of IPR, must be concluded prior to the start of the project. (as defined within section 2.2.2 of the EU RDI Framework)

The consortium must be composed of national applicants only. Under justified conditions, sub-contractors from NATO Member and EEA EFTA States could contribute to the project.

There is no fixed limit. An overall estimated budget of 9,5M € is foreseen for both companies and research organisations. It is up to the entities to define how much effort they can put in different proposals. Only projects that will reach a certain quality threshold will be funded.

Yes. To add a partner, you only have to mention the email address of the invited user. The invitation will be sent out only after all consortium members have approved the invitation. To remove a consortium member, send a request to the contact point for the call.

Yes. All the employees from companies and research organisations taking part in the project need to have nationalities of a NATO member country or an EU/EEA/EFTA country. Applicants should list all nationalities an employee might have. In case of dual citizenship, it is sufficient that one nationality is of a NATO/EU/EEA/EFTA country.

Under justified conditions, subcontractors with a headquarter in a NATO/EU/EEA/EFTA country could contribute to the projects. The rule of the nationalities does not apply to the employees of the subcontractors as long as the headquarter is in a NATO/EU/EEA/EFTA country.

Yes. Start-ups can participate in the call if they fulfil all the eligibility requirements and have all required authorisations to operate. The Luxembourgish entity needs to be incorporated before the 5th of September 2022 which marks the start of phase 2.

Yes. In the template for phase 1, information concerning the IP needs to be documented to understand who the IP owner is or will be and where it is located in order to ensure that freedom to operate is guaranteed. In the phase 2 application, more details regarding the IP will need to be provided in the project application and the draft collaboration agreement, such as the access to and rules for allocation of IPR.

Yes. They can!

Phase 1: During phase 1, the applicants need to prepare and submit a project outline directly on the research-industry-collaboration platform. By clicking on “Apply”, the applicants can start creating their applications and will get access to the questions and required attachments for phase 1.

Phase 2: Applicants, which have been invited to proceed to phase 2, will need to prepare a full project proposal (FPP) that is to be submitted by each project applicant to the Ministry of the Economy (Myguichet platform) for companies or to FNR (FNR grant system) for accredited research organizations. The FPP templates can be downloaded here.

All entities participating need to create an account on the platform and need to be validated in order to be able to submit a project. At least one person from the different participating entities is invited within the project and validates the participation of that entity in the consortium. However, the submission itself can be done by a single person of the consortium. The platform will request the necessary information for each participating entity within the consortium.

  • Personal narrative for PI(s)
  • Europass CV for all others working directly on the project
  • Europass CV including the nationalities but excluding all other personal information, e.g. pictures
  • The phase 1 indications on the people working on the project are preliminary and can be adapted during phase 2

For both companies and research organisations, a legal representative of the organisation should sign the Declaration of Honour.

The total project costs correspond to the total eligible costs of all partners.

We recommend that any question about the call be submitted in writing via the contact form. Luxinnovation will redirect the question to the Funding authorities if needed. The FAQ section will be updated with answers to questions received so that all participants have access to the same level of information.

No. The FNR will fund the costs of the eligible research organisations in Luxembourg, up to 400.000 € per project covering all project specific costs. The Ministry of the Economy will co-finance costs borne by Luxembourg eligible companies up to ±700.000 € per project, using the R&D aid scheme. It is expected that the projects will be considered as industrial research and/or experimental development projects. In this case, the maximum co-financing rates for companies through collaboration are as follows:

Maximum aid intensities
Large company
Medium company
Small company
Experimental development
40% 50% 60%
Industrial research
65% 75% 80%

In an “effective collaboration” at least two independent parties pursue a common objective based on the division of labour and jointly define its scope, participate in its design, contribute to its implementation and share its financial, technological, scientific and other risks, as well as its results. (…) The terms and conditions of a collaboration project, in particular as regards contributions to its costs, the sharing of risks and results, the dissemination of results, access to and rules for allocation of IPR, must be concluded prior to the start of the project. (as defined within section 2.2.2 of the EU RDI Framework)

Yes. However, entities outside Luxembourg cannot receive funding from either the Ministry of the Economy or the FNR. They can either self-fund their contribution or should guarantee their ability to cover the contribution in a project. Consortia should bear in mind that if a participant bases its contribution on an external source of funding which would be declined, this would jeopardize the entire project.

There is no fixed limit but the funding authorities foresee for this call a limited number of consortia. It is up to the entities to define how much effort they can put into different proposals. Only projects that will reach a certain quality threshold will have the possibility to be funded.

No. The objective of the platform is to support collaborative research. It is a minimum requirement to make sure that at least one research organisation and one company are involved in a project before starting it. When starting a project, the project initiator will be asked to communicate the e-mail address of a user in a partner organisation. The consortium can start preparing a project only when that user will have registered on the platform and accepted to join the project.

Yes. To add a partner, you only have to mention the email address of the invited user. The invitation will be sent out only after all consortium members have approved the invitation. To remove a consortium member, send a request to the contact point for the call.

  • Phase 1: During phase 1, the applicants need to prepare and submit a project outline directly on the research-industry-collaboration platform. By clicking on “Apply”, the applicants can start creating their applications and will get access to the questions and required attachments for phase 1.
  • Phase 2: Applicants, who have been invited to proceed to phase 2, will need to prepare a full project proposal (FPP) to be submitted by each project applicant to the Ministry of the Economy (Myguichet platform) for companies or to FNR (FNR grant system) for accredited research organisations. The FPP as well as the financial annexes to be appended by each partner to the aid application can be downloaded from the research-industry-collaboration platform at the beginning of phase 2.

All entities participating need to create an account on the platform and need to be validated in order to be able to submit a project. At least one person from the different participating entities is invited within the project and validates the participation of that entity in the consortium. However, the submission itself can be done by a single person of the consortium. The platform will request the necessary information for each participating entity within the consortium.

Yes, it is possible to include a self-funded partner into the mandatory consortium of the Joint Call HPC. However, a self-funded partner should only be complementing a consortium already composed of at least one national public research organisation (eligible to FNR funding) as well as at least one national company (eligible to funding from the Ministry of the Economy).
 
Phase 1: The self-funded partner would need to be added as a consortium partner to the project on the research-industry-collaboration.lu platform and would need to submit all the mandatory information / attachments.
 
Phase 2: Since the self-funded partner will not request any funding from the Ministry of the Economy or the FNR, it would not need to submit a detailed aid application at the end of phase 2. However, the consortium’s joint application (full project proposal) as well as the draft collaboration agreement should include additional information on the self-funded partner, its implication/role and budget in the project.
 

We recommend that any question about the call be submitted in writing via the contact form. Luxinnovation will redirect the question to the Funding authorities if needed. The FAQ section will be updated with answers to questions received so that all participants have access to the same level of information.

No. The FNR will fund the costs of the eligible research organisations in Luxembourg, up to 700.000 € per project covering all project specific costs. The Ministry of the Economy will co-finance costs borne by Luxembourg eligible companies up to 700.000 € per project, using the R&D aid scheme. It is expected that the projects will be considered as industrial research and/or experimental development projects. In this case, the maximum co-financing rates for companies through collaboration are as follows:

Maximum aid intensities
Large company
Medium company
Small company
Experimental development
40% 50% 60%
Industrial research
65% 75% 80%

In an “effective collaboration” at least two independent parties pursue a common objective based on the division of labour and jointly define its scope, participate in its design, contribute to its implementation and share its financial, technological, scientific and other risks, as well as its results. (…) The terms and conditions of a collaboration project, in particular as regards contributions to its costs, the sharing of risks and results, the dissemination of results, access to and rules for allocation of IPR, must be concluded prior to the start of the project. (as defined within section 2.2.2 of the EU RDI Framework)

Yes. However, entities outside Luxembourg cannot receive funding from either the Ministry of the Economy or the FNR. They can either self-fund their contribution or should guarantee their ability to cover the contribution in a project. Consortia should bear in mind that if a participant bases its contribution on an external source of funding which would be declined, this would jeopardize the entire project.

There is no fixed limit but the funding authorities foresee for this call a limited number of consortia. It is up to the entities to define how much effort they can put into different proposals. Only projects that will reach a certain quality threshold will have the possibility to be funded.

No. The objective of the platform is to support collaborative research. It is a minimum requirement to make sure that at least one public research organisation and one company are involved in a project before starting it. When starting a project, the project initiator will be asked to communicate the e-mail address of a user in a partner organisation. The consortium can start preparing a project only when that user will have registered on the platform and accepted to join the project.

Yes. To add a partner, you only have to mention the email address of the invited user. The invitation will be sent out only after all consortium members have approved the invitation. To remove a consortium member, send a request to the contact point for the call.

  • Phase 1: During phase 1, the applicants need to prepare and submit a project outline directly on the research-industry-collaboration platform. By clicking on “Apply”, the applicants can start creating their applications and will get access to the questions and required attachments for phase 1.
  • Phase 2: Applicants, who have been invited to proceed to phase 2, will need to prepare a full project proposal (FPP) to be submitted by each project applicant to the Ministry of the Economy (Myguichet platform) for companies or to FNR (FNR grant system) for accredited research organisations. The FPP as well as the financial annexes to be appended by each partner to the aid application can be downloaded from the research-industry-collaboration platform at the beginning of phase 2.

All entities participating need to create an account on the platform and need to be validated to be able to submit a project. At least one person from the different participating entities is invited within the project and validates the participation of that entity in the consortium. However, the submission itself can be done by a single person of the consortium. The platform will request the necessary information for each participating entity within the consortium.

Yes, it is possible to include a self-funded partner into the mandatory consortium of the Joint Call 5G. However, a self-funded partner should only be complementing a consortium already composed of at least one national public research organisation (eligible to FNR funding) as well as at least one national company (eligible to funding from the Ministry of the Economy).
 
Phase 1: The self-funded partner would need to be added as a consortium partner to the project on the research-industry-collaboration.lu platform and would need to submit all the mandatory information / attachments.
 
Phase 2: Since the self-funded partner will not request any funding from the Ministry of the Economy or the FNR, it would not need to submit a detailed aid application at the end of phase 2. However, the consortium’s joint application (full project proposal) as well as the draft collaboration agreement should include additional information on the self-funded partner, its implication/role and budget in the project.