News

Updated EDF (European Defence Fund) Work Programme for 2026

Published on | 7 months ago

Programmes
Defence EDF

The European Commission has revised the EDF Work Programme for 2026, aligning it with the Mini-Omnibus Regulation. Key changes involve simplified procedures and new investment areas aimed at supporting SMEs and research organisations.

The updates to the EDF Work Programme 2026 halve the length of applications, reduce the number of award criteria, and streamline the proposal evaluation process. These amendments are designed to benefit small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and research organisations.

The STEP initiative now includes a fourth investment area for defence technologies.

Furthermore, high-quality EDF proposals will automatically receive STEP certification, granting access to additional funding opportunities.

The Mini-Omnibus Regulation also paves the way for Ukraine to potentially become an associated country within the EDF after further negotiations.

The calls for EDF 2026 have been published on the European Union's 'Tenders & Funding' portal at https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/portal/screen/home.

myOverview - sign up for personalised information

We offer news and event updates, covering all domains and topics of Horizon Europe, Digital Europe & EDF (and occasionally, for ongoing projects, Horizon 2020).

Stay informed about what matters to you. By signing up, you can opt in for e-mail notifications and get access to a personalised dashboard that groups all news updates and event announcements in your domain(s).

Only for stakeholders located in Flanders

Testimonial

STARGATE - Sustainable Aviation

The Stargate project obtained funding under the special Green Deal call of Horizon 2020, more in particular under the topic of “green ports and airports”.  It received the maximum score of the evaluators and was selected out of more than 40 projects. Stargate’s purpose is to prove that sustainable aviation is possible and happening. It focuses on the further decarbonization of the aviation industry, the improvement of local environmental quality and the stimulation of the modal split. Together with a consortium of 21 European partners with a diverse and rich expertise (airports, community partners, knowledge institutions, consultants, local governments, …), Brussels Airports takes the lead as lighthouse airport to develop and implement innovative solutions. Results that prove successful can be deployed at the fellow airports (Toulouse, Budapest, Athens). Over the course of the coming five years, the consortium will exchange knowledge to investigate and realize more than 30 concrete projects.