Participation in certain calls for proposals under Horizon Europe, Digital Europe, the European Defence Fund and other EU funding programmes can be restricted to legal entities established in and/or controlled by Member States (or in specified eligible third countries). EU granting authorities can impose ownership control restrictions in calls for proposals to protect EU interests such as strategic, security or defence interests. For programme-specific information, please consult our infosheets ‘Security restrictions in Horizon Europe (art. 22.5) and ownership control’ and ‘Security restrictions in Digital Europe (art. 12.5/12.6) and ownership control’.

The assessment of the foreign control is part of the eligibility criteria. When a topic is flagged as security-restricted, all project partners (beneficiaries, affiliated entities, associated partners and pre-identified subcontractors) must fill in a self-assessment questionnaire, the Ownership Control Declaration (OCD), to determine their control status during proposal submission. 

Definition of Control

‘Control’ is defined as the possibility to exercise direct or indirect decisive influence on the participant, irrespective of whether such influence is theoretically allowed by law (‘de jure’) or whether it refers to practices that exist in reality (‘de facto’).  Whether influence is actually exercised is irrelevant; the mere possibility is sufficient.

Control will be assessed at the level of the ultimate ownership and control line and all intermediate layers (in case of indirect control), taking into account

• the ownership structure and specific rights;
• corporate governance;
• commercial links conferring control;
• financial links conferring control;
• other sources of control.

Exception: entities that are validated as public bodies by the Central Validation Service are exempted since they will automatically be considered as controlled by their country.

The Ownership Control Declaration is divided in two parts: part 1 being the actual declaration, part 2 the guarantees part. The guarantees must be filled by the applicants upon request of the Commission (in the grant agreement preparation phase). If foreign control is already known by the participant before submission, it is recommended to fill in the guarantees part as well before submission of the proposal.

Procedural Steps for Submitting OCDs

• Check the call conditions: Verify if the call text explicitly mentions the relevant restriction (e.g. art. 22.5 for Horizon Europe, art. 12.5 or 12.6 for Digital Europe).
• Download the OCD template: The template is annexed to the application form and only appears for restricted calls. It can also be found under the Reference Documents of the respective programme on the Funding & Tenders Portal.
• Fill out the OCD: Complete the declaration with accurate ownership and control information.
• Sign the OCD: The OCD must be signed by a person empowered to represent the legal entity.
• Submit to the coordinator: The coordinator combines all OCDs into a single PDF and uploads it with the proposal.
• Retain signed originals: Participants must keep the signed original OCDs on file for audit purposes.
• Follow up: Prepare documents providing evidence on your status (e.g. statutes, information on shareholders and ID of ultimate owners) and have them ready to submit upon request to the granting authority. In calls where guarantees are allowed, ineligible entities will be requested to fill in the guarantee template (part 2 of the OCD), have it approved by the competent authority in their country of establishment, and submit it back to the granting authority.

Role of the Coordinator in OCD submission

The coordinator is responsible for collecting signed OCDs from all consortium partners, compiling them into a single PDF document and uploading the file together with the application via the Funding & Tenders Portal. Missing or incomplete OCDs may result in the proposal being declared inadmissible. It is critical that the coordinator starts this process early to allow sufficient time for internal sign-off by legal representatives of each entity. The signed original OCDs must be retained by the participants and not submitted; only the compiled PDF is uploaded.

The coordinator must ensure that all participants follow the provisions in the Grant Agreement and call documents regarding ownership control.

The Assessment Process

Step 1: Complete the OCD Template

At the proposal stage, beneficiaries must fill in the Ownership Control Declaration (OCD) template, providing detailed information about:

• Legal entity structure
• Shareholders and their ownership percentages
• Country of origin of controlling entities
• Special rights or veto powers held by any shareholders

Step 2: Central Validation Services Review

The European Commission's Central Validation Services (CVS) receives and reviews your OCD. They may request additional information or clarification as needed.

Step 3: Operational Unit Assessment

The operational unit responsible for your call reviews the CVS conclusions and makes a determination about eligibility.

Step 4: Member State Consultation

If guarantees need to be provided, the applicant has to fill in the second part of the Ownership Control Declaration document. In case of Horizon Europe projects, the Commission will then contact the competent national authority of the applicant to approve the guarantees provided. In the case of Digital Europe calls, the applicant has to fill in the guarantees part, get it approved by the competent authority and submit the document to the Commission. 

For Belgium, the competent authority is the FPS Economy (autonomy.garantees@economie.fgov.be).

What If Your Entity Is Controlled by a Non-Eligible Country?

If you are applying for funding under Digital Europe calls subject to art. 12.5, entities controlled by a non-eligible country are excluded from participating. They cannot be part of the consortium, and they have to be replaced or their tasks have to be taken over by other consortium partners.

If you are applying for funding under Horizon Europe or Digital Europe calls subject to art. 12.6 and your entity is found to be controlled by a non-eligible country or entity, it does not automatically mean that you are excluded. You have the option to participate exceptionally if you can provide sufficient guarantees that your participation does not pose risks to EU strategic interests.

Providing Sufficient Guarantees

The guarantees should demonstrate that:

• The participants’ involvement does not contravene the interests protected by the call nor the objectives of the programme
• Participants from non-eligible countries cannot restrict or compromise the participant’s capacity to carry out the action nor impose restrictions concerning infrastructure, assets, resources or IP needed for the action

• Measures are in place to protect sensitive information
• Governance structures that prevent undue influence
• Restrictions on Intellectual Property (IP) transfer
• Personnel security clearances

The Commission will assess whether these guarantees adequately protect EU strategic interests on a case-by-case basis.

Changes in Ownership During the Project

It's crucial to understand that ownership and control can change after a proposal is submitted or even after a grant agreement is signed. If this happens:

• You must immediately notify the European Commission
• A new assessment will be conducted
• If the new ownership structure violates the requirements of the call topic and sufficient guarantees cannot be provided, it may affect your participation.

Practical Tips for Applicants

• Check call-specific requirements: each call may have additional or modified eligibility criteria beyond the standard rules
• Prepare documentation early: gathering ownership and control information can take time, especially for complex corporate structures
• Be transparent: provide complete and accurate information in your OCD template to avoid delays or complications
• Consider consortium composition: if you anticipate control issues, consider the role your entity will play in the consortium
• Monitor ownership changes: stay alert to any potential changes in ownership or control throughout the application and project period

Confidentiality of Information

The European Commission understands that ownership and control information can be commercially sensitive. All information provided in the Ownership Control Assessment (OCA) process remains confidential within the Commission and is not shared externally.

Requirements per Programme

Horizon Europe

Under Horizon Europe, Ownership Control Declarations can be required for actions related to EU strategic assets, interests, autonomy or security (Article 22(5) of Horizon Europe Regulation (EU) 2021/695 (page 30,31)). Which actions are concerned will be indicated in the respective work programmes.

Digital Europe

Under Digital Europe, ownership control rules apply to actions under specific objectives 1 (High Performance Computing), 2 (Artificial Intelligence) and 3 (Cybersecurity and Trust) (Article 12(5)-(6) and 18(4) Digital Europe Regulation 2021/694 (pages 18 and 21)).

European Defence Fund

Ownership control rules apply to all actions under the European Defence Fund (EDF) (Article 9 EDF Regulation 2021/697) (pages 163/164), restricting participation to all actions to participants that are not subject to direct or indirect control by non-eligible countries/entities/nationals.

Relevant documents

• Guidance document EU Grants: Participant in EU calls with ownership and control restrictions
• Ownership Control Declaration template
• See also this recording of an info session by the EC (Dec 2023 - HE context)