2020 Call for proposals for Integrated Projects

Deadline: Oct 6, 2020  
CALL EXPIRED

1. Introduction to LIFE

1.1 What is LIFE?

LIFE is the European Programme for the Environment and Climate Action, for the period from 1 January 2014 until 31 December 2020. The legal basis for LIFE is Regulation (EU) No 1293/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 December 2013,1 (hereinafter "the LIFE Regulation").

The LIFE Programme is structured in two sub-programmes: the sub-programme for environment and the sub-programme for climate action.

The sub-programme for environment covers three priority areas:

•   LIFE Environment and Resource Efficiency

•   LIFE Nature and Biodiversity

•   LIFE Environmental Governance and Information

The thematic priorities for each priority area are further described in Annex III to the LIFE Regulation.

The sub-programme for climate action covers three priority areas:

•   LIFE Climate Change Mitigation

•   LIFE Climate Change Adaptation

•   LIFE Climate Governance and Information

The overall financial envelope for the implementation of the LIFE Programme is EUR 3.457 Billion, 75% of which is allocated to the sub-programme for environment (EUR 2,592,491,250) and 25% of which is allocated to the sub-programme Climate Action (EUR 864,163,750).

According to Article 17(4) of the LIFE Regulation, at least 81% of the total budget shall be allocated to projects supported by way of action grants or, where appropriate, financial instruments. The second LIFE Multiannual Work Programme covering the period 2018-2020 foresees a budget of EUR 413.25 million for the sub-programme for climate action.2

1.2 "Traditional" projects

Article 2 of the LIFE Regulation defines the various types of projects which may be supported by the LIFE 2014-2020 programme.

The "traditional" types of projects are:

•   "pilot projects" meaning projects that apply a technique or method that has not been applied or tested before, or elsewhere, and that offer potential environmental or climate advantages compared to current best practice and that can subsequently be applied on a larger scale to similar situations;

•   “demonstration projects” meaning projects that put into practice, test, evaluate and disseminate actions, methodologies or approaches that are new or unknown in the specific context of the project, such as the geographical, ecological and socio- economic context, and that could be applied elsewhere in similar circumstances;

•   “best practice projects” meaning projects that apply appropriate, cost-effective, state- of-the-art techniques, methods and approaches taking into account the specific context of the project;

•   "information, awareness and dissemination projects" meaning projects aimed at supporting communication, dissemination of information and awareness raising in the fields of the sub-programmes Environment and Climate Action.

  The following table summarizes which type of project may be submitted to which priority area within the sub-programme for Climate Action:

 

Priority Area

Types of Action Grant Projects Eligible

Indicative budget Call 2020

 

Climate Change Mitigation

Best practice, demonstration, and pilot projects

35.9 Mio EUR

 

Climate Change Adaptation

Best practice, demonstration, and pilot projects

30.2 Mio EUR

 

Climate Goverance and Information

Information, awareness and dissemination projects

8.0 Mio EUR

 

The total amount available for co-financing action grants for all types of "traditional" projects under the climate action sub-programme is indicatively set at EUR 74.1 Mio. This allocation is indicative, and subject to the actual number of proposals under each priority area. In the exceptional case, that there would not be a sufficient number of projects passing the quality threshold in one of these three broad categories the allocation of funds would be adjusted accordingly.

Projects financed by the LIFE Programme under one priority area shall avoid undermining environmental or climate objectives in another priority area and, where possible, promote synergies between different objectives as well as the use of green procurement.

1.3 How, where and when to submit a proposal?

Applicants for LIFE funding for action grant projects must submit their proposals using the web tool eProposal available via the LIFE web page.

The application tool contains all administrative (A), technical (B and C) and financial (F) forms required, and functionalities to attach relevant documents (maps, photos, diagrams, graphs, mandatory administrative and financial annexes). For details regarding the application forms, please refer to section 3 of this document. For details regarding the use of the eProposal tool, please refer to Annex 3 of this document.

The proposal can be modified, validated and (re)submitted as many times as needed until the deadline. You are recommended to submit your draft(s) regularly during the entire submission period to avoid last minutes issues with your internet connection or other IT related failures. Each subsequent submission overwrites the previously submitted version (earlier versions are not archived and are therefore not available anymore).

The Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (EASME) of the European Commission is the Contracting Authority for the proposals covered by these guidelines.

When preparing the proposal, the applicants may wish to consult the relevant LIFE National Contact Point for further information; the complete list of the names and contact addresses of the national/regional authorities for LIFE in the Member States can be found on the LIFE website at

https://ec.europa.eu/easme/en/section/life/life-national-contact-points

1.4 How will LIFE projects be selected?

The technical methodology for the project selection procedure and the selection and award criteria are described in section 5 of the LIFE multiannual work programme for 2018-2020. For a detailed description of how this procedure will be implemented, please refer to the 'LIFE Climate Action Guidelines for evaluation of project proposals 2020'.

Very important:
Please note that the e-mail address specified by the applicant as the contact person's e-mail address in form A2 will be used by the Contracting Authority as the single contact point for all correspondence with the applicant during the evaluation procedure. It should therefore correspond to an e-mail account which is valid, active and checked on a daily basis throughout the duration of the evaluation procedure.

The individual grant agreements are expected to be signed by the Contracting Authority in May to June 2021. The earliest possible starting date for projects is 1 July 2021 (detailed timetable in Annex 1).

Applicants must submit their proposals to the Contracting Authority via eProposal before 16:00 Brussels local time on 6 October 2020.

1.5 General Guidance to Applicants

The current chapter replies to some frequently asked questions on how to conceive a LIFE project proposal, applicable to all three priority areas of LIFE Climate Action. For specific guidelines on policy priorities, see section 2; for recommendation on how to fill in the technical and financial forms, please refer to section 3 of this document.

1.5.1 In which language may the proposal be submitted?

The Contracting Authority strongly recommends that applicants fill in the technical part and especially the financial part of the proposal in clear English, although proposals may be submitted in any of the official EU languages, except Irish.

The title of the proposal and form B1 ("Summary description of the project") must always be submitted in English. Form B1 may, in addition, also be submitted in the language of the proposal.

Note that the grant agreement, project management, formal reporting, key deliverables and all communication with the Contracting Authority will have to be in English.

1.5.2 Who may submit a proposal?

A proposal may be submitted by any legal person registered in the European Union.

Entities participating in the proposal may fall into three types of beneficiaries: (1) public bodies, (2) private commercial organisations and (3) private non-commercial organisations (including non-governmental organisations, NGOs).

The term "public bodies" is defined as referring to national public authorities, regardless of their form of organisation – central, regional or local structure – or the various bodies under their control, provided these operate on behalf of and under the responsibility of the national public authority concerned. In the case of entities registered as private law bodies wishing to be considered for the purpose of this call as equivalent to "public law bodies", they should provide evidence proving that they comply with all criteria applicable to bodies governed by public law and in the event the organisation stops its activities, its rights and obligations, liability and debts will be transferred to a public body. For a complete definition, please refer to the annex "Public body declaration", which must be completed by all beneficiaries which wish to be considered and treated as a 'public body'. The only exception concerns those central (e.g.: Ministry) and local administrations (e.g.: Provinces, Municipalities, Regions, etc.) whose nature of 'public body' is clear.

Please note that so called 'Sole traders' (i.e. entities owned and run by one individual and where there is no legal distinction between the owner and the business) are considered natural persons and are therefore not eligible to participate as beneficiary or affiliate in this call.

Please refer to the 'LIFE Climate Action Guidelines for evaluation of project proposals 2020' for full details regarding the compulsory administrative documents which are required with the proposal depending on the legal status of the coordinating beneficiary.

Once a proposal has been accepted for co-funding, the applicant will become the coordinating beneficiary who is responsible for ensuring the implementation of the project. The coordinating beneficiary will be the single point of contact for the Contracting Authority and will be the only beneficiary to report directly to the Contracting Authority on the project's technical and financial progress.

The coordinating beneficiary receives the EU financial contribution from the Contracting Authority and ensures its distribution as specified in the partnership agreements established with the associated beneficiaries (if there are any – see below). The coordinating beneficiary must be directly involved in the technical implementation of the project and in the dissemination of the project results.

The coordinating beneficiary must bear part of the project costs and must thus contribute financially to the project budget. It cannot therefore be reimbursed for 100% of the costs that it incurs.

The coordinating beneficiary must show its legal status (by completing application form A2) confirming legal registration in the EU.

In addition to the coordinating beneficiary, a LIFE proposal may also involve one or more associated beneficiaries and/or one or more project co-financers.

An associated beneficiary may be legally registered outside the European Union, provided that the coordinating beneficiary is based in the EU. In order to be considered as associated beneficiary the entity shall be responsible for carrying out actions outside the EU and those actions must be necessary to achieve EU environmental objectives and to ensure the effectiveness of interventions carried out in the Member State territories to which the Treaties apply. In other words, the participation of an entity established outside the EU that will only contribute with the know-how or will collaborate to implement actions in the EU will not be considered as sufficient. The associated beneficiary must always contribute technically to the proposal and hence be responsible for the implementation of one or several project actions. An associated beneficiary must also contribute financially to the project. Furthermore, it must provide the beneficiary with all the necessary documents required for the fulfilment of its reporting obligations to the Contracting Authority.

There is no pre-defined number of associated beneficiaries to be involved in a LIFE proposal. A proposal that is submitted without any participant other than the coordinating beneficiary itself is eligible. Beside this, a beneficiary should not hesitate to associate other beneficiaries, if this would bring an added value to the project, such as when the partnership strengthens the feasibility or the demonstration character of the proposal, its European added value, its impacts and/or the transferability of its results and lessons learnt.

Public undertakings whose capital is publicly owned and which are considered an instrument or a technical service of a public administration, and which are subject to the public administration's control, but are in effect separate legal entities, must become beneficiaries if a public administration intends to entrust the implementation of certain project actions to these undertakings.3

All associated beneficiaries must show their legal status (by completing application form A5), and provide full information on the EU Member State or third country in which they are registered. In addition, all beneficiaries whether registered or not in the EU must declare that they are not in any of the situations foreseen under Article 136(1), 136(4) and 141 of the EU Financial Regulation4 (by signing the application form A3 or A4 – see instructions in section 3 of this document).

For private entities, the Contracting Authority may accept that affiliated entities to a beneficiary participate in a project as long as all conditions listed in the Model Grant Agreement and its Annex X (Financial and Administrative Guidelines) are fulfilled. However, the association of entities as affiliates may complicate the project structure and thus have a negative impact on the technical and financial coherence of the project. It is therefore entirely in the Contracting Authority's administrative discretion to accept affiliates, and in no case will affiliated entities be accepted for public entities or entities that do not comply with the description of affiliated entities hereafter.

Affiliated entities need to comply with the eligibility and exclusion criteria applying to applicants and should have a structural link with the beneficiary concerned (i.e. a legal or capital link) that is neither limited to the project nor established for the sole purpose of the project implementation (so the link would exist independently of the award of the grant; it should exist before the call for proposals and remain valid after the end of the project).

As affiliated entities could be accepted those directly controlled by the beneficiary (i.e. daughter companies or first-tier subsidiaries), entities controlling the beneficiary (mother company) OR in case of Memberships, the beneficiary has to be legally defined as a network, federation, association in which the proposed affiliated entities participate. However, if several beneficiaries want to work with the same 'affiliate', the 'affiliate' should be proposed as 'beneficiary' instead.

If you consider using young volunteers for specific actions, please consider applying for the European Solidarity Corps calls. The European Solidarity Corps (ESC) is conceived to offer young people between 18 and 30 in Europe the chance to support a non-governmental organisation (NGO), local authority or private company active in addressing challenging situations across the European Union. For further information:

https://europa.eu/youth/solidarity/organisation_info_en

A project co-financer only contributes to the project with financial resources, has no technical responsibilities, and cannot benefit from the EU financial contribution. Furthermore, it cannot act, in the context of the project, as a sub-contractor to any of the project's beneficiaries.

For specific tasks of a fixed duration, a proposal may foresee the use of sub-contractors. Sub-contractors provide external services to the project beneficiaries who fully pay for the services provided. Beneficiaries (including their affiliated entities) may not act as sub- contractors. Sub-contractors should normally not be identified by name in the proposal; if they are, the General Conditions of the Model LIFE Grant Agreement must still be respected.

 

For a more detailed description of the respective rules related to the coordinating beneficiary, associated beneficiaries affiliates, co-financers and sub-contractors, please refer to the General Conditions of the Model LIFE Grant Agreement.

For UK applicants:

Please be aware that following the entry into force of the EU-UK Withdrawal Agreement5 on 1 February 2020 and in particular Articles 127(6), 137 and 138, the references to legal persons established in a Member State of the European Union are to be understood as including legal persons established in the United Kingdom.

UK legal persons are therefore eligible to participate under this call.

1.5.3 What is the optimal budget for a LIFE project?

There is no fixed minimum size for project budgets. While large ambitious projects (i.e. over EUR 5 million total costs) have been financed several times in the past, small projects (i.e. below EUR 500,000 total costs) have seldom succeeded due to the limited output and consequently the low added value.

Applicants for Climate Action Information and Governance projects are advised that the scale (and the budget) of the proposed actions is sufficiently large to ensure that the project achieves meaningful results with a significant EU added value.

1.5.4 What is the maximum rate of EU co-financing under LIFE?

For the duration of the second LIFE multiannual work programme for 2018-2020, the maximum EU co-financing rate for 'traditional' LIFE projects is 55% of the total eligible project costs.

The payment schedule foreseen is the following:

1st pre- financing

Further pre- financing(s)

Final payment

No Mid-term report (for projects with a duration of 24 months or less and where the Union contribution is less than or equal to EUR 300,000)

70%

0%

max. 30%

One Mid-term report (for projects with a duration exceeding 24 months or where the Union contribution exceeds EUR 300,000)

30%

40%

max. 30%

Two Mid-term reports (Upon request of the coordinating beneficiary and only in case of projects with a duration of 48 months and where the Union contribution exceeds EUR 4,000,000)

30%

20%

max. 30%

 

1.5.5 How much should project beneficiaries contribute to the project budget?

The coordinating beneficiary and any associated beneficiaries are expected to provide a reasonable financial contribution to the project budget. A beneficiary's financial contribution is considered as a proof of its commitment to the implementation of the project objectives – a very low financial contribution may therefore be considered as an absence or lack of commitment.

A proposal will be rejected if the financial contribution of any of the beneficiaries to the proposal budget is EUR 0.

Moreover, where public bodies are involved as coordinating and/or associated beneficiaries in a project, the sum of their financial contributions to the project budget must exceed (by at least 2%) the sum of their salary costs charged to the project for personnel who are not considered 'additional'. For details, please refer to section 3.4 of this document.

1.5.6 What is the optimal starting date and duration for a project?

When preparing the project's time planning, beneficiaries should be aware that the expected date of the signature of the grant agreements for the LIFE 2020 projects will be during May and June 2021. The earliest possible starting date for these projects is 1 July 2021. Any costs incurred before the project's starting date will not be considered eligible and cannot be included in the project budget.

There is no pre-determined project duration for a LIFE project. The project duration must correspond to what is necessary to complete all of the project's actions and to reach all its objectives. Most projects last between 2 and 5 years.

Only under exceptional circumstances, the Contracting Authority may decide to grant an extension of the project duration. The experience of the previous LIFE Programmes has shown that many projects had difficulties completing all actions within the proposed project duration, mostly due to unforeseen delays and difficulties encountered during the project. Beneficiaries are therefore strongly advised to build an appropriate safety margin (for example 6 months) into the timetable of their proposal.

Beneficiaries should also be aware that a project that has completed all of its actions prior to the expected end date can submit its final report ahead of schedule and receive its final payment before the official project end date mentioned in the grant agreement.

1.5.7 Where can a LIFE project take place?

LIFE projects shall take place in the territory of the European Union Member States. The LIFE Programme may also finance activities outside the EU and in overseas countries and territories6 (OCTs), provided that the coordinating beneficiary is based in the EU, and strong evidence is provided that the activities to be carried out outside the EU are necessary to achieve EU climate objectives and to ensure the effectiveness of interventions carried out in the Member State territories to which the Treaties apply (for example, actions implemented on a transboundary river). Please note that this is clearly an exception, as normally actions should be carried out in the EU. However, when the problem at stake cannot be addressed successfully or efficiently unless actions are carried out also in non-EU countries, this will be possible. Qualitative and quantitative evidence to justify the need for those actions outside the EU must be given in the description of each of these actions in the relevant forms.

1.5.8 Who should manage a LIFE project?

It is expected that the project management is carried out by the staff of the coordinating beneficiary. However, on the basis of an appropriate justification it may be carried out by a sub-contractor under the coordinating beneficiary's direct control. Any other arrangements for the project management would have to be adequately explained and justified. Very often a proper project management implies the involvement of a full-time project manager for a smooth coordination and implementation of the project.

The proposal should clearly describe who will be in charge of the project management, how much personnel and time will be devoted to this task and how and by whom decisions on the project will be made during the project period (i.e. how and by whom the project management will be controlled).

1.5.9 Outsourcing of project activities

The beneficiaries should demonstrate the technical and financial capacity and competency to carry out the proposed project activities. It is therefore expected that the share of the project budget allocated to external assistance should remain below 35%. Higher shares may only be accepted if an adequate justification for this is provided in the project proposal.

The General Conditions of the Model LIFE Grant Agreement must be respected for any external assistance.

In line with Article 19(3) of the Regulation, beneficiaries (public and private) are strongly advised to use "green" procurement. The European Commission has established a toolkit for this purpose. More information can be found at http://ec.europa.eu/environment/gpp/toolkit_en.htm.

1.5.10 Under which conditions does LIFE favour transnational projects?

The LIFE Regulation indicates that, while selecting the projects to be co-funded, the Contracting Authority shall have special regard to transnational projects, when transnational cooperation is essential to guarantee climate objectives. On the basis of award criterion 6, additional points will be given to a proposal if there is sufficient evidence for an added value of the transnational approach. If such evidence can be provided, the proposal will be considered for a higher scoring in the project selection process and will therefore have a higher chance of being selected for co-funding.

N.B.: The meaning of "transnational" as foreseen in the LIFE Regulation only covers cooperation among Member States as well as cooperation among Member States and third countries participating in the LIFE Programme under article 5 of the LIFE Regulation. Activities outside the Union or in overseas countries and territories, while possible as foreseen under article 6 of the LIFE Regulation, will not entail additional points under award criterion 6.

 

1.5.11 How elaborated should a LIFE proposal be?

A proposal should be as concise and clear as possible. Applicants should avoid voluminous proposals.

Clear and detailed descriptions should be provided for all project actions. Maps should be annexed wherever this would be useful to clarify the location of the proposed actions.

Brochures, CVs and similar documents should not be submitted and will be ignored if provided.

1.5.12 Ongoing activities

Actions already ongoing before the start of the project are not eligible.

Where actions to be undertaken in the project are significantly different from previous or ongoing activities in terms of frequency or intensity they are not considered ongoing. The applicant must provide adequate information in the proposal that allows assessing this aspect.

Exceptionally, in case of actions that were undertaken and completed in the past and that are proposed to be repeated at a similar frequency or intensity during the project, the applicant must provide evidence that such actions would not have been carried out in the absence of the LIFE project.

1.5.13 Sustainability of the project and its actions

LIFE projects represent a considerable investment, and the European Union attaches great importance to the long term sustainability of these investments. The sustainability of the project results in the medium and long term is understood as the capacity to maintain them after project implementation, be it by continuation, by replication or by transfer. It is obligatory that throughout the duration of the project, the beneficiaries consider how these investments will be secured, maintained, developed and made use of or replicated/transferred during or after the end of the project. Successful continuation, replication and/or transfer require a strategy including tasks to multiply the impacts of the projects' solutions and mobilise a wider uptake, reaching a critical mass during the project and/or in a short and medium term perspective after the end of the LIFE project. This goes beyond transfer of knowledge and networking, and involves putting the solutions developed and/or applied in the project into practice beyond the project period, elsewhere or for a different purpose.

All proposals, including those submitted by public authorities, non-profit organisation and research and development agencies, should include a thorough replication and transferability strategy with respective activities and deliverables. The chosen technical scale and foreseen output should clearly allow the implementation and/or continuation of the proposed solution in order to deliver clear, substantial, ambitious and credible climate action related benefits already during the implementation of the project and further 3/5 years after it. Typical projects will have to develop a compulsory replication and transfer plan.

LIFE finances "close-to-market projects

LIFE has financed close-to-market projects since its start in 1992, and many of those are today best available technologies or normal products available for producers and consumers.

 

Hence, proposals aiming at piloting or demonstrating technical solutions for reducing greenhouse gas emissions or adapting to climate change through eco-innovation, bio- economy, circular economy, innovative technologies and other means are encouraged to present "close-to-market" projects. Such proposals should build on best available technologies and advance the technology readiness levels towards industrial and commercial scale. Industrialisation and commercialisation can already start during the LIFE project, and it should be supported by a credible business strategy, including, for example, market analyses, economic feasibility, a business model, market positioning and competitors, distribution channels, and potential investment. . The development of a credible business plan as well as a replication and transferability plan are compulsory deliverables for close-to- market projects.

For further guidance or for examples of typical activities of close-to-market projects, please see Chapter 2.3.1 of the "Guidelines for applicants 2020: LIFE Environment and Resource Efficiency".

1.5.14 Research activities and large infrastructure

Whereas EU funding for research activities is provided under Horizon 2020 – the Framework Programme for Research and Innovation (2014–2020)7, limited research aimed to improve and enhance the knowledge data underpinning the project may be carried out within a LIFE project. Research must be strictly limited and intrinsically related to the project's objectives. The applicant shall explain in detail how the proper implementation of the project relies on these research activities, showing that the existing scientific basis is insufficient, and how the additional knowledge will be used to implement the project actions and reach the objectives. In such a case, scientific publications are considered important deliverables of the project.

Projects dedicated to the construction of large infrastructure do not fall within the scope of the LIFE Programme and are therefore not eligible. A project is considered to be dedicated to the construction of large infrastructure if the cost of a "single item of infrastructure" exceeds EUR 500,000. A "single item of infrastructures" means all elements as described in form F4a that are physically bound to ensure the functionality of the infrastructural investment (e.g. pipes, foundations, or earth movements for blue-green infrastructure8, building to host technical equipment, etc.). Such amount may be exceptionally exceeded if full technical justification is provided in the proposal demonstrating the necessity of the infrastructure for ensuring an effective contribution to the objectives of Articles 14, 15 or 16 of the LIFE Regulation.

 

1.5.15 Complementarity with other EU funding programmes

According to Article 8 of the LIFE Regulation, activities supported from the LIFE Programme must ensure consistency and synergies, and avoid overlap with other funding programmes of the Union. In particular, the Contracting Authority and the Member States must ensure coordination with the European Regional Development Fund, the European Social Fund, the Cohesion Fund, the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development, the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund and Horizon 2020.

The LIFE Programme encourages the uptake of the results of environmental and climate- related research and innovation of Horizon 2020 in projects. Within this context, it offers co- financing opportunities for projects with clear environmental and climate benefits that ensure synergies between the LIFE Programme and Horizon 2020.

It is thus essential that, prior to submitting their proposal to the Contracting Authority, beneficiaries check thoroughly whether the actions proposed under their project in practice could be, or are, funded through other EU funds.

The beneficiaries must inform the Contracting Authority about any related funding they have received from the EU budget, as well as any related ongoing applications for funding from the EU budget. The beneficiaries must also check that they are not receiving on-going operating grants from LIFE (or other EU programmes) that would lead to double financing.

Failure to signal this in the appropriate form A7 might lead to rejection of the proposal.

Please note that this is an area of growing concern, evidence shows that an increasing number of similar or same proposals are submitted to various programmes. Increasingly severe checks and cross-checks are carried out by the contracting authority. Failure to declare that the same or a similar proposal has been submitted to another programme (or worst, already even partly financed) may have serious consequences.

1.5.16 Proposals following or based on previous LIFE projects

If the applicant is proposing a continuation of a previous LIFE project, he should clearly describe in form A7 why a further project phase is needed and how this will complement the results achieved with the previous project. The applicant should also explain when discussing sustainability (form B6), how a further continuation would be ensured with resources other than the LIFE programme. Last, but not least, in the description of every key action (C-forms) the applicant should provide precise information on how this action builds upon and complements the similar action carried out in the previous project phase.

Applicants should also show that they have taken into consideration other LIFE projects financed that addressed a similar issue. They will need to explain how their proposal builds upon or differs from the others and how it will coordinate with them if those projects are still on-going.

During the evaluation process these aspects will be carefully checked.

 

1.5.17 Quantification of climate benefits

The improved performances/advantages introduced by the proposed solution must be quantified in terms of the expected climate benefits. This must be done by clearly indicating what the chosen baseline is. Climate action benefits must be presented in a life-cycle approach where relevant and shall be clear, substantial, ambitious, as well as credible. In this regard, consistency shall be ensured between climate action benefits described in the relevant forms of the proposal and values reported in the table on LIFE Key project level indicators.

1.5.18 Coordination requirements for multiple proposals aimed at the same/similar issue

Evidence shows that an increasing number of proposals aimed at the same or at a similar issue are submitted, often in the same Member State.

To avoid such situations applicants are strongly encouraged to consult with National Contact Points (https://ec.europa.eu/easme/en/section/life/life-national-contact-points) to check whether the issue that they are targeting is being addressed already by other applicants. If this is the case, applicants are encouraged to seek cooperation to avoid possible overlaps and increase synergies.

1.5.19 May I give financial support to third parties as part of a LIFE traditional project?

Under specific conditions laid down in the Grant Agreement, beneficiaries may provide financial support to third parties in order to assist entities outside the project partnership (e.g. non-profit organisations, local authorities or citizens groups) in the implementation or development of local initiatives that will contribute to the project’s objectives.

Applicants should explain clearly why they wish to provide financial support to third parties, how they will manage the process and provide a list of the different types of activities for which a third party may receive financial support. The proposal must also clearly describe the results to be obtained.

These costs are eligible only if:

a) This type of support is foreseen in the proposal, described and justified as requested above;

b) The criteria for allocation and financial support are transparent, non-discriminatory and clearly documented;

c) The support is provided to legal entities and regulated by specific contracts;

d) The maximum amount allocated to any third party involved may not exceed EUR 20,000 and the total amount of such costs overall may not exceed EUR 100,000 during the lifetime of the project.

 

 

2. LIFE INTEGRATED PROJECTS

2.1 What are LIFE Integrated Projects versus traditional LIFE projects? Which one to choose?

When applying for LIFE funding, applicants shall choose the appropriate project category. A project application may only be submitted under one LIFE project category.

The following table provides a summary comparison highlighting the major differences between LIFE "traditional projects" and LIFE IPs:

 

Integrated Projects

Scope

Traditional projects* (sub-programme for environment):

T arget one or several thematic priorities for the sub-programme environment indicated in Annex III of the LIFE Regulation and possibly targets one or several project topics implementing the thematic priorities, as laid down in the MAWP.

(sub-programme for climate action):

Target one or several of the priority areas for the sub-programme climate action and policy areas as laid down in the Multiannual Work Programme.

Are limited to specific areas of intervention related to certain strategic plans in nature, air, water, waste, climate change adaptation and mitigation as follows:

•   Nature IPs implement the PAFs;

•   Water IPs implement the River Basin Management Plans;

•  Waste Waste Plans

• IPs implement Management or Waste

• Prevention Programs;

•   Air IPs implement Air Quality Plans.

•   IPs implementing climate change adaptation strategies or plans;

•   IPs implementing climate change mitigation strategies, action plans or low carbon economy road maps ;

•  IPs implementing urban mitigation and/or adaptation action plans ;

 

Co-financing rates (%) and amounts (EUR) of LIFE contribution

Traditional projects*
Up to 60% (or up to 75%)

Historical average of EUR 1-2 million

 

Integrated Projects
Up to 60%
Expected average of EUR 10 million

 

Application

Two stage submission (sub-programme for environment):

1. Concept Note.
2. Full proposal.

One stage submission (sub-programme for climate action):

1. Full proposal

Two stage submission:

1. Concept Note.
2. Full proposal.

 

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