Funding Call FAQs

Answer: Questions regarding the formal requirements of the funding call should be directed to the funding organisation responsible for the call. They will normally offer at least one information session during the application period, providing information about the call and an opportunity to ask questions.

Questions relating to the content of the funding call can also be discussed with the programme office and are preferably sent to utlysningar@netzeroimpact.se.

Answer: All project applications must be submitted through one of our funding partners, the Swedish Energy Agency (Energimyndigheten) or Vinnova, which are also responsible for funding decisions.

Answer: No. Applications submitted in English are assessed on the same basis as those submitted in Swedish. However, if both options are possible, we recommend submitting your application in Swedish.

Answer: Any required attachments will be specified in the relevant funding call.

We also recommend reviewing the full call text carefully to ensure you do not miss any specific instructions or requirements that may apply to that particular call in addition to the standard guidelines.

Answer: No. All formal application requirements are set out in the funding call documentation, and it is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure that these requirements are met.

The project’s alignment with the assessment criteria is evaluated by an independent review panel only after the funding call has closed. It is therefore not possible to receive a pre-submission review or screening of an application.

Answer: Applications that meet the formal eligibility requirements are assessed by independent experts against the evaluation criteria specified for the relevant funding call. The assessors provide an overall evaluation and recommendation, either for approval or rejection, which is then considered by the responsible authority.

The final decision to approve or reject a project application is made by the responsible authority.

Answer:

Annual open calls

• Open early in the spring and close before the summer holiday period.
• Broad in scope, with a wide target audience and a familiar format from year to year.
• The specific funding opportunities and areas of focus within the call may vary annually.

Mission-driven strategic calls within priority areas

• Launched regularly throughout the programme period.
• Include several parallel funding opportunities within each strategic mission area to maximise impact and accelerate progress.

Answer: In principle, any organisation other than your own (i.e. with a different organisation registration number) is considered a separate project partner. The partner must incur costs within the project.

When assessing an application, consideration is given to the composition of the project consortium and the relevance of each partner’s contribution to the overall project.

Answer: The eligibility rules may vary between different funding calls. Please refer to the specific terms and conditions of the relevant funding opportunity for detailed information.

Answer: Yes. A foreign organisation may participate as a project partner. However, specific eligibility and funding conditions may vary between funding calls, so please refer to the terms and conditions of the relevant call for further details.

Answer: Yes. A public sector organisation may contribute co-funding to a project. Any specific conditions relating to co-funding are set out in the relevant funding call and its terms and conditions.

Answer: Yes. Municipally owned companies are considered part of the business sector. An organisation is deemed to carry out an economic activity if it offers goods or services on a market. Organisations engaged in economic activities are therefore regarded as businesses, meaning that State aid rules may apply.

Answer: No. Regions and county councils are not considered businesses. Funding provided to project partners that do not carry out economic activities—such as research organisations, universities, and public sector bodies—is granted under the Ordinance (2009:1101) containing Instructions for the Swedish Governmental Agency for Innovation Systems (Vinnova).

Such organisations may be eligible to receive funding covering up to 100% of their eligible project costs.

Answer: Co-funding can be provided in several different ways. The most common form is through project partners contributing staff time, with the associated personnel costs counted as co-funding. However, co-funding may also be provided through, for example, the purchase of equipment or direct financial contributions.

Answer: The project’s maximum funding rate can never be exceeded and acts as an upper limit on how the grant may be distributed among the participating project partners.

At the same time, each organisation must comply with the maximum funding level applicable to that specific organisation, based on factors such as organisation type, project activities, and applicable State aid rules. The final funding allocation must therefore meet both the overall project funding limit and the maximum funding level permitted for each participating organisation.

Answer: No, not in practice. All public funding received by an organisation must be taken into account when calculating the applicable funding level. The maximum permitted funding rate must not be exceeded, regardless of the source of the public funding.

As a result, funding from another publicly funded project cannot normally be counted as co-funding for this project if doing so would cause the maximum funding level to be exceeded.

Answer: Yes. The depreciation cost of equipment during the project period is an eligible cost.

For example, if equipment is purchased for a project lasting two years and the equipment has a five-year depreciation period, funding may be requested for 2/5 (40%) of the purchase cost.

If the equipment is also used for purposes other than the project, only the proportion attributable to the project may be claimed. For example, if the equipment in the example above is used for the project only 50% of the time, then only 50% of the eligible 40% may be reported as a project cost.

Answer: Yes. Salary costs may be counted as co-funding, provided that they are actual project costs and can be verified through appropriate documentation and audit records.

Answer: To be considered eligible, a cost must be actual, verifiable, and incurred during the project period. Project costs must be recorded and reported in a way that clearly distinguishes them from the organisation’s other financial transactions.

This requirement also applies to any project partners that are not receiving funding directly.

Answer: No, there is no specific recommended upper limit. The amount of funding that a project partner may receive depends on several factors, including the size of the organisation. The State aid rules provide further guidance on the funding levels applicable to organisations of different sizes that carry out economic activities.

Each project partner is responsible for ensuring that the funding they receive does not exceed the maximum aid intensity permitted under the applicable State aid regulations.

Please note that the maximum grant rate for a project is not the same as the maximum funding level permitted for an individual project partner.