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Application Process

The EUCF application process consists of 2 steps: The eligibility check and the full application.

Before applying, please check the full Guidelines for Applicants, that include all the relevant information about the EUCF.

Municipalities/local authorities, groupings of municipalities/local authorities, and local public entities aggregating municipalities/local authorities located in the EU Member States (EU-27), Iceland or Ukraine are able to apply to receive EUCF support. If you want to know whether you are eligible for EUCF support, scroll down or access the eligibility check directly online here.

After successfully passing the eligibility check, you can complete the full online application in the EUCF website user zone. Please make sure you use the correct templates to upload the supporting documents. Applications have to be submitted in English language only.

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Eligbility Check

Five requirements

Automatic check

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Application

Apply in system

Include annexes

Eligibility Check

The short eligibility check tells you at the beginning of the process whether you are eligible for EUCF support. This may save you precious time and resources. You are eligible if you can reply with YES to all questions of the check. Supporting documents are not required at this stage.

After completing the check, you will immediately be informed about your results and the next steps. If you want to know whether you are eligible for EUCF support, start your application here.

Please note, the EUCF Eligibility check is not able to asses if your municipality has already received support from the European City Facility, which is only possible once. Please browse the latest list of beneficiaries (and co-beneficiaries here.)

Eligibility questions

1. Are you a municipality/local authority, a grouping of municipalities/local authorities, or a local public entity aggregating municipalities/local authorities?

2. Is your municipality/local authority, grouping of municipalities/local authorities, or local public entity aggregating municipalities/local authorities located entirely in the EU-27 Member States, Iceland or Ukraine?

3. Does your municipality/local authority, grouping of municipalities/local authorities, or local public entity aggregating municipalities/local authorities have a Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plan (SECAP) or other local climate and/or energy plan with mitigation targets?

4. Will you be able to provide a proof of political commitment to develop the investment concept signed by the Mayor or other relevant political representative?

5. Do you commit to the EUCF monitoring period of two years?

Application guidance

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The requirements for stand-alone applicants are identical to the overall EUCF requirements available in the Guidelines for Applicants.

In line with EUCF objectives, you are encouraged to join forces and resources with your partners and submit joint applications. Formal or informal groupings of municipalities/local authorities are eligible to apply. They have to define in the application form one lead applicant. 

Please consult the Guidelines for Applicants for specific details.
 

Local public entities aggregating municipalities/local authorities are also able to apply for EUCF support. When applying as a local public entity aggregating municipalities/local authorities, the following points have to be considered:

  • Local public entities aggregating municipalities/local authorities need to declare in the application form that i) they are officially recognised as a tier of local government (different from the regional and provincial levels) by the national law with the obligation for municipalities/local authorities to join the supra-municipal organisation; (ii) they are composed only by municipalities/local authorities; (iii) they have a specific political and administrative structure. 
  • Local public entities aggregating municipalities/local authorities must present an own SECAP or local other climate and/or energy plan with mitigation targets that covers their geographical area. 

Learn more in the Guidelines for applicants.

Please note that the entities included in this list are examples only. Entities not listed in this table but fulfilling the criteria set above are considered potential eligible applicants. The EUCF considers as eligible applicants any equivalent entity to those listed in the table officially defined by the laws and lists included in this table or by any further modification in force prior to the closing date of the EUCF Call.

 

Examples of eligible public entities aggregating municipalities/local authorities

Croatia: Urbane aglomeracije: urbana aglomeracija Zagreb, sa sjedištem u Zagrebu; urbana aglomeracija Split, sa sjedištem u Splitu; urbana aglomeracija Rijeka, sa sjedištem u Rijeci; urbana aglomeracija Osijek, sa sjedištem u Osijeku

Finland: Seutukunta

France: 
Communautés des communes. The list of Communautés des communes can be found here

Communautés d'agglomération. The list of communautés d'agglomération can be found here

Communautés urbaines. The list of communautés urbaines can be found here

Métropoles. The list of Métropoles can be found here

Germany: Landkreise. The list of Landkreise can be found here

Hungary: Budapest Főváros, Kistérség

Italy: Unioni dei Comuni, Comunità Montane, Unioni Montane, Comunità isolane o di arcipelago. The list of Unioni dei Comuni can be found here

Città metropolitane, as defined by art. 1, comma 5, L. n. 56/201 or any further modification in force prior to the closing date of the EUCF Call, and any other città metropolitana officially defined in any of the “Regioni a statuto speciale” prior to the closing date of the EUCF Call

Portugal: Área Metropolitana and Comunidade Intermunicipal, as defined Lei n.º 75/2013, de 12 de setembro, and any further modification in force prior to the closing date of the EUCF Call. The list can be found here

Spain: Mancomunidad, áreas metropolitanas

The SECAP or other local climate and/or energy plan with mitigation targets

For the EUCF application, the submitted plan must include at least one mitigation target, which must be stated and referenced by the applicant in the corresponding section of the application form.

The SECAP or other local climate and/or energy plan with mitigation targets can be submitted in national language. Therefore, for the evaluation, it is important that the applicant fills correctly in the information required about the submitted plan in English in the application form. Learn more in the Guidelines for Applicants.

No EUCF template exists for this plan

 

The letter of political commitment to the development of the investment concept

To demonstrate political support to the development of the investment concept, the EUCF applicant must submit a letter of support, signed by the Mayor or other relevant political representative of the municipality/local authority, grouping or local public entity aggregating municipalities/local authorities. The applicants must use the corresponding template provided by the EUCF for submission. The letter of support must be submitted in English.

You can download the template here.