Proposal round number 3
The Networking Support Scheme (NSS) within ERDERA invites the rare disease and rare cancer community to unite across borders, disciplines and sectors.
Through this constantly open call, ERDERA supports the organisation of transnational networking events that promote knowledge sharing, research uptake and collaborations among clinicians, researchers, and patients/patient advocacy organizations (PAOs).
These events will strengthen new or expanding research networks on rare diseases and rare cancers in general and promote the inclusion of typically underrepresented countries (UCs) in European rare diseases and rare cancers networks in particular.
With funding of up to €30 000 per networking event, the scheme has been open since May 2025, offering a flexible framework for building the connections essential to meaningful knowledge sharing in rare disease and rare cancers research.
Eligibility: Who can apply?
Important disclaimer for Round NSS2027A:
The implementation of this call NSS2027A (round three) and the subsequent award of funding are subject to the confirmation of the second phase of the ERDERA Partnership funding by the European Commission, expected in the first quarter of 2027.
In the event that such funding is not granted, ERDERA and its partners shall not be held liable for the non-implementation of the call or the non-award of grants. Please be aware of this condition and take it into account when preparing and submitting your proposal.
The Networking Support Scheme is open to applicants based in most ERDERA participating countries. A complete list of eligible countries, including those classified as underrepresented, is available in the Call text (see Annex 1 below).
The scheme encourages a wide range of applicants, including:
- Researchers, including early-career researchers
- Clinicians
- Research managers
- Representatives of patients and patient advocacy organisations (PAOs)
To be eligible, applicants must plan a networking event with a clear rare disease or rare cancer research focus and address both aims of the call: promoting knowledge exchange and supporting greater inclusion of underrepresented countries (UCs).
For the purpose of the NSS call the list of UCs is the following: Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czechia, Estonia, Georgia, Greece, Hungary¹, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Morocco, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Türkiye.
Events must include participants from at least three different eligible countries and may be held either in-person or in a hybrid format.
¹ Representatives of Hungarian legal entities affected by the Council Implementing Decision (EU) 2022/2506 are not eligible to apply.
How it works: Continuous open call with fixed collection dates
The NSS is a permanently open call from May 2025 onward until funds are exhausted which is expected in April 2029.The NSS is a permanently open call from May 2025 onward until funds are exhausted which is expected in April 2029.
Applications can be submitted when the new online submission system is open. The applications are reviewed once a year.
At the top of this page, you can see a countdown for the current round and know how much time is left until the closest collection date.
After each collection date, eligible applications are assessed by an independent transnational Networking Evaluation Committee, based on transparent criteria aligned with the EU’s Horizon Europe programme.
Only applications that pass both scientific and ethics evaluations, and for which funding is available, will receive support.
The addition of at least one applicant of an Underrepresented Country (UC) in the applying consortium is mandatory.
Furthermore, the involvement of Early Career Researchers, young students, and involvement of patient advocacy organisations is encouraged.
Involving patient advocacy organisations from the very start is highly desirable. Should you need guidance about patient involvement in your networking event, have a look at this guide.
Note: Please refer to the new version of the Call text (September 2026).
Changes in the period when the networking event can be organised: it should be between 9 and 21 months after the collection date of its respective round.
Please note the History of Modifications of the Call text on page 2.
Detailed Information and Reference Documents
01 ·Aims and focus of the call
The first aim of the Networking Support Scheme (NSS) is to encourage scientific knowledge exchange on rare diseases or rare cancers between clinicians, researchers, research managers and patients in new and in expanding research networks by funding networking events.
The second aim of the Networking Support Scheme is to enable or increase the participation of usually underrepresented countries in Europe (listed in Annex 1 of the Call text) in new and in expanding research networks on rare diseases or rare cancers.
The focus of the networking events should be on research results and their implications, as well as on innovative solutions. The outcomes of these networking events may lead to future collaborative and novel research efforts.
Example of selected networks
Previous networking events, selected under the former rare disease programme EJP RD, are published in a Dashboard. These may be used as inspiration for building consortia or defining topics your application.
02 · Applicants and participants
Applicants
Applicants from most countries participating in ERDERA are invited to apply. The list of eligible countries is presented in Annex 1 of the Call text.
Applicants can be clinicians, researchers, research managers or Patient Advocacy Organizations (PAOs).
If a Patient Advocacy Organization (PAO) is the principal applicant, it should meet the requirements in Annex 2 of the Call text and sign the Declaration of Honour and upload it as additional document on the ERDERA NSS online submission platform.
The consortium that applies should consist of a minimum of three and a maximum of ten eligible co-applicants (including the principal applicant) from at least three different countries. The expected roles of the principal applicant and co-applicants are described in sections 4.3 and 4.4 in the Call text.
Participants in the networking event
The applying consortium is allowed to invite other participants to join the networking event. There is no limit to the number of participants.
Researchers, clinicians, and research managers working in institutes that are established in eligible countries, and PAOs that are legally established in eligible countries are eligible to receive funds for travel and hotel costs to be able to join the networking event.
Researchers, clinicians and research managers working in institutes that are established in non-eligible countries, and PAOs that are established in non-eligible countries will have to secure their own funding to be able to join the networking event, unless the applying consortium invites them as speakers or chairs at the meeting.
03 · Information on the networking event
Format
Applicants can choose one of the following formats for their networking event:
- Face-to-face meeting (in-person)
- Hybrid meeting (with a group being onsite and additional participants joining online)
The choice of the format may depend on the aim of the networking event and the participants in the event. Since the NSS prioritizes collaboration and participant networking, applicants must carefully consider how to facilitate meaningful interactions, particularly in hybrid meetings. Networking events should go beyond lectures or webinars, incorporating dynamic and interactive sessions to actively involve participants and enhance the networking experience.
Budget per event
The maximum budget for a single networking event is € 30,000, inclusive of VAT, regardless of the chosen format (face-to-face or hybrid). It is not possible to apply for multiple networking events in an application.
Costs must be clearly specified in the submitted budget plan, and only expenses directly related to the organization of the networking event are eligible. If ineligible costs are included, the budget will be adjusted accordingly. Hiring an external organization to organize the event is not permitted. Information for budget estimation is provided in Annex 3 of the Call text, including suggested items and costs.
When should the event take place?
The event can be planned between 9 and 21 months after the collection date. You can see the collection date above.
04 ·A quick guide through the submission process
- Carefully read the Call text, including the aims of the NSS and the evaluation criteria (see section 5.2);
- Complete the application template;
- Ensure your application addresses the aims and scope of the NSS;
- Verify that all eligibility criteria are met (see section 4.1 in Call text);
- Follow the instructions in the ERDERA NSS online submission platform;
- Adhere to the length limitations of each section.
- Completed application template
- Advanced (draft) well-elaborated programme/agenda
- Completed ethics self-assessment table
- Signature page with the names, dates, and signatures of all applicants in a consortium
- If a PAO is the principal applicant a signed Declaration of Honour has to be uploaded as well.
05 ·Evaluation
An independent Networking Evaluation Committee (NEC) reviews the collected applications in a round. See section 5 in the Call text for the procedure and the evaluation criteria. Their recommendations have to be considered while organizing the selected networking event (or in case of resubmission of a non-selected application, see section 4.7 of the Call text).
An Ethics Advisory Group reviews the self-assessment form of applications that are selected by the NEC. Also, this group will give recommendations that are to be considered before and during the networking event (see section 5.3.3 in the Call text).
06 ·Procedure after selection
If your application is selected for funding, the procedure steps for the principal applicant are as follows.
Budget plan
The budget plan of the application will be judged by the financial department of the NSS Secretariat at ZonMw.
Funding order
ZonMw will send a letter containing the grant decision, obligations and applicable terms and conditions in relation to the execution of the proposed activities. This letter will be sent as an email to the principal applicant.
Acknowledgement of funding
The principal applicant and the consortium must ensure that all communication about the networking event includes a proper acknowledgement of ERDERA. Information on this acknowledgement and use of the EU emblem is present in the Call text.
Report 1: Communication on outcomes
An online reporting survey has to be completed by the principal applicant within 2 months after the funded networking event has taken place. The information in this survey will be used to disseminate and communicate outcomes.
Report 2: Financial Report
The financial report has to be sent to ZonMw within 3 months after the event has taken place. A template of the final financial report and its guidelines are available under the ‘Downloadable documents’.
Final financial settlement
ZonMw will organize the final financial settlement after having received a PDF of report 1 (communication of outcomes) and the excel file of report 2 (the financial report).
07 ·Contact
The administrative management of the Networking Support Scheme is handled by the Networking Support Scheme Secretariat (NSSS), comprised of Research Council of Lithuania (LMT), Lithuania and The Netherlands Organisation for Health Research and Development (ZonMw), The Netherlands.
The contact addresses of NSS are available on the front page of the Call text.
08 ·Downloadable documents
- Call text (updated September 2026)
- List of eligible countries for NSS – Annex 1 (updated version, Sept 2026)
- PAO eligibility requirements – Annex 2 (updated version, September 2026)
- Information for budget estimation of networking event – Annex 3 (updated version, September 2026)
- Ethics self-assessment table
- Declaration of Honour (revised version, September 2026)
- Signature page
Support for applicants
- Video tutorial: Completing the ethics self-assessment table
- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
- Final Financial Reporting Template v1.4
- Guidelines for Final Financial Reporting
09 ·Online Submission Platform
When the electronic submission platform PT Outline is open this will be communicated on this webpage.
