The fourth Horizon Europe call is now open
The fourth Horizon Europe call is officially open for submissions. With an overall budget of EUR 15 million, the EUSPA-managed call aims to stimulate the development of the EU Space downstream market and support the uptake of space-based solutions.
“EUSPA’s mission to foster the market uptake of EU Space data and services is at the core of this 4th Horizon Europe call. It offers companies of all sizes, academia, and public organisations the opportunity to develop innovative space-based applications that bring tangible benefits to Europe’s economy, society, and citizens,” says EUSPA Executive Director Rodrigo da Costa.
Horizon Europe is the EU’s key funding mechanism that facilitates collaboration and strengthens the impact of research and innovation in developing, supporting and implementing EU priorities while also tackling global challenges.
Boosting the space data economy
The current call focuses on addressing two key priorities: boosting the space data economy and reinforcing European resiliency.
With the former, EUSPA looks to harness the opportunities derived from space data, particularly that coming from Galileo, EGNOS and Copernicus. Specifically, the topic looks to develop innovative applications that use this data to address such key issues as clean energy, climate adaptation and environmental footprint reduction, green financing and insurance services, and the creation of liveable and sustainable cities.
As highlighted in its GNSS and EO Market Report, EUSPA has identified these priority areas as representing unique market opportunities for the EU Space downstream sector. As such, EUSPA has allocated a budget of EUR 10 million to the topic, which is enough to fund approximately five projects.
Reinforcing European resiliency
As to reinforcing European resiliency, the Call aims to support applications that use Galileo, EGNOS, Copernicus and/or GOVSATCOM as a means of enhancing Europe’s ability to manage disaster risks, respond to emergencies, protect critical infrastructure, and conduct secure and integrated crisis operations.
With an allocated budget of EUR 5 million, applicants must have a strong plan for bringing their crisis management and security solutions to market. To ensure that this is the case, EUSPA requires that all consortia applying to this topic include at least two crisis- or security-related organisations from two different EU Member States as beneficiaries.
A robust portfolio of projects
EUSPA’s past Horizon Europe Calls have funded a robust portfolio of projects that reinforces the competitiveness of European companies and the EU Space sector. While many of these projects are still in their implementation stage, some initial success stories demonstrate the outcomes of this investment.
“Linking space to user needs starts with research and innovation,” adds Fiammetta Diani, Head of Market, Development and Innovation department at EUSPA. “By facilitating research that leverages the EU Space Programme, Horizon Europe supports the development of game-changing solutions to some of today’s most pressing challenges.”
You have questions, we have answers
For more information about the current Horizon Europe call, including instructions for applying and details on the available topics, visit the Horizon Europe page.
The deadline for applying is 24 February 2026.
On 5 December EUSPA will be hosting a dedicated session about the Call. Part of the UCP and Downstream Day, this is an opportunity to not only learn about Horizon Europe and the application process, but to have all your questions answered by EUSPA representatives. You can join the session either online or live in Prague.
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