Call description
The funding call for the Driving Urban Transitions (DUT) Partnership programme for 2026 is opening. DUT is a European partnership programme funded through Horizon Europe. The aim of the partnership programme is to contribute to the transition of cities to a sustainable future through research and innovation. Business Finland participates in the partnership as a self-financed party.
The DUT partnership programme focuses on improving urban mobility, energy efficiency and the circular economy through sustainable solutions. It also aims to strengthen the capacity of local authorities and citizens to implement sustainable urban solutions and improve the quality of life in cities.
The programme carries out international funding calls every year. The fifth call is scheduled to open 1 September 2026.
Read more: Driving Urban Transitions to a sustainable future
Business Finland funding
Business Finland is prepared to fund the participation of Finnish parties with EUR 3 million in Joint Projects in the 2026 call. Business Finland is indicatively prepared to grant funding from EUR 200,000 to EUR 500,000 per Finnish sub-consortium. Funding will be granted as a grant.
The following Business Finland funding services and their terms and conditions are applied:
- Research and development funding: for individual companies
- Co-Innovation funding: for joint projects involving two or more companies and for joint consortia of companies and research organisations
Funding criteria are assessed based on the information available at the call deadlines.
In this call, companies can exceptionally also be granted a grant for the approved costs of an experimental development project. The funding level will be assessed and determined during the application process based on the share of industrial research costs in the project.
What can funding be applied for?
The call funds large-scale international research and development projects. The international call text and the call topics can be found on the DUT website. Read more: DUT Call 2026
Finnish parties can apply for national funding from Innovation Funding Agency Business Finland to participate in a joint project. Innovation Funding Agency Business Finland can grant funding to projects under all Call Topics. The maximum duration of funded research and development projects is 36 months. In addition to the criteria and conditions of the international call, the applicants and projects to be funded must meet the criteria and conditions of Business Finland funding.
Projects to be funded must create possibilities for strengthening companies’ competitiveness, renewal, and significant new international export business. Projects must demonstrate clear added value from collaboration.
Finnish parties in the consortium
Finnish companies and research organisations can participate in joint projects with their own research and development projects and apply for funding for their project from Business Finland. Finnish companies may participate in consortia either independently or together with other Finnish partners. Companies may participate either as Co-applicants applying for funding or as self-financed Cooperation partners with an own research and development project. All parties that meet the criteria of the international call can participate in the consortia on a self-financed basis.
1. Companies applying for funding
Joint projects are expected to generate turnover only after the project has ended. Therefore, a company that is suitable for applying for funding:
- has secured total financing for the duration of the project
- has the capabilities to implement an ambitious R&D project
- aims to develop significant international business through the project
- fulfils Business Finland’s funding criteria for research and development projects
To ensure impact of funding, the project budget must be significant in relation to the scale of the applicant’s business; for SMEs, at least EUR 100,000.
If the company has previously received Business Finland funding, the proposed project must not jeopardize the achievement of the objectives of the earlier funded projects. In addition, granting new funding must continue to be appropriate from the perspective of the company’s development. Obstacles to granting the funding:
2. Companies participating as Cooperation partners
A company participating as a Cooperation partner must demonstrably participate in the Joint Project with its own R&D project, the costs of which are covered by the company itself or through other funding. All participants, including self-financed Cooperation company partners, must notify about their participation and project budget in the UEFISCDI electronic submission system, UDiManager platform in accordance with the instructions.
3. Research organisations applying for funding
If Finnish research organisations participate in the consortium, at least two Finnish export-oriented companies must also participate in the same international consortium with their own research and development project.
The share of public sector organisations in the total costs of the Finnish sub-consortium may not exceed 60%. Total costs include the budgets of Finnish partners’ projects, including the R&D projects of self-financed partners. Consequently, at least 40% of the total costs of the Finnish sub-consortium must originate from companies’ R&D projects.