Owing to persistent and increasing imbalances in the framework conditions for innovation-related cooperation between Europe and China, as well as concerns about undesirable technology transfer and the outflow of sensitive data and intellectual property, the European Commission – based on Article 22 (6) of the Horizon Europe Regulation, restricts the funding and participation opportunities for organisations based in China in the Horizon Europe 2026–2027 work programme.

In the broader context, this is a response to geopolitical developments and aims to reduce strategic dependencies and strengthen Europe's technological capacity and sovereignty in the long term. So, what does this actually mean? According to the ‘General Annexes (B)’, the following now applies to ‘Research and Innovation Actions (RIA)’: Chinese institutes are generally not eligible to participate, except for explicitly mentioned parts of the programme, i.e. certain ‘destinations’ in clusters 2, 5 and 6, as well as selected areas in the missions, in “Widening” and in the ‘New European Bauhaus Facility’. In practice, this means that in the particularly sensitive areas of clusters 1 (health), 3 (civil security) and 4 (digital/industry/space), the participation of Chinese institutions is generally not envisaged, unless the specific call for proposals text expressly mentions an exception. In addition, the General Annexes exclude universities in China that are subject to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) (Seven Sons of National Defence[1]) from all parts of the work programme. Furthermore, institutions established in China are, in principle, not eligible to participate in Innovation Actions (IA).

Are ongoing projects affected? No, the rules apply to calls for proposals under the 2026/2027 Work Programme, i.e. to new applications and grant agreements from that date onwards.

Where can I find additional information?

The relevant reference documents are the Horizon Europe

Regulation (Article 22), the General Annexes (Section B) of the 2026-2027 work programme and the Topic Conditions of the respective calls for proposals in the Funding & Tenders Portal (which states whether and how exceptions are possible). Those planning to collaborate with Chinese partners should therefore first check the specific topic text and the General Annex rules and contact their own grant office, the NCP or our Leibniz Europe Office at an early stage. Further information on the political background and current strategies can be found on the official website of the EU Commission.

[1] The Seven Sons of National Defence are seven Chinese universities affiliated with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) and traditionally closely linked to China's defence research and industrial complex: Beihang University, Beijing Institute of Technology, Harbin Engineering University, Harbin Institute of Technology, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Nanjing University of Science and Technology.