Programme Category
Programme Name
Programme Description
Horizon Europe is the European Union (EU) funding programme for the period 2021 – 2027, which targets the sectors of research and innovation. The programme’s budget is around € 95.5 billion, of which € 5.4 billion is from NextGenerationEU to stimulate recovery and strengthen the EU’s resilience in the future, and € 4.5 billion is additional aid.
Identifier Code
Call
Summary
The European Prize for Women Innovators celebrates the women entrepreneurs behind Europe’s game-changing innovations, so that they may inspire other women and girls realise their full potential as the EU’s future scientists, innovators, and tech leaders.
There are three prize categories:
Detailed Call Description
The European Prize for Women Innovators celebrates the women entrepreneurs behind Europe’s game-changing innovations, so that they may inspire other women and girls realise their full potential as the EU’s future scientists, innovators, and tech leaders.
This prize supports a culture within research and innovation organisations and companies allowing women to become the innovators and entrepreneurs of tomorrow.
The prize is awarded every year to women from across the EU and countries associated to Horizon Europe, who have transformed their ideas into disruptive innovations to benefit people and the planet.
As for the previous edition, the 2026 European Prize for Women Innovators is organised jointly by the Agency and the European Institute of Innovation & Technology (EIT).
The prize has three categories, two funded by the EIC (the Women Innovators and the Rising Innovators categories) and one by the EIT (the EIT Women Leadership category). These Rules of Contest apply to both the EIC and EIT prize categories.
Scope:
The European Prize for Women Innovators celebrates the women entrepreneurs behind Europe’s game-changing innovations, so that they may inspire other women and girls realise their full potential as the EU’s future scientists, innovators, and tech leaders.
This prize supports a culture within research and innovation organisations and companies allowing women to become the innovators and entrepreneurs of tomorrow.
The prize is awarded every year to women from across the EU and countries associated to Horizon Europe, who have transformed their ideas into disruptive innovations to benefit people and the planet.
As for the previous edition, the 2026 European Prize for Women Innovators is organised jointly by the Agency and the European Institute of Innovation & Technology (EIT).
The prize has three categories, two funded by the EIC (the Women Innovators and the Rising Innovators categories) and one by the EIT (the EIT Women Leadership category). These Rules of Contest apply to both the EIC and EIT prize categories.
Budget:
Available budget
The prize budget is:
− for the Women Innovators category: three prizes of €100.000, €70.000 and €50.000 are awarded to the three highest-ranked applications;
− for the Rising Innovators category: three prizes of €50.000, €30.000 and €20.000 are awarded to the three highest-ranked applications from promising ‘Rising Innovators’ under the age of 35.
In addition, there is a dedicated EIT prize category: EIT Women Leadership. In this category, three prizes of €50.000, €30.000 and €20.000 are awarded to the three highest-ranked applications.
We reserve the right not to award any prize, depending on the applications received and the results of the evaluation.
We reserve the right not to award any prize and to cancel the call, depending on the applications received and the results of the evaluation.
Thematic Categories
- Research, Technological Development and Innovation
Eligibility for Participation
- Economically Inactive Women
- Legal Entities
- Natual person / Citizen / Individual
- Other Beneficiaries
- Researchers/Research Centers/Institutions
Eligibility For Participation Notes
In order to be eligible, the applicants must:
- be a woman (natural person);
- be legally residing in an EU Member State, including overseas countries and territories (OCTs) or a country associated to Horizon Europe;
- be the founder or co-founder of the company or organisation;
- the company or organisation must be established in an EU Member State including overseas countries and territories, (OCTs) or a country associated to Horizon Europe, and registered or incorporated at least two years before the call year;
- applicants who have already received an EU or Euratom prize cannot receive a second prize for the same activities.
Applicants to the Rising Innovators category must be aged under 35 at the start of the call year.
Applicants to the EIT category must have a direct link to the EIT Community or to one of the existing Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KICs).
Applicants are expected to provide proof of eligibility upon request.
Applicants eligible for several prize categories can only apply to one.
Joint applications by a group of applicants are not accepted and will be rejected as ineligible. Applicants from the same organisation must apply separately.
Applicants must register in the Participant Register — before the call deadline — and will have to be validated by the Central Validation Service (REA Validation). For the validation, you will be requested to upload documents showing legal status (please make sure to select ‘natural person’) and origin.
Specific cases and definitions
Entities without legal personality — Entities which do not have legal personality under their national law may exceptionally participate, provided that their representatives have the capacity to undertake legal obligations on their behalf, and offer guarantees for the protection of the EU financial interests equivalent to that offered by legal persons.
Countries currently negotiating association agreements — Applicants from countries with ongoing negotiations (see above) may participate in the call and can receive a prize if the negotiations are concluded before the award.
EU restrictive measures — Special rules apply for entities subject to EU restrictive measures under Article 29 of the Treaty on the European Union (TEU) and Article 215 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU (TFEU). Such entities are not eligible to participate and can NOT receive a prize.
EU conditionality measures — Special rules apply for entities subject to measures adopted on the basis of EU Regulation 2020/2092. Such entities may apply but, unless the measures are lifted by the time of the decision to award, are not eligible to participate and they can NOT receive a prize and will be rejected as ineligible. Currently such measures are in place for Hungarian public interest trusts established under the Hungarian Act IX of 2021 or any entity they maintain (see Council Implementing Decision (EU) 2022/2506, as of 16 December 2022).
Call Opening Date
Call Closing Date
National Contact Point(s)
Research and Innovation Foundation
Address: 29a Andrea Michalakopoulou Street, 1075 Nicosia, P.O. Box 23422, 1683 Nicosia
Telephone: +357 22205000
Fax:+357 22205001
Email: support@research.org.cy
Website: https://www.research.org.cy/en/
Contact Persons:
Dr. Leda Skoufari – Themistou
Scientific Officer A’
Email: leda@research.org.cy
EU Contact Point
Questions related to IT for the EIT category should be sent to the following email address: eit-awards@eit.europa.eu