European Social Fund +

Summary

The European Social Fund Plus (ESF+) is the European Union (EU)’s main instrument for investing in people.
Τhe ESF+ will continue to provide an important contribution to the EU’s employment, social, education and skills policies, including structural reforms in these areas.

Programme Description

The Fund will also be one of the cornerstones of EU socio-economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. The pandemic has reversed gains in labour participation, challenged educational and health systems and increased inequalities. The ESF+ will be one of the key EU instrument helping Member States to address these challenges.

As part of cohesion policy, the ESF+ will also continue its mission to support economic, territorial and social cohesion in the EU – reducing disparities between Member States and regions.

Funding therefore takes place through:

Total Budget

€ 99,3 billion

Thematic Categories

  • Education and training
  • Employment
  • Social Affairs & Human Rights

Eligibility for Participation

  • Central Government
  • Educational Institutions
  • Large Enterprises
  • NGOs
  • Non Profit Organisations
  • Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs)
  • State-owned Enterprises
  • Training Centres

Call Opening Date

01/01/2021

Call Closing Date

31/12/2027

National Contact Point(s)

Directorate-General for European Programs, Coordination and Development
29 Vyronos Avenue, Nicosia
Tel:  +357 22-602883

Programme/Sub-programme/Plan Calls
  • EURES Targeted Mobility Scheme (TMS)

    Opened

    Code: 33085 | Identifier Code: ESF-2024-EURES-TMS | Programme name: European Social Fund + | Start submission calls: 19/03/2024 | End submission calls: 04/06/2024

    The EURES Targeted Mobility Scheme (TMS) constitutes a European-level labour market measure designed to address labour shortages and hard-to-fill vacancies.

    The overall objective of this call for proposals is to ensure around 4000 placements for mobile jobseekers, in particular of young people. Within further analysis, the action targets the filling of hard-to-fill vacancies and labour shortages as identified in national/EU labour market studies or other data sources.

  • Actions to Boost the Development of Finance Markets for Social Enterprises

    Closed

    Code: 31958 | Identifier Code: ESF-2023-SUPPLY-DEMAND | Programme name: European Social Fund + | Start submission calls: 05/12/2023 | End submission calls: 14/03/2024

    This call has opened under the Employment and Social Innovation (“EaSI”) strand of the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+).
    The objective of this call is to develop social enterprise finance markets by bringing together the supply and demand side actors to facilitate the creation of financial instruments and to prepare social enterprises for investments.

  • Social innovation practices to combat homelessness

    Closed

    Code: 30863 | Identifier Code: ESF-2023-HOMELESS | Programme name: European Social Fund + | Start submission calls: 14/09/2023 | End submission calls: 14/12/2023

    The objective is to support capacity building of innovative multi-stakeholder governance structures and/or social experimentation at local, regional and national level of innovative forms of service delivery in the areas of homelessness and housing exclusion, including new forms of collaboration with public authorities.

  • Activities to tackle undeclared work (Topic 2)

    Closed

    Code: 27887 | Identifier Code: ESF-2023-POW-UDW-02 | Programme name: European Social Fund + | Start submission calls: 21/02/2023 | End submission calls: 03/05/2023

    The main objective of this call for proposals is to complement and add value to the work of the European Platform tackling undeclared work.
    Therefore, the call for proposals aims to support relevant actors in the field of tackling undeclared work such as ministries, enforcement authorities, social partners, etc. to develop innovative initiatives which shall contribute to enhancing the implementation, application, knowledge and better enforcement of EU and national law in the area of undeclared work, including through cross-border cooperation, thus supporting the transformation of undeclared work into declared work.

  • Posting of workers: enhancing administrative cooperation and access to information (Topic 1)

    Closed

    Code: 27885 | Identifier Code: ESF-2023-POW-UDW-01 | Programme name: European Social Fund + | Start submission calls: 21/02/2023 | End submission calls: 03/05/2023

    The call intends to support the Commission and the Member States to understand existing and new challenges and develop initiatives in the field of posting of workers and a decent work agenda. The proper functioning of administrative cooperation between Member States and improved access to information on applicable terms and conditions of employment and administrative requirements for companies in a transparent and accessible manner, are essential for the correct application, implementation and enforcement of the Directives.

  • EURES EEA non-EU countries cooperation

    Closed

    Code: 27883 | Identifier Code: ESF-2023-EURES-CBC-EEA | Programme name: European Social Fund + | Start submission calls: 21/02/2023 | End submission calls: 03/05/2023

    The overall objectives of the call topic are to facilitate workers’ intra-EU labour mobility, to boost employment opportunities as well as to support the implementation of the EURES Regulation.
    The ultimate goal of the call is to facilitate the job matching, placement and recruitment process on a fair basis.

  • EURES Social partners cooperation

    Closed

    Code: 27881 | Identifier Code: ESF-2023-EURES-CBC-SOCP | Programme name: European Social Fund + | Start submission calls: 21/02/2023 | End submission calls: 03/05/2023

    The overall objectives of the call topic are to facilitate workers’ intra-EU labour mobility, to boost employment opportunities as well as to support the implementation of the EURES Regulation.
    The ultimate goal of the call is to facilitate the job matching, placement and recruitment process on a fair basis.

  • EURES Cross-border partnerships

    Closed

    Code: 27879 | Identifier Code: ESF-2023-EURES-CBP-ECP | Programme name: European Social Fund + | Start submission calls: 21/02/2023 | End submission calls: 03/05/2023

    The overall objectives of the call topic are to facilitate workers’ intra-EU labour mobility, to boost employment opportunities as well as to support the implementation of the EURES Regulation.
    The ultimate goal of the call is to facilitate the job matching, placement and recruitment process on a fair basis.

  • ESF-2023-ETS

    Closed

    Code: 27840 | Identifier Code: ESF-2023-ETS | Programme name: European Social Fund + | Start submission calls: 14/03/2023 | End submission calls: 11/05/2023

    Cross-border pension tracking can support the process of modernisation and digitalisation of social protection systems across Europe through the provision of its digital service, providing structured information on pension benefits via a centralised European platform.
    The main purposes of the call are to facilitate the access of workers who exercise their right to free movement to pension information, thus contributing to their pension awareness and pension adequacy, and to support the capacity of national pension schemes to provide such information, in particular to former members who have moved to another country, by bringing together information from pension sources in different Member States, preferably NTSs, and present it in a meaningful way for the user – mobile worker or citizen.

  • ESF-2023-EPOCH

    Closed

    Code: 27834 | Identifier Code: ESF-2023-EPOCH | Programme name: European Social Fund + | Start submission calls: 16/03/2023 | End submission calls: 06/06/2023

    The activities will promote capacity and knowledge building in the area of homelessness and housing exclusion from 2024 onwards.

    More specifically, the support to the Platform should:

    • Provide learning tools, evidence and knowledge on specific aspects of homelessness, and identify good practices in terms of policies and projects;
    • Improve the sharing of knowledge and practices to inform policy makers and other intervening actors in the Member States on the design of integrated homelessness strategies at the national level.

    The ultimate goal is to achieve concrete results in combatting homelessness with a view towards reducing it substantially across the EU by 2030.

  • Activities to tackle undeclared work (Topic 2)

    Closed

    Code: 27745 | Identifier Code: ESF-2023-POW-UDW-02 | Programme name: European Social Fund + | Start submission calls: 21/02/2023 | End submission calls: 03/05/2023

    This topic aims to support relevant actors in the field of tackling undeclared work such as ministries, enforcement authorities, social partners, etc. to develop innovative initiatives which shall contribute to enhancing the implementation, application, knowledge and better enforcement of EU and national law in the area of undeclared work, including through cross-border cooperation, thus supporting the transformation of undeclared work into declared work.

  • Posting of workers: enhancing administrative cooperation and access to information (Topic 1)

    Closed

    Code: 27742 | Identifier Code: ESF-2023-POW-UDW-01 | Programme name: European Social Fund + | Start submission calls: 21/02/2023 | End submission calls: 03/05/2023

    In order to achieve the objective, it is intended with this call for proposals to fund transnational cooperation initiatives aiming at developing activities by relevant stakeholders involved in the context of posting with a significant and lasting impact on workers, companies and administrations. Activities aim at supporting competent authorities in Member States and social partners in administrative cooperation, in increasing access to essential information for posted workers, to promote the evidence basis through the collection and evaluation of original data and analysis.

  • EURES Targeted Mobility Scheme

    Closed

    Code: 25178 | Identifier Code: ESF-2022-EURES-TMS-01 | Programme name: European Social Fund + | Start submission calls: 09/11/2022 | End submission calls: 15/02/2023

    The action aims at :
    reaching the target groups of a) young people aged 18-35, and b) over 35 years, in order to find a job, traineeship or apprenticeship in another EU/EEA country;
    addressing labour mobility obstacles (such as the costs of moving abroad, the (lack of) knowledge of languages, integration of mobile workers in the countries of destination, long-term unemployed and people left behind in the labour market etc.);
    relieving of labour market imbalances and filling of hard-to-fill vacancies as identified in national/EU labour market studies or data sources.

  • Social innovations for a fair green and digital transition

    Closed

    Code: 21344 | Identifier Code: ESF-2022-SOC-INNOV | Programme name: European Social Fund + | Start submission calls: 03/05/2022 | End submission calls: 02/08/2022

    The general objective of this call for proposals is to develop and test integrated and inclusive social innovation approaches – in schools or training centres, at work or in local communities, or other relevant environments – to foster the inclusiveness and (perceived) fairness of the twin green and digital transition.

  • Complementary National Contact Points (NCP) EaSI strand

    Closed

    Code: 21227 | Identifier Code: ESF-2022-NCP | Programme name: European Social Fund + | Start submission calls: 21/04/2022 | End submission calls: 29/09/2022

    Expected Impact:

    Creation and operation of National Contact Points in EaSI participating countries not covered following the 1st call for proposals under the 2021 work programme to promote the EaSI strand and its projects/results.

  • ESF-2022-SOC-FIN

    Closed

    Code: 20861 | Identifier Code: ESF-2022-SOC-FIN | Programme name: European Social Fund + | Start submission calls: 06/04/2022 | End submission calls: 14/06/2022

    This call aims to further support the development of the social investment market and facilitate access to finance for social enterprises through grants to intermediaries in the social enterprise finance field to partially cover the transaction costs.