Climate-KIC: What It Funds and How to Apply

Climate-KIC (styled “Climate KIC”; formerly “EIT Climate-KIC”) is, in its own words, “Europe’s leading climate innovation agency and community.” For researchers and institutions the practical question is how money and partnerships reach third parties: through open calls published on its website, each with its own rules, and through large Horizon Europe Missions projects it coordinates. This guide sets out what the official pages said on 2026-10-29 and where the rules you must follow actually sit.

What it is and who runs it

Climate KIC describes itself on its official site as “Europe’s leading climate innovation agency and community” and says it was “Initiated by the EIT”, the European Institute of Innovation and Technology. Its policies page describes the organisation as an independent, non-profit with public benefit status (ANBI), registered in the Netherlands, with branches in several European countries.

The programme areas listed on the homepage are place-based transformations, learning by doing (including the Climate KIC Academy), climate entrepreneurship, Europe 2030 missions and inclusive climate innovation. Its portfolio examples include Pathways2Resilience, NetZeroCities, Deep Demo Ireland and Deep Demo Slovenia.

Eligibility

There is no single eligibility rule for Climate KIC funding. Eligibility is set call by call, and the open-calls listing page shows only call names and deadlines, with a link to each call’s own page. Read that page before anything else.

As an example of how a call states it, the EIT Higher Education Initiative (EIT HEI) 2026 call invites consortia of higher education institutions, businesses, research organisations and public bodies, as described on its call page on 2026-10-29. That page does not state a minimum consortium size or country requirements, so any such rule would be found only in the linked call documents. Do not assume the rules of one call apply to another.

What it funds or requires

Two routes appear in the sources:

Open calls. The EIT HEI 2026 call page describes a EUR 40 million budget from the EIT, with up to EUR 1.25 million per selected project over 18 months.
Horizon Europe Missions projects. According to an EIT news item of 7 July 2025, Climate KIC secured EUR 99 million across 19 Mission projects, described as far more than any other grantee of the Missions scheme’s EUR 2.24 billion grant portfolio of 295 projects. In NetZeroCities (a EUR 53 million project) it is coordinator and receives EUR 36 million; in Pathways2Resilience (EUR 29 million) it manages EUR 23 million of the total.

Requirements travel with the money. The policies page lists the documents that govern grants: the EIT KIC Partnership Agreement, the General Model Grant Agreement, the Rules on the eligibility of costs and contributions for EIT grant recipients, the General provisions of the Grant Agreement (Annex 3 to the Financial Support Agreement), and two sets of PA/GA Pass Through Terms for recipients of financial support to third parties (Prizes and Non-Prizes). It also lists mandatory policies on anti-fraud, corruption and bribery, conflicts of interest and gifts, equality and diversity, ethics and conduct, and a procurement statement.

Application or compliance steps

Open the open calls page and choose the call that matches your organisation type.
Read the call’s own page for scope, eligibility, funding and deadline. For EIT HEI 2026 the page links to a separate site (eit-hei.eu) where applications are made, and gives a contact address on the call page.
Read the grant documents on the policies page that apply to your route, in particular the cost-eligibility rules and the pass-through terms if funds reach you as a third party.
Submit by the stated deadline, which on the listing is given with a time and time zone (for example 17:00 CET).
If selected, expect to be bound by the grant-agreement documents and the mandatory policies above.

Typical timeline phases

The official pages do not publish a standard timeline, so treat these as phases rather than dates: a call is published with a closing deadline; applicants submit through the route named on the call page; selected projects then run for the duration stated in the call (18 months for EIT HEI 2026); and funded work is governed by the grant documents throughout. Evaluation stages and result dates are set on each call page, so check there.

Common mistakes

Treating the listing page as the rules. It carries names and deadlines only; eligibility and funding sit on each call page.
Copying an older description. Older material uses the “EIT Climate-KIC” name; use the call page and the EIT item for current figures.
Confusing routes. Climate KIC calls, EIC schemes and Horizon Europe Missions are different instruments, even where Climate KIC is the manager of a Missions project or a call relates to an EIC scheme. For the wider EU picture see COST Actions, Seal of Excellence and Open Research Europe.
Skipping the cost-eligibility rules until after award.
Missing the closing time, which is stated to the hour with a time zone.

Related programs

Calls listed on the open-calls page on 2026-10-29. Deadlines are as shown there and calls change, so confirm on the call page.

Call (as titled)	Deadline shown	What the call page says
Enhance NEB 2027 Open Call	2026-11-17, 17:00 CET	Details on the call page
Become a DesirMED Climate Ambassador!	2026-12-31, 00:00 CET	Details on the call page
EIT Higher Education Initiative (EIT HEI) 2026	2027-01-13, 17:00 CET	EUR 40 million EIT budget; up to EUR 1.25 million per project over 18 months
EIT Community New European Bauhaus Call for Applications: 2027 Catalyse NEB	2027-01-15, 17:00 CET	Details on the call page
Women TechEU 2 EIC	2027-06-14, 17:00 CEST	Details on the call page

For other EU routes on CASRAI, see Erasmus+, Marie Curie Fellowships and CORDIS, the EU research results database. For general proposal craft, see how grant writing actually works.

FAQ

What does Climate-KIC stand for?

Climate KIC is the organisation’s name, and its site says it was “Initiated by the EIT”, the European Institute of Innovation and Technology. The EIT item describes it as formerly EIT Climate-KIC.

Is Climate-KIC a funder?

It runs open calls that distribute funding to third parties and, per the EIT, manages large shares of Horizon Europe Missions projects. Funding terms come from each call and the grant documents it publishes.

Where are the application rules?

On each call’s page, reached from the open calls listing, and in the grant documents on the policies page.

Has the name changed?

The EIT news item describes Climate KIC as formerly EIT Climate-KIC; the EIT item also shortens it to “EIT Climate”.

Sources

Climate KIC homepage, checked 2026-10-29
Climate KIC policies and terms, checked 2026-10-29
Climate KIC open calls, checked 2026-10-29
EIT HEI 2026 call page, checked 2026-10-29
EIT: Climate KIC secures largest share of Horizon Missions funding, 7 July 2025, checked 2026-10-29

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