The UKRI Funding Service is the digital platform UK Research and Innovation now uses for the majority of research grant applications, having replaced the Joint Electronic Submissions (Je-S) system. For institutional grants teams, the shift means new administrator accounts, a “Groups” structure instead of Je-S submitter pools, and a standardised question-and-answer application format in place of free-form Case for Support attachments. This guide walks through what changed, what to set up, and where workflows still need attention.
The UKRI Funding Service is a single online system for applying to, assessing, and managing awards from UKRI’s seven disciplinary research councils. It is not the same platform as the separate Innovation Funding Service used for Innovate UK competitions — a distinction that trips up many research offices during the transition.
- What is the UKRI Funding Service?
- How does it differ from Je-S?
- How should grants teams migrate?
- What changes during application and review?
- Frequently asked questions
What is the UKRI Funding Service?
The UKRI Funding Service is UK Research and Innovation’s cloud-based platform for submitting, tracking, and managing applications to its seven research councils: AHRC, BBSRC, ESRC, EPSRC, MRC, NERC, and STFC. It grew out of UKRI’s “Simpler and Better Funding” programme, which piloted the new system from summer 2020 and completed the transition of all research council opportunities away from Je-S by January 2024.
Unlike Je-S, which required applicants to attach a free-text “Case for Support” document, the Funding Service uses a standardised online question-and-answer form. Each question is tied directly to a published assessment criterion, which UKRI says is intended to make review more consistent across schemes and councils.
How does the UKRI Funding Service differ from Je-S?
The two systems differ in structure, account model, and the amount of administrative flexibility available to research offices. The table below summarises the practical differences grants teams encounter most often.
| Feature | Je-S (legacy) | UKRI Funding Service |
|---|---|---|
| Application format | Free-text “Case for Support” attachments | Standardised online question-and-answer form |
| Number of scheme types | Around 200 distinct scheme types | Reduced to a maximum of 10 |
| Team/office access | Submitter pools | “Groups” functionality |
| Account creation | Institutional Je-S organisation account | Individual account created on first application |
| Legacy data | N/A | Not transferred from Je-S — fresh accounts required |
| Reviewer response window | Varied by council/scheme | 14 days to respond to panel reviewer comments |
The reduction from roughly 200 Je-S scheme types to a maximum of 10 in the Funding Service is one of the most consequential changes for research offices that previously maintained scheme-specific internal checklists and templates — many of those now need consolidating rather than replacing one-for-one.
How should grants teams migrate from Je-S?
Because Je-S account data does not carry over, institutional grants teams need to actively provision access rather than assume continuity. The core steps are administrator account setup, Groups configuration, and briefing project leads on the new sign-in process.
- Request administrator accounts. Research Services staff who approve and submit on behalf of the institution need a Funding Service administrator account, requested directly through the service rather than inherited from Je-S.
- Configure organisational Groups. The Groups feature replicates the role Je-S submitter pools played, routing notifications to the correct faculty or department team as an application progresses.
- Set up notification groups where relevant. Research offices can optionally route notifications (for example, to finance teams) so that only the relevant staff are alerted about a given application.
- Brief project leads on account creation. Applicants create their own Funding Service account only when starting a first application — there is no pre-registration route, which differs from the Je-S model of centrally issued credentials.
UKRI’s Funding Finder tool is the single “front door” for identifying which live opportunities sit on the Funding Service versus any that remain elsewhere, and it is worth checking before assuming a call has migrated.
What changes during application and review?
Beyond the application form itself, the Funding Service changes how collaborators, research offices, and reviewers interact with a submission once it is underway. Applicants can grant core team members and research-office administrators visibility or edit access, and an edit log records who changed what and when.
Persistent identifiers are used more systematically than under Je-S, with the service capturing standardised identifiers for researchers and organisations at the point of application. This reduces later reconciliation work between an institution’s internal research information systems and UKRI’s own records — a data-governance benefit that research administration teams tracking identifier standards will recognise from wider open-research infrastructure work by bodies such as ORCID and ROR.
Once an application reaches a panel stage, applicants have 14 days to respond to reviewer comments before the panel meeting. If the project lead cannot respond personally, a named project co-lead may do so through the research office. Unless UKRI has pre-approved an extension, applications proceed to panel without a late response.
Frequently asked questions
What is the UKRI Funding Service?
The UKRI Funding Service is the digital platform UK Research and Innovation uses to receive, assess, and manage applications for its seven research councils. It replaced the ageing Je-S system, moving from free-text “Case for Support” attachments to a standardised online question-and-answer application format.
Who is eligible for UKRI funding?
Eligibility depends on the specific funding opportunity, but applicants generally need to be based at an eligible UK research organisation, or an approved international partner, and hold or be sponsored into a project lead role. Each opportunity’s “how to apply” page on ukri.org sets out its own eligibility criteria.
Is UKRI funded by the government?
Yes. UK Research and Innovation is a non-departmental public body sponsored by the UK government’s Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. It allocates public research and innovation funding across its seven research councils, Research England, and Innovate UK.
What is the success rate of UKRI funding?
Success rates vary by research council, scheme, and funding round, and UKRI does not publish one universal figure. Responsive-mode grant success rates have historically clustered in the 20–30% range across councils, though competitive schemes such as fellowships can run considerably lower.
For institutional grants teams, the Funding Service transition is largely complete but the operational adjustment is ongoing: fewer scheme templates, a Groups-based notification model, and stricter identifier and response-window discipline all require updated internal guidance rather than a simple like-for-like swap from Je-S procedures. Research offices that treat the Funding Service as a genuinely different system — not a reskinned Je-S — will spend less time reconciling avoidable errors at submission.
