Project funding
Individual or collaborative, disciplinary or interdisciplinary – realise your ideas with the SNSF. We can finance your research project for one to four years.
Changes in project funding
Project funding is the SNSF’s largest funding scheme by far. Every year, we invest more than half a billion Swiss francs in new projects. Under this scheme, you can conduct independent research on topics of your own choice. This enables research that is relevant, creative and diverse – the perfect framework for gaining new insights or resolving practice-related questions.
For experienced researchers
Applications can be submitted by experienced researchers working at a university or another institution in Switzerland that is eligible to receive funding. Of course, you have the opportunity to carry out interdisciplinary or collaborative projects. Many research questions can only be adequately addressed in this way.
Applications can be submitted by experienced researchers working at a higher education institution or any other institution in Switzerland that is eligible to receive funding. Of course, you have the opportunity to carry out interdisciplinary or collaborative projects. Many research questions can only be adequately addressed in this way.
Collaborative projects with three or more applicants may include one applicant at a research institute abroad, provided their expertise is necessary for the project. Please refer to the information under the heading Cooperation with partner countries.
Up to a million francs per year
The SNSF grant covers your staff's salaries, research costs and funding for scientific collaboration. Your own salary is financed by your institution.
The SNSF awards a maximum of 250,000 francs annually per applicant per project and a maximum of 1 million francs annually for the project as a whole. Applicants can freely divide the grant among themselves. The minimum grant for a project is 100,000 francs; the minimum duration is one year.
Cooperation with partner countries
Please note: The SNSF has concluded agreements with partner organisations in many countries to facilitate international cooperation. Are you interested in carrying out a joint project with researchers from one of these countries within the framework of project funding? Then you must submit your application under the Weave, Lead Agency or International Co-Investigator Scheme.
European consortia
In addition to project funding, the SNSF also supports the participation of Swiss researchers in European consortium projects (e.g. ERA-Net). Further information can be found at the following link:
Eligibility requirements – applicants
You can submit an application for SNSF project funding as an individual or together with other researchers. All applicants must meet the personal requirements and have the necessary scientific qualifications.
Personal requirements
As an applicant, you must actively spend at least 50 per cent (0.5 FTE) of your time working in research (this includes also teaching and management activities) at an eligible research institution in Switzerland. Exceptions are possible for people conducting clinical research, for employees of museums or archives and for independent researchers. In collaborative projects with three or more applicants, one applicant may work at a research institution abroad, provided that their expertise is necessary for the project and the collaboration demonstrably adds value.
Scientific qualifications
After obtaining your doctorate (PhD), you have conducted scientific research for at least four years. If you do not have a doctorate, the four-year period normally starts after at least three years of full-time research activity. This also applies to medical doctors without a PhD. As an applicant, you are in a position to be fully responsible for carrying out a research project and managing the staff involved in it.
Two or more applicants
If two or more researchers submit a proposal together, they are jointly responsible for the project. Each applicant makes a substantial contribution that is described in the application. As a rule, hierarchical dependencies between applicants are not permitted.
Project partners
In addition to other applicants, project partners can also work on your project. These researchers do part of the research work, but bear no responsibility. They may not describe the funding from the SNSF as funding received individually.
Project partners do not have to meet the eligibility requirements for applicants and can therefore also work abroad.
Weave, Lead Agency und International Co-Investigator Scheme
Applicants from abroad in Weave and Lead Agency proposals need to meet the participation and eligibility requirements of their local funding agency.
Applicants from abroad in International Co-Investigator Scheme proposals need to meet the SNSF’s eligibility requirements for project funding.
Eligibility requirements – application
Formal requirements
Submit your application in full and by the given deadline. The application must comply with the SNSF regulations in all respects.
In mathematics, natural sciences, engineering, biology, medicine, psychology, economics and political science, the application must be written in English. In other fields, it is also permissible to submit applications in an official Swiss language.
Peer review is a central element of the evaluation process. The use of English as a submission language broadens the scope of experts who can be consulted for their assessment. Applicants therefore benefit from a larger selection of experts with the relevant expertise. A submission in English thus supports the fundamental goal of the evaluation procedure, namely a competent and fair assessment of proposals. The SNSF Research Council therefore invites applicants to submit their applications (i.e. the research plan) in English.
Budget size and project duration
For each applicant in a project, the SNSF awards, on average, a maximum of 250,000 francs per year over the duration of the grant, and a maximum of 1 million francs per year for the project as a whole. Applicants can freely divide the contribution among themselves. A project can last a maximum of four years, resulting in a grant of up to 4 million francs. The minimum grant for a project is 100,000 francs; while the minimum duration is one year.
Weave and Lead Agency proposals have the following particularity. For these, the budget for applicants from abroad and the costs incurred in their countries are not part of the budget awarded by the SNSF. In addition, Weave and Lead Agency agreements with certain countries contain specific regulations regarding project duration that must be respected as well. More detailed information can be found on the country-specific Weave and Lead Agency web pages.
Collaborative and interdisciplinary projects
With its project funding, the SNSF also explicitly aims to fund collaborative and interdisciplinary projects.
Collaborative projects require the expertise and scientific contribution of several researchers, who jointly submit an application. Their collaboration is essential for achieving the research objectives and creates added value.
Are elements from two or more disciplines necessary to achieve the research objectives? And is the combination of these elements, for example theories, methods and concepts, not yet commonplace? Your proposal is considered interdisciplinary if it meets the following requirements:
- One or more applicants apply theories, methods, or concepts from two or more disciplines to pursue the research objectives.
- The combination of these elements is not yet common in the field.
- The different disciplines contribute to the research goal from different perspectives.
The SNSF may assign proposals to an interdisciplinary or disciplinary evaluation panel based on the disciplines that you select. Please note that projects that do not span a broad disciplinary range may be more suitable for evaluation by a disciplinary panel. The funding rates are similar across all evaluation panels.
Two or more grants at the same time
You can only participate as an applicant in one project funding application per call. However, you may receive up to three project funding grants that overlap in time. Three such grants are permissible if at least one of them is a Weave/Lead Agency project, an International Co-Investigator Scheme project or a European consortium project (for example ERA-Net).
Any SNSF career funding grant that you have received in parallel will count as a project funding grant. This also applies to awarded and ongoing Sinergia grants.
The topics of the overlapping research projects must be clearly differentiated from each other. Please provide the corresponding information when submitting the application. In addition, you must show that you will make a substantial personal contribution to all projects.
As an applicant, you are obliged to inform the SNSF about other ongoing applications to the SNSF or to third parties. The same applies to ongoing grants you have received from the SNSF or from third parties. We do not consider proposals for research projects that are already fully funded by third parties.
Eligible costs
You can apply for staff salaries and research costs as well as funding for scientific collaboration, networking and communication. Your own salary is paid by your institution. Please note: As a grant recipient, you may not be simultaneously employed as a staff member in an SNSF-funded project.
If three or more applicants are involved, they can charge the costs for coordinating the research project to the SNSF grant.
You can find out in detail which research costs the SNSF covers here:
The following supplementary measures can be applied for during the funding period of the project:
How to apply
From registration to entering the budget: how do you submit your application to the SNSF and what do you need to bear in mind? Find out more on this page:
Please also refer to the requirements for the research plan and the guidelines for the data management plan. Our principles on open access publications apply to all SNSF-funded projects.
Submit your application on the SNSF Portal.
Weave/Lead Agency applications evaluated by a partner organisation are an exception. These applications must still be submitted via mySNF.
Evaluation procedure
How do we evaluate your application? Find out more about the procedure and evaluation criteria here:
Are elements from two or more disciplines necessary to achieve the research objectives? And is the combination of these elements, for example theories, methods and concepts, not yet commonplace? Your proposal is considered interdisciplinary if it meets the following requirements:
- One or more applicants apply theories, methods, or concepts from two or more disciplines to pursue the research objectives.
- The combination of these elements is not yet common in the field.
- The different disciplines contribute to the research goal from different perspectives.
The SNSF may assign proposals to an interdisciplinary or disciplinary evaluation panel based on the disciplines that you select. Please note that projects that do not span a broad disciplinary range may be more suitable for evaluation by a disciplinary panel. The funding rates are similar across all evaluation panels.
Regulations
The conditions for project funding can be found here:
FAQ – Number of proposals and grants
Which grants from which funding schemes count as project funding grants in the sense of Article 13.1 of the Regulations on project funding?
Grants from the following funding schemes count towards the limit of concurrent grants in project funding: Ambizione, Eccellenza, European Partnerships and other multilateral initiatives (except Belmont Forum and transatlantic platform for social sciences and humanities), Practice to Science, PRIMA, Projects on health and wellbeing, Project funding, Sinergia, SNSF Professorships and Weave / Lead Agency / International Co-Investigator Scheme.
See the list of all funding schemes here (PDF).
Can I submit two proposals in project funding for the same deadline?
No
Can I resubmit a rejected Sinergia application?
Yes, you can resubmit a rejected Sinergia application, but now as a project funding application. Researchers were able to submit applications for funding under Sinergia one last time in April 2023. In summer 2023, the SNSF integrated the Sinergia programme into its project funding scheme. By doing so, we have grouped together collaborative and interdisciplinary research in our main funding scheme in order to provide even better support for this type of project.
Can I submit a Weave/Lead Agency proposal to the SNSF and another project funding proposal at the same time?
No, the SNSF will only evaluate one proposal per applicant per call. But you can submit a Lead Agency/Weave proposal to be evaluated by a partner funding agency and a project to be evaluated by the SNSF at the same time.
I have a Sinergia grant and two project funding grants ongoing. Can I submit another proposal?
No. Approved or ongoing Sinergia grants count as project funding grants.
I have a Sinergia and a project funding and a Lead Agency grant ongoing. Can I submit another proposal?
No. Approved or ongoing Sinergia, Lead Agency/Weave/International Co-Investigator Scheme, and EU Consortia grants count as project funding grants.
I have three ongoing projects. When can I submit a new proposal?
You may apply for a project grant for the period after the expiry of an SNSF grant that was subject to the restrictions on project funding. The evaluation procedure takes six months. You must start the grant within one year of receiving the funding decision.
My project has been extended for six months thanks to a project completion grant. Is the extension phase affected by the SNSF restrictions with regard to multiple parallel grants?
No.
Can I submit a project funding application at the same time as an SNSF Starting Grant application?
No. It is not possible to have several applications under evaluation at the same time for grants that overlap with the funding period requested for the SNSF Starting Grant.
FAQ – Applicants
In a proposal with three or more applicants, can one applicant be based abroad?
Yes, this is possible. For collaborative projects with three or more applicants, one person can work at a research institution abroad.
Please note: The SNSF has concluded agreements with partner organisations in many countries. Proposals that include applicants from these countries must be submitted as a Weave, Lead Agency or International Co-Investigator Scheme proposal. For such applications, only one applicant from Switzerland is formally required.
Can two applicants from abroad participate in a proposal with three or more applicants?
No, for collaborative projects, only one applicant from abroad is allowed.
An exception is made for applications submitted as part of the Weave, Lead Agency or International Co-Investigator Scheme. For such proposals, several applicants from abroad may be allowed to apply, depending on the regulations of the partner organisation.
I would like to submit an application with three or more applicants. One of these applicants comes from a country with which the SNSF has a reciprocal agreement. Can I still submit the application outside of the Weave, Lead Agency or International Co-Investigator Scheme?
Exceptions are possible for applications in disciplines that are explicitly excluded from certain reciprocal agreements. Such exclusions exist, for example, for the Weave/Lead Agency agreements with the USA and Germany in clinical research.
If you wish to make use of such an exception, you must submit written proof from the foreign partner organisation (e.g. the NSF or the DFG) to the SNSF. This confirms that the application cannot be submitted within the framework of Weave/Lead Agency. We will only evaluate your application if you provide this proof at the time of submission.
Please note that the International Co-Investigator Agreement with the UK is limited to the humanities and social sciences. Applications with researchers from the UK in the social sciences and humanities must be submitted under the International Co-Investigator Scheme. However, proposals with an applicant from the UK in the MINT and life science domains must be submitted as collaborative projects, requiring minimum two further Swiss applicants.
One applicant from a partner country is participating in my Weave, Lead Agency or International Co-Investigator Scheme application. Can another foreign co-applicant from a country without a reciprocal agreement with the SNSF also take part?
No. For the Weave, Lead Agency and International Co-Investigator Scheme, the respective agreements apply. Additional applicants from a country without a reciprocal agreement are not permitted.
Are there additional eligibility criteria for applicants in collaborative projects (two or more applicants)?
Collaborations must provide added value to the project. Therefore, we expect that there should be no hierarchical dependencies between applicants.
FAQ – Coordination costs for collaborative grants
Can I employ a collaborator (part-time) to coordinate research in a collaborative project funded by a project funding grant?
In principle, yes. There is no limit on the amount that can be granted for such costs, but they must be reasonable.
FAQ – Budget limits
Does the limit of 250,000 francs per applicant per year apply to each applicant individually?
No, the applicants can divide the funding among themselves. The average total expenditure must not exceed the limit of 250,000 francs per applicant per year.
This rule also applies to applicants from abroad who apply for the International Co-Investigator Scheme. Please note that the budget requested by these applicants may not exceed 50 per cent (30 per cent for SSH projects with the UK) of the total budget requested.
In the case of Weave/Lead Agency applications, the budgets for applicants from abroad are not part of the grant approved by the SNSF. The SNSF does not cover any costs incurred in the country of the applicant from abroad.
When budgeting, can I exceed the limit of 250,000 francs per applicant per year at the beginning of the grant if the average spending level respects the limit over the entire duration of the grant?
Yes. The limit of 250,000 francs per applicant per year must be adhered to as an average value over the entire duration of the grant. This means that you can spend more at the beginning of the project, for example to purchase equipment, and compensate by spending less towards the end of the funding period.
FAQ – What information can be submitted
Can I submit a cover letter?
No. The content of a cover letter is not standardised and may supplement the research plan, which is not permitted for equality reasons.
Can I submit a letter of support?
No. Not only the applicants, but also the project partners must create a personal account on the portal and enter their data themselves. By working directly on the proposal, they demonstrate their commitment to actively participate in the planned project. This eliminates the need for a letter of support.
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