Joint Proposal Submission with Austria and Switzerland (D-A-CH)

Agreements exist between the DFG and its partner organisations FWF (Austrian Science Fund) and SNF (Swiss National Science Foundation) regarding a mutual opening of the respective funding procedures (Lead Agency Process) to facilitate the implementation of cross-border research projects. From 1 January 2021 this will be the Weave Lead Agency Process in connection with individual funding (research grants), while the D-A-CH Lead Agency Process will continue to apply in connection with coordinated programmes.

For details of the Weave Lead Agency Process, please refer to the relevant DFG website (see below for further information).

The following only concerns the D-A-CH Lead Agency Process in connection with the DFG’s coordinated programmes. Within the FWF programme structure, the D-A-CH Lead Agency Process can also be applied to FWF-Special Research Programmes. For this, please contact the FWF.
On the side of the DFG, the project with participation from Germany is submitted as an individual grant. Please note that the maximum duration for proposals with participation from Germany is 36 months, differing from the regular duration of 48 months for FWF-Special Research Programmes. In the event of approval, a continuation proposal can be submitted to the DFG for the remaining 12 months. A processing time of 6-9 months should be taken into account.
Please get in touch with the contact persons mentioned below prior to submitting your application.

Programme/Organisation SNSF FWF
Research Groups Up to 2 projects (individual projects or participation in German projects) within the Lead-Agency-Procedure Up to 2 projects (individual projects or participation in German projects) within the Lead-Agency-Procedure
Collaborative Research Centres No participation
  • Up to 2 projects (individual projects or involvement in German projects) similarly to Research Groups
  • From 5 projects as Joint DFG-CRC/Transregio or as FWF-Special Research Programme

Priority Programmes Participation as part of an integrated project (Joint Project) No participation

Purpose

Implementation of a research project that is limited in terms of topic and schedule under the coordinated programmes “Research Groups”, “Priority Programmes” or “Collaborative Research Centres” with partners from Switzerland and/or Austria.

Eligibility Requirements

For the programmes “Research Groups” and “Priority Programmes”, Researchers of all disciplines from German research institutions who have completed research training (usually a doctorate) and their partners from Austria/Switzerland, who must be eligible to apply to the respective funding organisations for funding and for the programme, “Collaborative Research Centres”, Universities (and institutions of equivalent status entitled to confer doctorates) in Germany.

Not eligible: Members of organisations that are dedicated solely to commercial purposes; members of organisations that are not permitted to publish their results in a publicly accessible form.

Proposal Requirements

The projects must compete with proposals submitted nationally. Research projects must therefore feature a high degree of scientific quality and originality at an internationally competitive level.

The lead agency is always the DFG. Funding for these D-A-CH projects is always provided separately by the respective nationally responsible funding organisation.

Type and Extent of Funding

The type and extent of funding for the German component of a project is based on the rules for Research Groups, Priority Programmes and Collaborative Research Centres.

Funding Duration

Project-specific (usually several years)

Forms and Guidelines

For details of how to apply to the FWF and SNF, please see the website (see below for more information).

  • New proposal: no deadline for submission
  • Renewal proposal: no later than 6 months before the approved funds have been used

In addition, the proposal deadlines of the partner organisations must be observed.

The relevant department at DFG Head Office will be more than happy to provide you with details of how to submit a proposal.

Proposal Submission for Research Groups, under the Priority Programme and FWF-Special Research Programmes:

Proposal Submission for Collaborative Research Centres:

Technical questions:

Information provided by the FWF and SNF on Lead Agency Processes with the DFG

Information on the Weave Lead Agency Process

General information on international cooperation