EU Grants for Startups: What a German Startup Can Apply For in 2026 and 2027

EU grants for startups are non-repayable payments funded by the European Union for a defined innovation project, usually awarded after a competitive call. For a startup in Germany between now and mid-2027, five are worth your time: the EIC Accelerator, Eurostars, Women TechEU, the EUIPO SME Fund and cascade funding calls. This guide shows what each pays, who is shut out and when the next window opens.

What are EU grants for startups?

EU grants for startups pay part of the costs of a defined project, such as finishing a prototype, and you report on how the money was spent. They are awarded through calls with fixed criteria and deadlines. They do not cover general runway, and they never have to be repaid.

According to the EU's Your Europe portal, indirect funding managed by national and regional authorities makes up nearly 80% of the EU budget. Many "EU grants" therefore reach German companies through a federal state programme. Our EU funding guide maps the direct, shared and indirect routes in detail.

Most EU grants for startups also require you to be a small or medium-sized enterprise (SME). The European Commission sets the ceiling at fewer than 250 staff and up to EUR 50 million turnover, or a balance sheet of up to EUR 43 million. Under the EU's SME recommendation, a company holding 25% or more of your capital or voting rights counts as a partner enterprise, so check your cap table first.

Which European grants for startups are open to German companies in 2026?

Five EU grants are realistically open to a startup in Germany between October 2026 and mid-2027: the EIC Accelerator, Eurostars, Women TechEU, the EUIPO SME Fund and cascade funding calls. Their biggest differences are who may apply and how mature your technology has to be.

Sources: European Innovation Council, Eureka Network and EUIPO programme pages, checked 6 October 2026.

The EIC Accelerator is the European Innovation Council's grant-plus-equity instrument for single startups and SMEs that develop and scale up innovations. It has EUR 634 million under the EIC's 2026 work programme. Its grant funds work at Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 6 to 8 on the EU's technical maturity scale. Our EIC Accelerator programme guide covers the stages and the jury interview.

Eurostars partners are each paid at home: in Germany, the Federal Ministry for Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) funds the German share. If you want support on the German side, BeFunded's Eurostars funding consultancy takes the project from proposal to payout.

Cascade funding, also called financial support to third parties (FSTP), passes EU money from a funded project to startups and SMEs for the uptake or development of digital innovation. Under the Horizon Europe model grant agreement (PDF), the amount for each company may not be more than EUR 60,000. The only exception is a project whose objective would otherwise be impossible or overly difficult.

Are there EU grants for small businesses outside deep tech?

Yes. Smaller EU grants for small businesses exist outside deep tech, and most run through German bodies. The practical routes are the EUIPO SME Fund for intellectual property costs and a European Digital Innovation Hub (EDIH) for subsidised digital services. The largest is a regional programme paid for by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).

The EUIPO SME Fund, run by the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), reimburses part of your trade mark, design and patent fees. According to the EUIPO, its 2026 budget of EUR 18 million is paid out first come, first served, so apply early in the year.

European Digital Innovation Hubs let SMEs and startups test digital technologies before they invest. According to the EU's EDIH network, 16 EDIHs currently support companies across Germany (page in German), and each hub decides whether a service is free or subsidised.

According to the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWE), Germany receives about EUR 11.0 billion from the ERDF for 2021 to 2027 (page in German). The ministry says the federal states implement most of the structural funds, so you apply to your state, not to Brussels.

InvestEU is finance rather than a grant. According to the European Commission, the InvestEU Fund is expected to mobilise more than EUR 372 billion through an EU budget guarantee of EUR 26.2 billion. SMEs reach it through local banks whose products carry that guarantee. Our guide to non-dilutive funding in Europe compares grants, tax incentives and loans.

Which EU startup funding is closed to German companies?

Several EU grants for startups shut out German applicants by country or company size, and Germany's Eurostars rules add a technology-stage limit. One budget has also run dry for 2026. Six rules decide whether a German startup can apply at all, so check them before you write a proposal.

Sources: European Innovation Council; Eureka Network, German national Eurostars rules; EUIPO; checked 6 October 2026.

If you are not sure where your project sits on the Technology Readiness Level scale, read TRL levels explained before you choose.

How competitive is EU funding for startups, and how long does the money take?

EU funding for startups is selective and slow to arrive. In the European Innovation Council (EIC) Accelerator round announced on 15 June 2026, 38 of the 87 companies interviewed were selected, and most grant agreements follow within about three months. Eurostars aims to sign national agreements five to seven months after the call deadline.

The EIC's June 2026 results announcement lists EUR 90 million in grants and EUR 202 million set aside for possible equity. Another 95 applicants passed the quality threshold but received only a Seal of Excellence, a quality label without money. Germany was among the five countries with the most winners.

Ekaterina Zaharieva is the European Commissioner for Startups, Research, and Innovation. "The European Innovation Council was built to take risks," she said in June 2026, when the EIC opened investments in defence and dual-use technologies. Name the risk plainly, then show how you will manage it.

Sources: EIC Accelerator programme page and June 2026 results; Eureka Network, Eurostars Call 11 page; checked 6 October 2026.

If your runway ends before an agreement can be signed, a grant will not rescue it. Our guide to EIC Accelerator 2026 cut-off dates sets out the real odds behind each remaining date.

EIC Accelerator or Eurostars: which EU grant fits your startup?

A single company ready for TRL 6 to 8 work and open to outside equity fits the EIC Accelerator. A company with a partner in another Eurostars country and work up to TRL 6 fits Eurostars, where Germany funds SMEs at up to 50% of eligible costs.

A Eurostars project must be led by an innovative SME and include at least two independent entities from two Eurostars countries. One of those countries must be an EU or Horizon Europe associated country, and the project can run for 36 months at most. Our guide to Eureka Eurostars funding covers national rates and the call cycle.

An anonymised BeFunded case shows what the EIC grant pays for. A medtech company had a diagnostic device based on sensor fusion and signal processing, but no clinical-grade design or bench data to validate it. A grant of about EUR 2.4 million now funds that work, with EIC Fund equity available as an option for scale-up. Read the full case on EIC Accelerator funding for a medtech device.

How does the Forschungszulage, Germany's research allowance, fit next to an EU grant?

Germany's research allowance, the Forschungszulage, is a tax-based incentive that pays a share of eligible R&D costs, so it belongs in the same plan as any EU grant. According to the Deutsche Industrie- und Handelskammer (DIHK), SMEs claim 35% on up to EUR 12 million of costs from 2026, worth up to EUR 4.2 million a year.

The research allowance also reaches loss-making startups. The Federal Ministry of Finance (BMF) explains that the tax office credits the allowance against your assessed tax and pays out any surplus (page in German).

If a project also carries an EU grant, map every cost line to one funding source and have the split checked against the Research Allowance Act (FZulG) before you claim. BeFunded's research allowance consulting runs the claim from the first eligibility check to filing and payout.

EU grant deadlines from October 2026 to mid-2027

Four dates matter most for German applicants to EU grants for startups over the next six months: 4 November 2026, 4 December 2026, 17 December 2026 and 4 March 2027. Short EIC proposals are batched on the first Tuesday of each month, and every later step adds weeks.

Sources: EIC, EUIPO, Eureka Network; first-Tuesday dates calculated by BeFunded from the EIC batching rule; checked 6 October 2026.

EIC short-proposal feedback takes four to six weeks, so a short proposal submitted in October 2026 leaves no realistic time for the 4 November cut-off. The 2027 EIC cut-off dates follow in the next EIC work programme.

1. Check your SME status, including any shareholder with 25% or more.
2. Place your technology on the TRL scale and pick one instrument.
3. Count back from the month you need the money, using the timeline table.
4. Book the earliest real window: a short proposal for the EIC, a signed partner for Eurostars or a voucher for the EUIPO SME Fund.

If your technology is ready for TRL 6 to 8 work and you want to apply alone, BeFunded's EIC Accelerator funding consulting starts with a free eligibility check. We then time your short proposal backwards from your target cut-off, write the 20-page full proposal with you and rehearse the interview. The fee is a fixed share plus a success component, agreed before work starts.

This guide is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Programme rules and deadlines change, so confirm them with the funding body or a qualified adviser before you apply.