Recommendations for the further roll-out of lump-sums in Horizon Europe
In response to the announcement of the European Commission’s plans to vastly increase the use of lump sums in Horizon Europe as of 2023, LERU consulted its members to collect their input which is the basis of this note. An increased lump sum use can be a real simplification for the post-award stage of Horizon Europe projects. However, there are still some concerns related to lump sum use. LERU makes recommendations for the European Commission to address these concerns.
The recommendations mainly aim at:
1) the EC taking some more time to learn from the pilot lump sum projects;
2) for the EC to ensure proper training material and guidance for applicants, project officers and evaluators on the lump sum approach is available and
3) for the EC to monitor in the short and longer run, the potential negative side-effects of the lump sum approach.