EU Grants for Spain: Complete Funding Guide for Spanish Organizations [2026]

Spain is the third-largest recipient of Horizon Europe funding in the EU, with over EUR 3.4 billion secured in 2021-2023 competitive calls. Combined with EUR 163 billion in NextGenerationEU/PRTR allocation and substantial ERDF structural funds, Spanish organisations have access to more EU money per capita than in any previous cycle.

This guide covers every major EU funding route available to Spanish companies, universities, research institutions, startups, and public bodies in 2026, including national co-funding infrastructure through CDTI and regional agencies.

EUR 3.4B+

Horizon Europe 2021-2023

3rd in EU

Horizon Europe ranking

EUR 163B

NextGenerationEU allocation

11.7%

Share of EU Horizon funds

Spain in Horizon Europe: Record Performance

According to FECYT data published in 2024, Spanish entities reached 11.7% of total funds allocated to EU countries in Horizon Europe 2021-2023, ranking third behind Germany and France for the first time. This represents Spain's best result in any EU Framework Programme.

Spain also leads Horizon Europe's Pillar II SME participation rankings, with more than 500 SME participants, placing it first among EU member states. Spain also leads in the digital and green transition clusters within Pillar II, according to Science|Business analysis.

Metric	Spain (2021-2023)	EU context
Total secured	EUR 3.4B+	3rd largest in EU
Share of EU-country funds	11.7%	Best result ever for Spain
SME participation (Pillar II)	500+ SMEs	1st in EU
ERA calls participation	66 funded projects	4th highest in EU
ERA projects coordinated	9 projects	Active leadership role

Key support infrastructure

Spain established the Spanish Office for Science and Technology (SOST) in Brussels and launched specialised training programmes for European project managers to boost proposal quality. These investments directly contributed to the record 2021-2023 results.

CDTI Innovacion: Spain's Central Innovation Agency

CDTI Innovacion (formerly CDTI) is Spain's primary national agency for R&D and innovation financing. It operates under the Ministry of Science and serves two functions simultaneously: it is Spain's official National Contact Point (NCP) for Horizon Europe and it manages domestic innovation funding instruments.

For 2026, CDTI Innovacion plans to deploy up to EUR 1.817 billion across grants, venture capital, public procurement, and soft loans for business R&D. This makes CDTI one of the largest national innovation agencies in the EU by annual budget.

NEOTEC

Support for technology-based startups in early consolidation phase.

Up to EUR 250K non-repayable grant

2026 budget: up to EUR 40M total

Target: deep-tech R&D-intensive companies

Annual call, competitive selection

CDTI R&D Projects

Blended financing for industrial R&D projects by Spanish companies.

Up to 85% of eligible costs covered

Non-repayable portion: 10-33%

Remaining portion: low-interest soft loan

Minimum project budget: EUR 175K

Misiones Ciencia e Innovacion

Large collaborative R&D projects addressing socio-economic challenges.

Up to EUR 145M per call

Consortium-based, challenge-driven

Topics: sustainability, energy, health, defence

Structured as industry-academia consortia

International Cooperation

CDTI support for Eurostars and bilateral calls.

Eurostars: SME-led international R&D

Bilateral call with Korea: EUR 17M

Seal of Excellence: EUR 15M (EIC near-misses)

EU Partnerships co-funding

NextGenerationEU and the PRTR

Spain is one of the largest beneficiaries of NextGenerationEU. According to the Spanish Ministry of Science, the total allocation reaches EUR 163 billion: EUR 79.8 billion in grants (EUR 69.5B initial + EUR 10.3B addendum) and up to EUR 83.2 billion in available loans.

These funds are channelled through the Plan de Recuperacion, Transformacion y Resiliencia (PRTR), organised around four cross-cutting priorities:

Green transition (renewable energy, circular economy, buildings renovation)
Digital transformation (5G, AI, public administration digitalisation)
Social and territorial cohesion (housing, healthcare, education)
Gender equality

For organisations, PRTR funds are accessed through public tenders (licitaciones), direct grants (subvenciones), and subsidised loans published by ministries, SEPI, and autonomous communities. Key programmes include the EUR 355M renewables manufacturing fund, PERTE (Projects of Strategic Interest for Spain) in electric vehicles, aerospace, agroalimentary, and health sectors, and the EUR 300M EIF/Ministry of Science facility for disruptive technology transfer.

PRTR Priority	Key instrument	Target beneficiaries
Green transition	PERTE VEC, MOVES III, renewable manufacturing	Industry, households
Digital transformation	PERTE Chip, Digitalizacion Pymes	Companies, public sector
Innovation & R&D	CDTI missions, EIF facility	Research, startups, scale-ups
Social cohesion	Plan de Rehabilitacion, Kit Digital	SMEs, households, municipalities

Structural Funds: ERDF and ESF+ in Spain 2021-2027

Beyond Horizon Europe and PRTR, Spain receives substantial Cohesion Policy funding for 2021-2027. ERDF and ESF+ programmes are managed by each autonomous community through regional operational programmes, with less-developed regions (Extremadura, Castilla-La Mancha, Andalusia, Murcia, Ceuta, Melilla) eligible for higher co-financing rates of up to 80%.

Spanish companies and research organisations can access ERDF funding through regional innovation calls for industrial R&D projects, equipment co-financing, and Digital Innovation Hub (DIH) activities. Key regional ERDF-funded programmes include:

Catalonia: ACCION grants for R&D, digitalisation, and internationalisation
Valencia: IVACE+i grants for industrial R&D, co-financed by ERDF
Basque Country: SPRI R&D programmes with ERDF co-financing
Andalusia: Agencia IDEA grants for industrial projects and SME support
Madrid: IMADE support for innovation and internationalisation

Regional Innovation Agencies: Key Access Points

ACCION (Catalonia)

Agency for Business Competitiveness. Leads DIH4CAT and manages ERDF-funded R&D, digitalisation, and internationalisation grants for Catalan companies.

IVACE+i (Valencia)

Valencian Institute of Competitiveness and Innovation. Six annual R&D support programmes co-financed by ERDF. Also manages the Promotion of Talent Programme.

SPRI (Basque Country)

Basque Business Development Agency. Co-finances R&D projects, manages ERDF smart specialisation calls, and connects Basque companies with Horizon Europe consortia.

AVI (Valencia region)

Agencia Valenciana de la Innovacio. Coordinates Valencian innovation system actors and runs targeted calls for challenge-driven collaborative projects.

Top Sectors for EU Funding in Spain

Spain's Horizon Europe performance is concentrated in sectors that align with national research strengths and EU strategic priorities. According to Science|Business analysis, Spain leads Horizon Europe in the digital and green transition clusters within Pillar II.

Sector	Relevant EU programme	Spanish strengths
Renewable energy & clean tech	Horizon Cluster 5, Innovation Fund	Solar, wind, hydrogen
Digital & AI	Horizon Cluster 4, Digital Europe	Cybersecurity, HPC, AI labs
Agri-food & biotechnology	Horizon Cluster 6, Horizon Cluster 1	Precision agriculture, food safety
Health & life sciences	Horizon Cluster 1, EU4Health	Oncology, personalised medicine
Advanced manufacturing	Horizon Cluster 4, PERTE VEC	Aerospace, automotive, Industry 4.0
Security & space	Horizon Cluster 3, European Defence Fund	Border management, satellite tech

Key Spanish Research Organisations in Horizon Europe

Spain's research base is one of the most active in Horizon Europe. Several institutions consistently rank among the highest-funded organisations across EU member states:

CSIC (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas): Spain's national research council and one of the largest research organisations in Europe. Among the top-funded institutions in Horizon Europe across all pillars.
Universidad Politecnica de Madrid (UPM): Leading Spanish technical university with strong Horizon Europe participation in engineering, energy, and ICT.
Universitat Politecnica de Catalunya (UPC): Strong presence in digital technologies, smart cities, and sustainable energy.
Fundacion TECNALIA: Spain's largest applied research centre, based in the Basque Country. Active in industry 4.0, energy, and health.
Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC): European HPC hub, active in Horizon Europe's digital cluster and EuroHPC partnerships.

How to Apply: Step-by-Step for Spanish Organizations

Identify the right programme

Use GrantsFinder or the EU Funding and Tenders Portal to find open calls matching your sector. For Horizon Europe, check the work programme for your relevant cluster. For CDTI direct funding, visit cdti.es.

Contact your NCP

CDTI-SOST operates Spain's National Contact Point network for Horizon Europe. Free advisory sessions are available for Spanish applicants. NCPs can advise on consortium building, proposal structure, and eligibility before you invest time in a full application.

Build your consortium

Most Horizon Europe calls require at least three partners from different member states. Use the EU partner search tool and CDTI's Horizon Europe support events to find complementary partners. For CDTI R&D projects, a Spanish-only consortium is sufficient.

Prepare and submit

Allow 2-3 months for Horizon Europe proposals. Focus the narrative on Excellence, Impact, and Implementation. For CDTI direct applications, the online portal requires a technical and financial dossier. Regional agency calls (ACCION, IVACE, SPRI) have their own portals and typically shorter timelines.

Explore stacking options

Spanish organisations can stack EU grants with national CDTI co-funding, regional ERDF grants, and tax incentives for R&D (deducciones fiscales por I+D+i under article 35 of the Corporate Tax Law). This stacking is explicitly permitted and can raise total public support to 70-85% of eligible costs for SMEs.

Seal of Excellence: a Spanish-specific safety net

Spanish applicants who score above the EIC Accelerator threshold but do not receive EU funding due to budget constraints can apply to CDTI's Sello de Excelencia programme for up to EUR 150K in national co-funding. This is a unique Spanish instrument that lowers the risk of a strong EIC application.

Tax Incentives for R&D in Spain

In addition to grants, Spain offers some of the most generous R&D tax deductions in the OECD. Under Article 35 of the Corporate Tax Law (Ley del Impuesto sobre Sociedades), Spanish companies can deduct:

25% deduction on qualifying R&D expenditure (increased to 42% for expenditure above the average of the previous two years)
8% deduction on qualifying technological innovation (IT) expenditure
Deductions can be applied to corporate income tax, and unused credits can be carried forward 18 years or converted to cash refunds (with a 20% discount) under certain conditions

CDTI also issues Informes Motivados (motivated reports) that certify which company expenditures qualify as R&D for tax purposes, reducing audit risk. This makes the CDTI-tax-deduction combination one of the most effective R&D financing stacks in Europe.

Frequently Asked Questions

What EU grants are available for Spanish companies in 2026?

Spanish companies can access Horizon Europe (collaborative R&D, EIC Accelerator, EIC Pathfinder), CDTI direct financing (grants and soft loans for R&D), NextGenerationEU/PRTR tenders managed by ministries, ERDF and ESF+ regional programmes via autonomous communities, and sector-specific calls such as Digital Europe, LIFE, Erasmus+, and the EIB/EIF InvestEU facility.

What is CDTI and how does it help Spanish companies access EU funding?

CDTI Innovacion (Centro para el Desarrollo Tecnologico y la Innovacion) is Spain's main national innovation agency under the Ministry of Science. It acts as Spain's National Contact Point (NCP) for Horizon Europe and manages domestic co-funding. CDTI offers direct R&D loans and grants, administers the NEOTEC programme for technology-based startups, supports Eurostars participation, and provides the Sello de Excelencia (Seal of Excellence) grants to Spanish applicants who score above threshold in the EIC Accelerator but miss funding.

How much has Spain received from Horizon Europe?

According to FECYT data, Spanish entities secured over EUR 3.4 billion from Horizon Europe 2021-2023 competitive calls, representing 11.7% of funds allocated to EU countries. This placed Spain third in the EU for the first time, behind Germany and France. Spain also leads Horizon Europe's Pillar II in SME participation.

What is the PRTR and how can Spanish organizations access it?

The Plan de Recuperacion, Transformacion y Resiliencia (PRTR) is Spain's national mechanism to deploy NextGenerationEU funds. Spain has access to EUR 163 billion total (EUR 79.8 billion in grants and up to EUR 83.2 billion in loans). Funds flow through public tenders, direct grants, and subsidised loans managed by central ministries and autonomous communities, with major lines for green transition, digitalisation, and industrial transformation.

Which Spanish regions offer additional EU co-funding?

Every autonomous community manages ERDF and ESF+ operational programmes for 2021-2027. Key regional agencies include ACCION (Catalonia), IVACE+i (Valencia), SPRI (Basque Country), Junta de Andalucia (Andalusia), and AVI (Valencian Innovation Agency). Less-developed regions such as Extremadura and Castilla-La Mancha benefit from higher ERDF co-financing rates of up to 80%.

What are Spain's top sectors for EU funding?

Spain leads Horizon Europe in the digital and green transition pillars. Top funded sectors include renewable energy and clean tech, agri-food and biotechnology, digital infrastructure and AI, health and life sciences, and advanced manufacturing. Spain's scientific network includes institutions like CSIC, which consistently ranks among the top funded research organisations in Horizon Europe.

Can Spanish startups apply directly for Horizon Europe EIC grants?

Yes. Spanish startups and scale-ups can apply directly to the EIC Accelerator (up to EUR 2.5M grant + EUR 15M equity), EIC Pathfinder (up to EUR 3M for early-stage deep tech), and EIC Transition. CDTI provides preparatory support and, for near-miss applications, the Sello de Excelencia national top-up grant. Spain also has NEOTEC (up to EUR 250K for early-stage technology companies) as a stepping stone.

What success rate do Spanish proposals achieve in Horizon Europe?

Spain's overall Horizon Europe success rate is broadly in line with the EU average of around 17%, but varies significantly by programme and organisation type. Spanish universities and research centres such as CSIC and UPM achieve rates above the EU average. SME success rates in Horizon Europe Pillar II are above average, consistent with Spain ranking first among EU member states for SME participation.

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