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Organisation and implementation of a biennial European Union Prize for contemporary architecture
Date de clôture : 18 août 2017  
APPEL À PROJET CLÔTURÉ

 Architecture
 Héritage culturel
 Culture et développement
 Patrimoine industriel
 Europe créative

1. INTRODUCTION – BACKGROUND

The Work Programme for Creative Europe for 2017 C(2016) 5822 final as adopted by the Commission envisages the support of EU prizes in the field of culture.

The purpose of this call for proposals is to support an organisation/consortium in organising the European Union Prize for contemporary architecture for the European Commission (hereafter “the Commission”) for the period 2018-2021 (editions 2019 and 2021 of the Prize). The action would entail the development of selection procedures for the Prize winners, the organisation of award ceremonies and side events as well as the promotion of the Prizes and their winners via communication activities at local, national, European and international levels. The successful applicant will be invited to sign a framework partnership agreement for a maximum period of four years (i.e. two biennial editions of the prize), subject to biennial confirmation from the European Commission (see section 3).

The European Union Prize for contemporary architecture is one of the special actions implemented under the Culture Sub-programme of the EU programme "Creative Europe"1 (hereafter “the Programme”), the programme for the cultural and creative sectors (CCS) for the 2014-2020 period, based on Articles 166, 167 and 173 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (hereafter "EU").

The general objectives of the Creative Europe programme are to:
• Foster the safeguarding and promotion of European cultural and linguistic diversity;

 

 

and

• Strengthen the competitiveness of the cultural and creative sectors with a view to promoting smart, sustainable and inclusive growth.

2. OBJECTIVES
2.1. General objectives

Architecture as a sector among the larger group of cultural and creative industries has the specificity of being linked with the construction market while transmitting a cultural message since its primary focus is on the design quality and sustainability of a building. Architecture brings a significant contribution to sustainable development in Europe, but also to European cultural and social life. It has a great influence on the way people live, work and spend their leisure time even if they may not always realise it. There is therefore a need to sensitize citizens to the importance of quality architecture and the impact it can have on their quality of life.

In cultural terms Europe is a fragmented market with limited cross-border mobility for professionals in the cultural and creative sectors. As a consequence this fragmentation makes it harder for architects to work internationally, especially in the case of emerging architects. On the other hand there is an important need for architects to access a larger market than their national one, particularly during economic downturns, through transnational commissions.

Furthermore, high quality architecture needs to be supported by clients who understand its technical, environmental, social and cultural value; this may potentially foster more outstanding projects being financed by clients in Europe, ensuring the continuity of a long-standing tradition of European excellence in this field.

Against this backdrop, the EU has been co-funding the EU Prize for contemporary architecture since 1988; since 2001, the Prize has been supported by the EU Culture Programme and subsequently by the Creative Europe Programme, as a "Special Action"2.

The aim of the EU Prize for contemporary architecture is:

  • -  to highlight recent, excellent examples of architectural creativity in works which are less than two years old,

  • -  to underline that modern architecture is socially and culturally rooted in European cities and is important to people's everyday lives,

  • -  to build and help raise awareness on the benefits architecture can generate for growth, jobs, environment and social cohesion.

The prize shall include the following sub-categories: - Winner of the Architecture Prize
- Special mention for the emerging architect
- Architecture student award

Accordingly, the Prize is to be seen in the wider context of the EU’s Creative Europe programme, which provides further funding opportunities for architecture and other cultural and creative sectors, with a view to helping architects, other artists and culture professionals to develop international careers and work across borders.

 

2.2. Specific objectives

The aim of this call for proposals is to ensure the continuation of the contemporary architecture Prize beyond the 2017 edition and to include a new Architecture Student Award as of 2018. More specifically it is to select an organisation/consortium that will be supported financially by the European Commission in the form of a grant to:

  1. (a)  Develop a solid and reliable mechanism to select and award European architectural works and architects that illustrate the aim of the Prize (c.f. section 2.1 above);

  2. (b)  Organise biennial highly professional and visible awards ceremonies for the Prize. These ceremonies should showcase the talent and creativity that exist in the field of architecture in Europe;

  3. (c)  Ensure a continued high visibility for the Prize, their winners and the values they promote by engaging with different target group throughout the years;

  4. (d)  Develop networking and partnership activities with a view to ensuring the sustainable impact of the Prize.

  5. (e)  Organise a biennial exhibition on the Prize in Brussels

The Prize being supported within the framework of the Creative Europe programme, the conditions for participation in the award scheme are determined in the regulation establishing this programme (article 13 (e) of Regulation (EU) No 1295/2013 of 11 December 2013 establishing the Creative Europe Programme (2014 to 2020)3. In particular the programme is open to EU Member States and to other participating countries as long as they meet the conditions referred to in article 8 of the above- mentioned regulation4.

 

3. FRAMEWORK PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT

The Commission will support the EU prize for contemporary architecture through a four- year framework partnership agreement, for a period of 48 months starting with the date of signature, subject to the funds being made available by the budgetary authority, on a biannual basis (starting with the 2019 edition of the Prize with preparatory work in 2018 until the 2021 edition of the Prize with preparatory work in 2020).

The framework partnership agreement will set out the conditions governing biennial grants for an action, on the basis of a four year strategic plan. The framework partnership agreement defines the respective roles and responsibilities of the Commission and the selected organisation(s) in implementing the partnership. It presents the common objectives agreed by the organisation(s) and the Commission; the type of activities envisaged; the procedure to conclude a specific agreement for a biennial grant for an action as well as the general rights and the obligations of each party under the grant specific agreements. The framework partnership agreement will not constitute an obligation for the Commission to conclude specific agreements for a biennial grant for an action.

 

As part of the application for the framework partnership agreement, the applicant is required to submit an overall work programme for its entire duration. The work programme of the organisation(s) shall comprise:

- an overall description of activities and outputs for the entire period of the framework partnership agreement and a description of how these activities will be divided into biennial work plans.

- a detailed work plan for the first two-year period (2018-2019).

Together with the other information provided, it will form the basis for awarding the framework partnership agreement.

 

4. AWARD OF SPECIFIC GRANT AGREEMENTS

In addition and in order to ensure a timely start of the activities planned under the framework partnership agreement, a detailed work plan and a corresponding budget5 are requested for the first two years, which may be subject to a specific grant agreement concluded after signature of the framework partnership agreement. This detailed work plan for the first two year period should demonstrate how the applicant intends to implement the work programme of the framework partnership agreement; it will be subject to a separate evaluation and award decision.

For the second two-year period, and subject to the availability of funds, the Commission will invite the organisation(s) with whom the framework partnership agreement has been signed to provide a detailed biennial work plan and a corresponding budget in order to conclude a specific agreement for an action grant for the period 2020-2021. The detailed work programmes for the second two-year period will be assessed against the award criteria indicated in this call (section 10).

Please note that concluding the specific agreements for an action grant is subject to the Commission's assessment of the detailed biennial work plan and the corresponding detailed budget, as well as to the availability of budgetary appropriations.

 

4. TIMETABLE

a) Publication of the call

June 2017

b) Deadline for submitting applications

18/08/2017 – 17:00

c) Evaluation period

September/ 2017

d) Information to applicants

October 2017

e) Signature of framework partnership agreement

November 2017

f) Signature of specific grant agreement

December 2017

f)Starting date of the action

January 2018

 

5. BUDGET AVAILABLE

The total budget earmarked for the co-financing of this action through a specific grant over 2018-2019 is estimated at 350.000,00 EUR. The EU grant is limited to a maximum co-financing rate of 60% of eligible costs. The appropriations for a specific grant for the 2020-2021 period will be confirmed at a later stage.

Due to the specific and unique nature of the scheme of the EU Prize for Architecture, the Commission will only sign one partnership agreement under this call and will fund only one proposal for the purposes of this action.

The Commission reserves the right not to distribute all the funds available.

 

6. ADMISSIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

Applications must be sent no later than the deadline for submitting applications referred to in section 4.

Applications must be submitted in writing (see section 15), using the application form.

Applications must be drafted in one of the EU official languages.

Failure to comply with those requirements will lead to the rejection of the application.

 

7. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

7.1. Eligible applicants

This call is open only to legal persons. The applicant(s) must have had a legal personality for at least 2 years on the date of the deadline for submission of applications and must be able to demonstrate their existence as a legal person.

In case the application is submitted by several entities working together (consortium), the legal entities must comply with the eligibility, non-exclusion and selection criteria set out in this call for proposals. All the legal entities forming the consortium must be identified in the application.

For the purpose of declaring eligible costs as specified under section 12.2, the entities composing the applicant shall be treated as affiliated entities.

Only applications from legal entities established in the countries that participate in the Creative Europe programme are eligible. The updated list of countries that participate in the Creative Europe programme can be found at https://eacea.ec.europa.eu/sites/eacea-site/files/06022017-eligible-countries.pdf

Proposals from applicants in newly participating countries to the programme may be selected provided that, on the date of award, agreements have been signed setting out the arrangements for the participation of those countries in the programme.

In order to assess the applicants' eligibility, the following supporting documents are requested:

- private entity: extract from the official journal, copy of articles of association, extract of trade or association register, certificate of liability to VAT (if, as in certain 

countries, the trade register number and VAT number are identical, only one of these documents is required);

- public entity: copy of the resolution, decision, or other official document establishing the public-law entity;

- consortium: in addition to the supporting documents referring to their legal status, consortium members will submit letters confirming their participation to the project.

The following entities will be considered as non-eligible:

- natural persons

- entities without legal personality.

 

7.2. Eligibily Activities

Types of activities eligible under this call for proposals.

  1. Organisation and awarding of a prize including development and implementation of a selection mechanism and an award ceremony;
  2. Measures proposed to create a momentum between the award ceremonies;
  3. Communication and audience development activities
  4. Networking and partnership activities.

7.3 Implementation period

 

As mentioned in section 4 above, it is expected that the starting date of the first specific action under the framework partnership agreement will be January 2018. The duration of the period of eligibility of costs of each specific grant agreement will be no longer than 24 months. No extension to the period of eligibility of costs beyond the maximum duration will be granted.

Applications for projects scheduled to run for a longer period than that specified in this call for proposals will not be accepted.

 

8. EXCLUSION CRITERIA

8.1. Exclusion from participation:

The authorising officer shall exclude an applicant from participating in call for proposals procedures where:

  1. (a)  The applicant is bankrupt, subject to insolvency or winding up procedures, where its assets are being administered by a liquidator or by a court, where it is in an arrangement with creditors, where its business activities are suspended or it is in any analogous situation arising from a similar procedure provided for under national laws or regulations;

  2. (b)  it has been established by a final judgement or a final administrative decision that the applicant is in breach of its obligations relating to the payment of taxes or social security contributions in accordance with the law of the country in which it is established, with those of the country in which the authorising officer is located or those of the country of the performance of the contract;

  3. (c) it has been established by a final judgement or a final administrative decision that the applicant is guilty of grave professional misconduct by having violated applicable laws or regulations or ethical standards of the profession to which the applicant belongs, or by having engaged in any wrongful conduct which has an impact on its professional credibility where such conduct denotes wrongful intent or gross negligence, including, in particular, any of the following:

    (i) fraudulently or negligently misrepresenting information required for the verification of the absence of grounds for exclusion or the fulfilment of selection criteria or in the performance of a contract, a grant agreement or a grant decision;

    (ii) entering into agreement with other persons with the aim of distorting competition;

    (iii) violating intellectual property rights;

    (iv) attempting to influence the decision-making process of the Commission during the award procedure;

    (v) attempting to obtain confidential information that may confer upon it undue advantages in the award procedure;

  4. (d)  it has been established by a final judgement that the applicant is guilty of any of the following:

    (i) fraud, within the meaning of Article 1 of the Convention on the protection of the European Communities' financial interests, drawn up by the Council Act of 26 July 1995;

    (ii) corruption, as defined in Article 3 of the Convention on the fight against corruption involving officials of the European Communities or officials of Member States of European Union, drawn up by the Council Act of 26 May 1997, and in Article 2(1) of Council Framework Decision 2003/568/JHA, as well as corruption as defined in the law of the country where the contracting authority is located, the country in which the applicant is established or the country of the performance of the contract;

    (iii) participation in a criminal organisation, as defined in Article 2 of Council Framework Decision 2008/841/JHA;

    iv) money laundering or terrorist financing, as defined in Article 1 of Directive 2005/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council;

    (v) terrorist-related offences or offences linked to terrorist activities, as defined in Articles 1 and 3 of Council Framework Decision 2002/475/JHA, respectively, or inciting, aiding, abetting or attempting to commit such offences, as referred to in Article 4 of that Decision;

    (vi) child labour or other forms of trafficking in human beings as defined in Article 2 of Directive 2011/36/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council;

  5. (e)  the applicant has shown significant deficiencies in complying with the main obligations in the performance of a contract, a grant agreement or a grant decision financed by the Union’s budget, which has led to its early termination or to the application of liquidated damages or other contractual penalties, or which has been discovered following checks, audits or investigations by an Authorising Officer, OLAF or the Court of Auditors;

  6. (f)  it has been established by a final judgment or final administrative decision that the applicant has committed an irregularity within the meaning of Article 1(2) of Council Regulation (EC, Euratom) No 2988/95;

  7. The same exclusion criteria apply to affiliated entities.

    Administrative and financial penalties may be imposed on applicants, or affiliated entities where applicable, who are guilty of misrepresentation.

     

    (g) for the situations of grave professional misconduct, fraud, corruption, other criminal offences, significant deficiencies in the performance of the contract or irregularity, the applicant is subject to:

    i. facts established in the context of audits or investigations carried out by the Court of Auditors, OLAF or internal audit, or any other check, audit or control performed under the responsibility of an authorising officer of an EU institution, of a European office or of an EU agency or body;

    ii. non-final administrative decisions which may include disciplinary measures taken by the competent supervisory body responsible for the verification of the application of standards of professional ethics;

    iii. decisions of the ECB, the EIB, the European Investment Fund or international organisations;

    iv. decisions of the Commission relating to the infringement of the Union's competition rules or of a national competent authority relating to the infringement of Union or national competition law.

    v. decisions of exclusion by an authorising officer of an EU institution, of a European office or of an EU agency or body.

     

8.2 Remedial measures

If an applicant declares one of the situations of exclusion listed above (see section 8.1), it should indicate the measures it has taken to remedy the exclusion situation, thus demonstrating its reliability. This may include e.g. technical, organisational and personnel measures to prevent further occurrence, compensation of damage or payment of fines. The relevant documentary evidence which illustrates the remedial measures taken must be provided in annex to the declaration. This does not apply for situations referred in point (d) of section 8.1.

8.3 Rejection from the call for proposals

The authorising officer shall not award a grant to an applicant who:

(a) is in an exclusion situation established in accordance with section 8.17;

(b) has misrepresented the information required as a condition for participating in the procedure or has failed to supply that information;

(c) was previously involved in the preparation of call for proposal documents where this entails a distortion of competition that cannot be remedied otherwise.

 

8.4 Supporting documents8

Applicants (and affiliated entities) must provide a declaration on their honour certifying that they are not in one of the situations referred to in articles 106(1) and 107 FR, by filling in the relevant form attached to the application form accompanying the call for proposals, and available as Annex 2.

This obligation may be fulfilled in one of the following ways:

(a) for mono beneficiary grants:
the applicant signs a declaration in its name and on behalf of its affiliated entities
(b) for multi beneficiaries grants:
the coordinator of a consortium signs a declaration on behalf of all applicants and their affiliated entities

 

9. SELECTION CRITERIA

9.1. Financial capacity10

The financial capacity will be assessed based on the following methodology and its annexes: http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/education_culture/calls/evaluation-grants-2016_en.htm.

Applicants must have stable and sufficient sources of funding to maintain their activity throughout the period during which the action is being carried out or the year for which the grant is awarded and to participate in its funding. The applicants' financial capacity will be assessed on the basis of the following supporting documents to be submitted with the application:

Grants with a pre-financing value of EUR 600 000 or less

For grants of this type, proof of financial capacity is constituted by a declaration on the honour by the grant applicant (see Annex 1 of the Application form).

However, in case of doubt and only for grants exceeding EUR 60 000, the assessment committee reserves the right to request supporting documents and to carry out a financial analysis as described at point 4 of the above mentioned methodology (cf. Article 131(3) of the FR)

Moreover for grants exceeding EUR 60 000, entities falling into one of the high-risk categories mentioned at point 3.1 of the methodology must provide proof of their financial capacity and are required to undergo the financial analysis provided for in point 4 of the same methodology.

On the basis of the documents submitted, if the RAO considers that financial capacity is not satisfactory, he may:

  •  request further information;

  •  propose a grant agreement without pre-financing;

  •  propose a grant agreement with a pre-financing paid in instalments;

  •  propose a grant agreement with a pre-financing covered by a bank guarantee (see section 12.3.2 below);

  •  

    where applicable, require the joint and several financial liability of all the co- beneficiaries;

    reject the application.

    Operational capacity11
    Applicants must have the professional competencies as well as appropriate qualifications

    necessary to complete the proposed action. Applicants must demonstrate:

  • -  Proven experience of minimum 5 years within the architecture sector

  • -  Access to architecture stakeholders in all participating countries in order to identify eligible quality architectural works,

  • -  Proven experience in organizing events and communication activities at European level,

  • -  Proven experience of managing at least 2 European projects over the last 5 years,

  • -  Ability to communicate fluently in at least two EU languages including English (C1 level).

In this respect, applicants have to submit a declaration on their honour, and the following supporting documents:

  •  curriculum vitae or description of the profile of the people primarily responsible for managing and implementing the operation

  •  the organisations’ activity reports;

  •  an exhaustive lists of previous projects and activities performed and connected to
  • the actions to be carried out;

In the case of legal entities forming one applicant, as specified in section 7.1, the above requirements apply to those entities.

 

10. AWARD CRITERIA

Eligible applications will be assessed on the basis of the following criteria:

A. Relevance of the proposal, its compliance to the objectives of the call (30 points)

This criterion will assess:

• The nature and suitability of the mechanisms (procedure and quantitative/qualitative criteria) proposed to select the winners, in the Prize’s specific field, in line with the objectives of the call, with a view to ensuring a balanced geographical spread of winners and developing the reputation and credibility of the Prize within its sector, specialised and mass-media and among the general public as far as possible;

• The nature and suitability of the concept proposed for the award ceremony with a view to ensuring a high quality, high profile and accessible event, good for the visibility, attractiveness and establishment of the Prize and suitable for the sector;

B. Suitability of visibility and communication activities (30 points)

This criterion will assess:

• The nature and quality of the strategy proposed to create a momentum and raise awareness of the Prize during the period between the award ceremonies, with a view to enhancing the recognition and reputation of the Prize within its sector, the media and the general public and to raising its impact, via the use (amongst other means) of media partnerships, social media and new technologies, in order to:

1) reinforce the branding acquired so far by the Prize among professionals of its sector, and

2) develop further awareness of the Prize among the media and the general public as far as possible and stimulate engagement of diverse audiences;

• The nature and suitability of the measures proposed to make the support of the European Union visible in the promotional tools and during and after the award ceremony.

C. Impact on key stakeholders of the sector and relevant partners (20 points)

This criterion will assess:

• The proposed involvement and effective mobilization of key stakeholders of the sector with a view to further embedding the Prize and actively promoting the Prize within the sector;

• The proposed involvement and effective mobilization of stakeholders and partners, including sponsors, with a view to linking the Prize and the winners with other relevant and high-visible initiatives that would help reach new target groups in Europe and beyond.

• The quality and creativity of the proposed cooperation with the sector and other relevant sectors through networking activities with a view to achieving a multiplier effect.

D. Effectiveness of the proposed methodology and organisation of the Prize (20 points)

This criterion will assess:

• The quality of the work plan and time schedule, including decision-making structures and the organisation of partnerships with the relevant sector;

• The appropriateness of the human resources allocation as well as the adequacy of the experience of the staff involved with the tasks assigned to them;

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• The relevance and allocation of the budget13 with regard to the planned activities (only relevant for the evaluation of the 2018-2019 detailed work plan in view of the specific agreement).

The applications will be evaluated by an internal evaluation committee of the European Commission. A ranked list of applications will be established for those scoring at least:

- 70 points in total, and
- 20 points for criterion A,

- 20 points for criteria B
- 15 points for criteria C,
- 15 points for criterion D.

The Commission will use this list when selecting the successful applicant for establishing this partnership agreement.

The award criteria found in this section (Section 10) will be also used to assess the detailed biannual work plans and their corresponding budgets in order to conclude specific agreements for an action grant under the partnership agreement.

 

11. LEGAL COMMITMENTS

In the event the application for framework partnership is selected, a framework partnership agreement detailing the conditions of cooperation will be sent to the applicant, as well as information on the procedure to formalise the agreement of the parties.

 

12.FINANCIAL PROVISIONS

12.1 General Principles

Non-cumulative award15

An action may only receive one grant from the EU budget.

In no circumstances shall the same costs be financed twice by the Union budget. To ensure this, applicants shall indicate the sources and amounts of Union funding received or applied for the same action or part of the action or for its (the applicant's) functioning during the same financial year as well as any other funding received or applied for the same action.16

Non-retroactivity17
No grant may be awarded retrospectively for actions already completed.

A grant may be awarded for an action which has already begun only where the applicant can demonstrate the need to start the action before the grant agreement is signed.

In such cases, costs eligible for financing may not have been incurred prior to the date of submission of the grant application.

c) Co-financing18

Co-financing means that the resources which are necessary to carry out the action or the work programme may not be entirely provided by the EU grant.

Co-financing of the action or of the work programme may take the form of:

  • −  the beneficiary's own resources,

  • −  income generated by the action or work programme,

  • −  financial contributions from third parties.

d) Balanced budget19

The estimated budget of the action must be attached to the application form. It must have revenue and expenditure in balance.

The budget must be drawn up in euros.

Applicants for whom costs will not be incurred in euros should use the exchange rate published on the Infor-euro website available at http://ec.europa.eu/budget/contracts_grants/info_contracts/inforeuro/inforeuro_en .cfm .

The applicant must ensure that the resources which are necessary to carry out the action are not be entirely provided by the EU grant.

Co-financing of the action may take the form of:

  • the beneficiary's own resources,

  • income generated by the action,

  • financial contributions from third parties.

e) Implementation contracts/subcontracting 20

Where the implementation of the action requires the award of procurement contracts (implementation contracts), the beneficiary must award the contract to the bid offering best value for money or the lowest price (as appropriate), avoiding conflicts of interests.

The beneficiary is expected to clearly document the tendering procedure and retain the documentation for the event of an audit. Entities acting in their capacity of contracting authorities in the meaning of Directive 2014/24/EU21 or contracting entities in the meaning of Directive 2014/25/EU22 must comply with the applicable national public procurement rules.

Beneficiaries may subcontract tasks forming part of the action. If they do so, they must ensure that, in addition to the above-mentioned conditions of best value for 

money and absence of conflicts of interests, the following conditions are also complied with:

  1. a)  subcontracting does not cover core tasks of the action;

  2. b)  recourse to subcontracting is justified because of the nature of the action and what is necessary for its implementation;

  3. c)  the estimated costs of the subcontracting are clearly identifiable in the estimated budget;

  4. d)  any recourse to subcontracting, if not provided for in description of the action, is communicated by the beneficiary and approved by the Commission. The Commission may grant approval:

    (i) before any recourse to subcontracting, if the beneficiaries requests an amendment

    (ii) after recourse to subcontracting if the subcontracting:

    • −  is specifically justified in the interim or final technical report and

    • −  does not entail changes to the grant agreement which would call into question the decision awarding the grant or be contrary to the equal treatment of applicants;

  5. e)  the beneficiaries ensure that certain conditions applicable to beneficiaries, enumerated in the grant agreement (e.g. visibility, confidentiality, etc.), are also applicable to the subcontractors.

f) Financial support to third parties23.

The applications may envisage provision of financial support to third parties in the form of a Prize. In such case the applications must include at least:

(a) theconditionsforparticipation;
(b) the award criteria;
(c) the amount of the prize for each sub-category (d) the payment arrangements.

12.2. Reimbursements of costs actually incurred
The grant will be defined by applying a maximum co-funding rate of 60% to the eligible

costs actually incurred and declared by the beneficiary and its affiliated entities. Eligible costs24

Eligible costs shall meet all the following criteria:

they are incurred by the beneficiary.

they are incurred during the duration of the action, with the exception of costs relating to final reports and audit certificates;

The period of eligibility of costs will start as specified in the grant agreement.

If a beneficiary can demonstrate the need to start the action before the agreement is signed, the costs eligibility period may start before that signature. Under no 

circumstances can the eligibility period start before the date of submission of the grant application.

  • −  they are indicated in the estimated budget;

  • −  they are necessary for the implementation of the action which is the subject of the

    grant;

  • −  they are identifiable and verifiable, in particular being recorded in the accounting records of the beneficiary and determined according to the applicable accounting standards of the country where the beneficiary is established and according to the usual cost accounting practices of the beneficiary;

  • −  they comply with the requirements of applicable tax and social legislation;

  • −  they are reasonable, justified, and comply with the requirements of sound

    financial management, in particular regarding economy and efficiency.

    The beneficiary's internal accounting and auditing procedures must permit direct reconciliation of the costs and revenue declared in respect of the action/project with the corresponding accounting statements and supporting documents.

    The same criteria apply to the affiliated entities.
    Eligible costs may be direct or indirect.
    Eligible direct costs
    The eligible direct costs for the action are those costs which:

    with due regard for the conditions of eligibility set out above, are identifiable as specific costs directly linked to the performance of the action and which can therefore be booked to it directly, such as :

    (a) the costs of personnel working under an employment contract with the beneficiary or equivalent appointing act and assigned to the action, provided that these costs are in line with the beneficiary's usual policy on remuneration.

    Those costs include actual salaries plus social security contributions and other statutory costs included in the remuneration. They may also comprise additional remunerations, including payments on the basis of supplementary contracts regardless of the nature of these contracts, provided that they are paid in a consistent manner whenever the same kind of work or expertise is required, independently from the source of funding used;

    The costs of natural persons working under a contract with the beneficiary other than an employment contract or who are seconded to the beneficiary by a third party against payment may also be included under such personnel costs, provided that the following conditions are fulfilled:

(i) the person works under conditions similar to those of an employee (in particular regarding the way the work is organised, the tasks that are performed and the premises where they are performed);

(ii) the result of the work belongs to the beneficiary (unless exceptionally agreed otherwise); and

(iii) the costs are not significantly different from the costs of staff performing similar tasks under an employment contract with the beneficiary;

The recommended methods for calculation of direct personnel costs are provided in Appendix.

- (b) costs of travel and related subsistence allowances, provided that these costs are in line with the beneficiary’s usual practices on travel;

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(c) the depreciation cost of equipment or other assets (new or second-hand)as recorded in the beneficiary’s accounting statements, provided that the asset:

(i) is written off in accordance with the international accounting standards and the beneficiary’s usual accounting practices; and

(ii) has been purchased in accordance with the rules on implementation contracts laid down in the grant agreement, if the purchase occurred within the implementation period;

The costs of renting or leasing equipment or other assets are also eligible, provided that these costs do not exceed the depreciation costs of similar equipment or assets and are exclusive of any finance fee;

Only the portion of the equipment’s depreciation, rental or lease costs corresponding to the implementation period and the rate of actual use for the purposes of the action may be taken into account when determining the eligible costs. By way of exception, the full cost of purchase of equipment may be eligible under the Special Conditions, if this is justified by the nature of the action and the context of the use of the equipment or assets;

(d) costs of consumables and supplies, provided that they

(i) are purchased in accordance with the rules on implementation contracts laid down in the grant agreement; and

(ii) are directly assigned to the action;

(e) costs arising directly from requirements imposed by the Agreement (dissemination of information, specific evaluation of the action, audits, translations, reproduction), including the costs of requested financial guarantees, provided that the corresponding services are purchased in accordance with the rules on implementation contracts laid down in the grant agreement;

(f) costs entailed by subcontracts, provided that specific conditions on subcontracting as laid down in the grant agreement are met;

(g) costs of financial support to third parties, provided that the conditions laid down in the grant agreement are met;

(h) duties, taxes and charges paid by the beneficiary, notably value added tax (VAT), provided that they are included in eligible direct costs, and unless specified otherwise in the grant agreement.

Eligible indirect costs (overheads)

Indirect costs are costs that are not directly linked to the action implementation and therefore cannot be attributed directly to it.

A flat-rate amount of 7 % of the total eligible direct costs of the action, is eligible as indirect costs, representing the beneficiary's general administrative costs which can be regarded as chargeable to the action/project.

Indirect costs may not include costs entered under another budget heading.

Applicants’ attention is drawn to the fact that if they are receiving an operating grant financed by the EU or Euratom budget, they may not declare indirect costs for the period(s) covered by the operating grant, unless they can demonstrate that the operating grant does not cover any costs of the action.

In order to demonstrate this, in principle, the beneficiary should:
a. use analytical cost accounting that allows to separate all costs (including

overheads) attributable to the operating grant and the action grant. For that
16

b. purpose the beneficiary should use reliable accounting codes and allocation keys ensuring that the allocation of the costs is done in a fair, objective and realistic way.

record separately:

  • −  all costs incurred for the operating grants (i.e. personnel, general running costs and other operating costs linked to the part of its usual annual activities), and

  • −  all costs incurred for the action grants (including the actual indirect costs linked to the action)

If the operating grant covers the entire usual annual activity and budget of the beneficiary, the latter is not entitled to receive any indirect costs under the action grant.

Ineligible costs

  • –  return on capital and dividends paid by a beneficiary;

  • –  debt and debt service charges;

  • –  provisions for losses or debts;

  • –  interest owed;

  • –  doubtful debts;

  • –  exchange losses;

  • –  costs of transfers from the Commission charged by the bank of a beneficiary;

  • –  costs declared by the beneficiary under another action receiving a grant financed from the Union budget. Such grants include grants awarded by a Member State and financed from the Union budget and grants awarded by bodies other than the Commission for the purpose of implementing the Union budget. In particular, beneficiaries receiving an operating grant financed by the EU or Euratom budget cannot declare indirect costs for the period(s) covered by the operating grant, unless they can demonstrate that the operating grant does not cover any costs of the action.

  • –  contributions in kind;

  • –  excessive or reckless expenditure.

  • –  value added tax ("VAT").

Calculation of the final grant amount
The final amount of the grant is calculated by the Commission at the time of the payment

of the balance. The calculation involves the following steps:

Step 1 — Application of the reimbursement rate to the eligible costs

The amount under step 1 is obtained by application of the reimbursement rate specified in section 12.2 (under the title 'Maximum amount requested') to the eligible costs accepted by the Commission.]

Step 2 — Limit to the maximum amount of the grant

The total amount paid to the beneficiaries by the Commission may in no circumstances exceed the maximum amount of the grant as indicated in the grant agreement. If the amount obtained following Step 1 is higher than this maximum amount, the final amount of the grant is limited to the latter.

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Step 3 — Reduction due to the no-profit rule

‘Profit’ means the surplus of the amount obtained following Steps 1 and 2 plus the total receipts of the action, over the total eligible costs of the action.

The total eligible costs of the action are the consolidated total eligible costs approved by the Commission. The total receipts of the action are the consolidated total receipts established, generated or confirmed on the date on which the request for payment of the balance is drawn up by the beneficiary.

The following are considered receipts:

(a) income generated by the action;

(b) financial contributions given by third parties to a beneficiary or to an affiliated entity, if they are specifically assigned by the third parties to the financing of the eligible costs of the action reimbursed by the Commission.

The following are not considered receipts:

(a) financial contributions by third parties, if they may be used to cover costs other than the eligible costs under the grant agreement;

(b) financial contributions by third parties with no obligation to repay any amount unused at the end of the implementation period.

If there is a profit, it will be deducted in proportion to the final rate of reimbursement of the actual eligible costs of the action approved by the Commission.]

Step 4 — Reduction due to improper implementation or breach of other obligations.

The Commission may reduce the maximum amount of the grant if the action has not been implemented properly (i.e. if it has not been implemented or has been implemented poorly, partially or late), or if another obligation under the Agreement has been breached.

The amount of the reduction will be proportionate to the degree to which the action has been implemented improperly or to the seriousness of the breach.

12.3. Reporting and payment arrangements 25

12.3.1 The beneficiary may request the following payments provided that the conditions of the grant agreement are fulfilled (e.g. payment deadlines, ceilings, etc.). The payment requests shall be accompanied by the documents provided below and detailed in the grant agreement:

 

Payment request

A pre-financing payment26 corresponding to 70% of the grant amount will be transferred to the beneficiary within 3027 days either of the date when the last of the two parties signs the agreement, or of the notification of the grant decision, provided all requested guarantees have been received.

Accompanying documents

(a) bank guarantee (see section 12.3.2)


 

Payment of the balance

The Commission will establish the amount of this payment on the basis of the calculation of the final grant amount (see section 11.5 above). If the total of earlier payments is higher than the final grant amount, the beneficiary will be required to reimburse the amount paid in excess by the Commission through a recovery order28.

  1. (a)  final technical report;

  2. (b)  final financial statement;

  3. (c)  summary financial statement aggregating the financial statements already submitted previously and indicating the receipts

In case of a weak financial capacity section 9.1 above applies. 12.3.2.Pre-financing guarantee29

Subject to a risk analysis, the authorising officer may, on a case by case basis, require a pre-financing guarantee for up to the same amount as the pre-financing in order to limit the financial risks linked to the pre-financing payment.

The financial guarantee, in euro, shall be provided by an approved bank or financial institution established in one of the Member State of the European Union. When the beneficiary is established in a third country, the authorising officer responsible may agree that a bank or financial institution established in that third country may provide the guarantee if he considers that the bank or financial institution offers equivalent security and characteristics as those offered by a bank or financial institution established in a Member State. Amounts blocked in bank accounts shall not be accepted as financial guarantees.

The guarantee may be replaced by a joint and several guarantee by a third party or by a joint guarantee of the beneficiaries of an action who are parties to the same grant agreement.

The guarantee shall be released as the pre-financing is gradually cleared against interim payments or payments of balances to the beneficiary, in accordance with the conditions laid down in the grant agreement.

 

13. PUBLICITY
13.1. By the beneficiaries

Beneficiaries must clearly acknowledge the European Union’s contribution in all publications or in conjunction with activities for which the grant is used.

In this respect, beneficiaries are required to give prominence to the name and emblem of the European Commission on all their publications, posters, programmes and other products realised under the co-financed project.

To do this they must use the text, the emblem and the disclaimer available at:

http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/communication/services/visual_identity/index_en.htm and the European Commission's visual identity guidelines. For further details you may also contact comm-visual-identity@ec.europa.eu.

 

If this requirement is not fully complied with, the beneficiary’s grant may be reduced in accordance with the provisions of the grant agreement

13.2. By the Commission30

With the exception of scholarships paid to natural persons and other direct support paid to natural persons in most need, all information relating to grants awarded in the course of a financial year shall be published on an internet site of the European Union institutions no later than the 30 June of the year following the financial year in which the grants were awarded.

The Commission will publish the following information:

- name of the beneficiary

- address of the beneficiary when the latter is a legal person, region when the beneficiary is a natural person, as defined on NUTS 2 level31 if he/she is domiciled within EU or equivalent if domiciled outside EU,

- subject of the grant,

- amount awarded.

Upon a reasoned and duly substantiated request by the beneficiary, the publication shall be waived if such disclosure risks threatening the rights and freedoms of individuals concerned as protected by the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union or harm the commercial interests of the beneficiaries.

14. PROCESSING OF PERSONNAL DATA

The reply to any call for proposals involves the recording and processing of personal data (such as name, address and CV). Such data will be processed pursuant to Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data by the Community institutions and bodies and on the free movement of such data. Unless indicated otherwise, the questions and any personal data requested are required to evaluate the application in accordance with the specifications of the call for proposal will be processed solely for that purpose by Mrs Barbara Gessler, Head of Unit, European Commission – Directorate-General for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture, Directorate D – Culture and Creativity, Unit D2 – Creative Europe.

Personal data may be registered in the Early Detection and Exclusion System by the Commission, should the beneficiary be in one of the situations mentioned in Article 106(1) and 107 of the Financial Regulation 966/201232 (for more information see the Privacy Statement on:

http://ec.europa.eu/budget/library/explained/management/protecting/privacy_statement_e des_en.pdf).

 

15. PROCEDURE FOR THE SUBMISSION OF PROPOSALS

Proposals must be submitted in accordance with the formal requirements and by the deadline set out under section 6.

No modification to the application is allowed once the deadline for submission has elapsed. However, if there is a need to clarify certain aspects or for the correction of clerical mistakes, the Commission may contact the applicant for this purpose during the evaluation process33.

Applicants will be informed in writing about the results of the selection process.34

Submission on paper

Application forms are available at :

https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/creative-europe/calls/organisation-implementation- biennial-eu-prize-contemporary-architecture_en

Applications must be submitted in the correct form, duly completed, and dated. They must be submitted in 4 (four) copies (one original clearly identified as such, plus 2 (two) paper copies, and 1 (one) copy on CD or USB stick), and signed by the person(s) authorised to enter into legally binding commitments on behalf of the applicant organisation(s).

Offers must be submitted in a sealed envelope itself enclosed within a second sealed envelope, addressed as indicated above. The inner envelope must bear, in addition to the address indicated above, the words, “CALL FOR PROPOSALS – EAC/S06/2017 – Not to be opened by the mail service.” If self-adhesive envelopes are used, they must be sealed with adhesive tape and the sender must sign across that tape.

Applications must be sent35:
- by post, date as postmark, or
- by courier service, date of receipt by the courier service, to the following address36:

European Commission – Directorate-General for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture Directorate D – Culture and creativity- Unit Creative Europe
CALL EAC/S06/2017
Mrs Barbara Gessler

J-70 – 2/019 B-1049 Brussels Belgium

- or hand-delivered in person, date as receipt, at the following address (opening hours: Monday to Friday, 08.30 – 17.00)

European Commission Avenue du Bourget 1 B-1140 Brussels Belgium

Applications sent by fax or e-mail will not be accepted.
Contacts:
The contact point for any questions is: EAC-UNITE-D2@ec.europa.eu

 

FAQ (Frequently asked questions will be published at the following url:

https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/creative-europe/sites/creative-europe/files/call-eac-s06- 2017-faq_en.pdf

Annexes:

  •  Annex 1) Application form including checklist of documents to be provided

  •  Annex 2) Declaration on the honour

  •  Annex 3) Budget forms for information on estimated budget for 2018-2019, to be

    completed

  •  Annex 4) Model framework partnership agreement and model specific grant

    agreement, for information

  •  Annex 5) Financial statement

  •  Annex 6) List of supporting documents (list of invoices for the submission of

    final financial reports)



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