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Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
How voluminous should a project proposal be?
A concept note should have no more than 10 pages.
For full project proposals there are no fixed specifications on the volume. A proposal should be as concise and clear as possible. Applicants should avoid voluminous proposals and should not provide excessively detailed descriptions of project areas, environmental technologies, lists of species, etc. You should, however, describe all project actions in a clear and detailed way.
What is the optimal budget for a LIFE project?
The project budget depends on the project type. Please carefully read the application guide of the call for proposals you apply for.
For traditional LIFE projects there are no specifications for project budgets. LIFE has co-funded large ambitious projects with total costs of more than EUR 5 million several times in the past. However, proposals for small projects with total costs below EUR 500,000 have rarely been selected in the evaluation due to the limited output and consequently a low added value.
Integrated projects usually have a total project budget of around EUR 17 million.
Who should manage a LIFE project?
Generally, the staff of the project leader (“coordinating beneficiary”) should carry out the project management. However, if justified, an associated beneficiary or a sub-contractor under the coordinating beneficiary's direct control could take over the project management. Each project should have a full-time project manager.
The project proposal should clearly describe who will be in charge of the project management, how much personnel and time will be devoted to this task, and how and by whom decisions will be taken during the project period.
Are individuals who act as freelance experts acceptable as
partners for a LIFE programme? Freelance experts do not form
part of any organisation.
Article 23 of the LIFE Regulation states that LIFE may fund "public and private bodies". This article should be read in the context of the EU Financial Regulation which makes it clear that "private bodies" does not include private individuals. Therefore both the applicant and any partners (associated beneficiaries) must be "bodies" and not individuals (i.e. natural persons). Please note that
'sole traders' are also considered 'natural persons'. Individuals can be involved in projects as employees of beneficiaries, as natural persons or through external assistance contracts. As indicated in art. II.19.2 of the Grant Agreement, costs of natural persons working under a contract with the coordinating beneficiary or an
associated beneficiary other than an employment contract
may be assimilated to costs of personnel, provided that
the following conditions are fulfilled:
(i) the natural person works under the instructions of the
beneficiary and, unless otherwise agreed with the
beneficiary, in the premises of the beneficiary;
(ii) the result of the work belongs to the beneficiary; and
(iii) the costs are not significantly different from the costs of personnel performing similar tasks under an employment contract with the beneficiary. In the case of external assistance, it should be recalled that it must be tendered so the proposal cannot name a specific individual or company as the provider of the external assistance.