The Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Postdoctoral Fellowships (PF) 2026 Call, implemented under Horizon Europe, closed for applications on 9 September 2026.
A total of 21,627 proposals were submitted under the 2026 call. This marks not only the highest number of applications ever received under the MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships scheme, but also the highest number of proposals submitted to any funding action in the 40-year history of the EU Research and Innovation Framework Programmes.
Compared with the 17,066 applications received under the 2025 call, the number of applications increased by 26.7% in 2026.
The distribution of applications by fellowship type was as follows:
European Fellowships: 20,131 applications (93.1%)
Global Fellowships: 1,496 applications (6.9%)
The current indicative budget for the 2026 call is €399.05 million, which is expected to fund approximately 1,600 projects.
Proposals submitted under the call were coordinated by organisations in 43 countries across EU Member States and countries associated to Horizon Europe. In terms of the number of applications, the leading countries were the United Kingdom, Spain, Italy, France and Germany.
For Global Fellowship applications, the most popular outgoing-phase destinations included the United States, Canada, Australia and Japan.
The proposals will now be evaluated by independent experts, and the results of the 2026 call are expected to be announced in February 2027.
In addition, eligible European Fellowship proposals submitted with a host organisation located in a Widening country and receiving a high score but not funded under the MSCA PF budget may also have the opportunity to be considered for funding under the ERA Fellowships scheme, provided that the relevant eligibility conditions are met.
For detailed information, please click here.
For information on MSCA calls, latest announcements and support mechanisms available in Türkiye:
Ufuk Avrupa – Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)