Information Technology for European Advancement (ITEA4)

ITEA involves international collaborative projects involving all relevant stakeholders within the industrial landscape:

• large enterprises;
• small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs);
• research and technology organisations;
• universities.

Such cooperation enables the participating organisations to realise the most innovative innovations. In doing so, the ITEA programme strengthens their international competitive position. ITEA is an important part of the top sector High Tech Systems and Materials (HTSM) and the National Technology Strategy (NTS) (Dutch).

For whom?

Every company and knowledge institution engaged in research into technology and applications in the field of software-intensive systems and services can participate.

Market-oriented and applied research

In the ITEA Eureka cluster, industry takes the initiative and determines the strategy. As a result, the demand for knowledge is well aligned with industry needs and market potential. It is therefore market-oriented research, with parties from at least 2 different participating countries working together.

The programme aligns with other European initiatives such as:

• Horizon Europe;
• Chips Joint Undertaking;
• related EUREKA clusters.

ITEA4 focuses on 2 focus areas:

• software intensive systems
• software intensive services

Budget

The national budget is € 10 million. You can receive up to € 4 million in funding per project. 

Grant rates

The national grant rates of total project costs are as follows:

Research projects

• Industry: 35%
• SMEs: 45%
• Universities and knowledge institutions: 50%

Development projects

• Industry: 25%
• SMEs: 35%
• Universities and knowledge institutions: 25%

Conditions

International conditions

• Project consortia must have at least 2 partners from 2 countries.
• Of these 2 countries, 1 must be a Eureka country, and the other either a Eureka country or a Eureka-associated country. See the overview of participating countries in the ITEA cluster.
• Project consortia can include representatives from large industry, SMEs, research institutes, universities and user organisations (profit or non-profit).
• ITEA projects are industry-driven, technically innovative and market and/or application-oriented.
• Projects generally span between 40 and 350 person-years and last up to 3 years.

National conditions

• In order to receive national financial support, a Dutch company must participate. A Dutch company must also be the leader of the national consortium.
• The Netherlands Enterprise Agency only supports projects with a balanced distribution of costs across the participating countries (no more than 70% in 1 country).
• The national priorities of the ITEA proposal connect to at least one of the roadmaps of the top sector High Tech Systems and Materials and also has a link to the National Technology Strategy (Dutch).

Evaluation

An independent advisory committee assesses national project applications on the following 3 criteria:

1. Innovation
2. Collaboration
3. Impact

Apply

This programme has an international and then a national application process.

International application

The international application process for ITEA call 2025 is open from 16 September 2025 to 12 February 2026.

Your consortium must submit the Project Outline (PO phase) by 10 November 2025 via the ITEA website.

If the project proposal is of sufficient quality, you will receive an invitation to submit a Full Project Proposal (FPP stage). Your consortium must submit the FPP by 12 February 2026 via the ITEA website.

You can find more information on the international call process on the ITEA website.

National application

An FPP allows Dutch participants to apply for a national grant at the Netherlands Enterprise Agency in an International Innovation tender for ITEA projects. The national application period runs from 1 to 17 April 2026, 17:00 CEST.

Prepare your application

Use the online ITEA Project Idea tool and Partner Search tool to prepare your project proposal. We recommend that you identify potential partners and develop the basis of your project idea(s) well before opening.

Read how to prepare on the ITEA4 website

Submit your national application

Has your FPP been positively received? Then you will be awarded an international quality label (Eureka label). With this label, you can submit a national grant application to us. This can be done in 2 ways:

1. via post/courier or hand in yourself at our location in The Hague, or;
2. digitally.

Please enclose the following attachments with your grant application form:

• model project plan Eureka Cluster Innovation Project (Word)
• model budget International Innovation (Excel)
• a completed registration of participant form (web form, Dutch)
• a completed authorisation form for the lead applicant (web form, Dutch)
• Full Project Proposal

You can download the model project plan and model budget below (Dutch):

By post, courier or self-delivery

In the printable application form Subsidie Internationaal Innoveren (web form, Dutch), you fill in all the details as the lead applicant. These are only the details relating to the Dutch part of the consortium. English is permitted.

Send the printed application form together with the printed attachments to:

Netherlands Enterprise Agency
Team IRIS
PO Box 93144
2509 AC The Hague

Or hand them in at:

Netherlands Enterprise Agency Expedition
Prinses Beatrixlaan 82
2595 AL The Hague

Please note: you can only submit your application when the national application period is open. The next national opening is from 1 to 17 April 2026.

Digitally

To apply, log in with eHerkenning (eRecognition). For your application, you need at least authorisation Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO) services at level eH3. Do you not yet have this? Then apply for it in time on the eHerkenning website. It may take a few days before you receive the eHerkenning. You can find more information on the page eLoket and eHerkenning.

Once you are logged in, select the right scheme in the eLoket: international innovation Xecs/ITEA. Here you then fill in all the details as the lead applicant. These are only the details relating to the Dutch part of the consortium. English is permitted.

Advisory committee

You will then receive an invitation to defend your national grant application before the Eureka Advisory Committee. The advisory committee ranks project applications according to the following 3 criteria: innovation, collaboration and impact. The highest ranked project applications receive funding until the budget is exhausted. A similar national process also takes place in other countries involved in your project.

The advisory committee consists of:

• Ms S. Spreeuwenberg (chair)
• Mr P. M. Coelen
• Ms E. C. Klöditz
• Ms L. Paeez
• Ms J. Hoedemaekers
• Mr M. de Lange
• Mr L. Warmerdam

After your application

If your project is eligible for funding, we will contact the national consortium's lead partner to ensure that all information is in order for the grant decision. Once the project has started, you will also have a number of obligations, such as:

• Progress report
• Notifying changes
• Applying for the determination

Read what you need to do after your national application (Dutch)

Do you have any questions about this? Then please contact us via teamiris@rvo.nl. 

Want to know more?

• Watch the ITEA4 instructional videos. These instructional videos guide you through your project preparations, from Project Outline to project closure. You can also download the slides in pdf.
• More information about the programme can be found on the ITEA4 website.
• More information on grant rules, available funding and national priorities in the different participating countries can also be found on the ITEA4 website.