Eurostars Grants for UK Companies and Support from FI Group
Unlock up to €1.5 million in grant funding for market-driven, cross-border R&D with FI Group, your European partner for Eurostars success.
What Are Eurostars Grants?
Eurostars Grants are designed for R&D-performing SMEs that want to fast-track international collaboration and bring new products, processes, or services to market. Co-funded by the European Union through Horizon Europe and national funding bodies like Innovate UK, the Eurostars programme supports projects led by innovative SMEs working with partners across participating countries.
The grant targets near-market R&D, offering public funding to reduce technical and financial risk. With over 37 countries participating and calls typically opening twice per year, Eurostars is one of the most accessible and business-friendly European grants available to UK firms today.
Unlike Horizon Europe’s deep-tech-focused grants like Pathfinder or the EIC Accelerator, Eurostars is ideal for SMEs already working at TRL 4–6 and seeking partners to validate, develop, and launch innovations on an international scale.
Can UK Companies Apply for Eurostars?
Yes. UK participation is actively encouraged. Despite Brexit, the UK remains a fully participating member of the Eureka network, which means UK-based SMEs can:
Lead or join international consortia
Receive funding directly from Innovate UK
Collaborate with partners from over 30 other participating countries
FI Group UK, backed by a strong presence across 13 European countries, is uniquely positioned to help UK firms access the right partners and prepare fundable applications. Whether you need help forming a consortium, understanding Innovate UK’s requirements, or navigating international collaboration, we provide a strategic, hands-on approach tailored to your business goals.
Yes. UK participation is actively encouraged. Despite Brexit, the UK remains a fully participating member of the Eureka network, which means UK-based SMEs can:
Lead or join international consortia
Receive funding directly from Innovate UK
Collaborate with partners from over 30 other participating countries
FI Group UK, backed by a strong presence across 13 European countries, is uniquely positioned to help UK firms access the right partners and prepare fundable applications. Whether you need help forming a consortium, understanding Innovate UK’s requirements, or navigating international collaboration, we provide a strategic, hands-on approach tailored to your business goals.
FI Group can advise on building balanced, eligible consortia and help position UK SMEs as lead applicants, maximising funding, control, and visibility in the project.
What Does the Eurostars Grant Cover?
Eurostars funds a wide range of activities critical to late-stage R&D:
Personnel and subcontracting costs
Materials, prototyping, and validation testing
Travel and collaboration expenses
Project management and coordination
Intellectual property protection
In the UK, Innovate UK typically funds 60% to 80% of eligible costs depending on the size and type of organisation. Projects usually last 12 to 36 months, with total UK funding per applicant capped at £600,000.
This makes Eurostars an ideal opportunity for tech start-ups, scale-ups, and mid-stage product developers looking to de-risk commercialisation and scale faster through international partnerships.
Eurostars Grant Eligibility Criteria
To apply for a Eurostars Grant, your project must meet several key eligibility conditions:
Project Structure:
Led by an R&D-performing SME (i.e. devoting at least 10% of turnover or headcount to R&D)
Include at least one other partner from a participating Eurostars country
No partner or country may contribute more than 70% of the total project cost
Project Objectives:
Develop a new product, process, or service with strong market potential
Target commercialisation within 24 months of project completion
How Eurostars Compares to Other EU Funding
Here’s how Eurostars stacks up against other Horizon Europe grant options:
Eurostars vs Horizon Europe Programmes
Programme
Max Funding (€)
Avg. Success Rate
TRL Focus
UK SME Eligible?
Consortium Required?
Eurostars
~€1.5m
29%
4–6
✅ Yes
✅ Yes
EIC Accelerator
€17.5m
8%
5–9
✅ Yes
❌ No (solo SME)
Pathfinder
€3–4m
5%
1–4
✅ Yes
✅ Yes
Horizon Clusters
€10m+
12%
3–7
✅ Yes
✅ Yes
As shown in the bar chart below, Eurostars offers a unique combination of moderate funding and high accessibility, making it particularly valuable for SMEs with strong commercial potential but without the ultra-high barriers of other EU schemes.
Here’s a comparative chart showing how Eurostars Grants stack up against other major EU funding programmes. It demonstrates that while Eurostars offers smaller maximum funding amounts, it boasts a significantly higher success rate, making it an attractive and accessible option for UK SMEs entering European innovation funding.
Here’s how Eurostars stacks up against other Horizon Europe grant options:
Eurostars vs Horizon Europe Programmes
Programme
Max Funding (€)
Avg. Success Rate
TRL Focus
UK SME Eligible?
Consortium Required?
Eurostars
~€1.5m
29%
4–6
✅ Yes
✅ Yes
EIC Accelerator
€17.5m
8%
5–9
✅ Yes
❌ No (solo SME)
Pathfinder
€3–4m
5%
1–4
✅ Yes
✅ Yes
Horizon Clusters
€10m+
12%
3–7
✅ Yes
✅ Yes
As shown in the bar chart below, Eurostars offers a unique combination of moderate funding and high accessibility, making it particularly valuable for SMEs with strong commercial potential but without the ultra-high barriers of other EU schemes.
Here’s a comparative chart showing how Eurostars Grants stack up against other major EU funding programmes. It demonstrates that while Eurostars offers smaller maximum funding amounts, it boasts a significantly higher success rate, making it an attractive and accessible option for UK SMEs entering European innovation funding.
Eurostars has a centralised application portal but is assessed both by Eureka’s international evaluation panel and national agencies like Innovate UK. The process involves multiple strategic steps:
Our Eurostars Grant Experts and European Network
Eurostars may be simpler than some EU grants, but success depends on strategic alignment, strong partners, and clear value creation. FI Group brings all three to your project:
Consortium Access: With offices in France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Portugal, the Netherlands, and more, we can identify trusted partners from both academia and industry.
Bid Quality: Our team includes PhD-qualified consultants, evaluators, and experienced grant writers who know how to speak the language of funders.
UK–EU Navigation: We understand the interplay between Eureka-level evaluation and Innovate UK funding rules, ensuring your proposal meets both sets of criteria.
Post-Award Support: We do not disappear after submission. Our compliance and delivery teams support every stage of execution and reporting.
“Eurostars is more than a grant, it is a launchpad for European partnerships that shape future markets. With our presence across Europe, we help UK clients form serious, fundable consortia and deliver projects that evaluators can trust.” – Dr. Fawzi Abou-Chahine, Funding Director
Eurostars may be simpler than some EU grants, but success depends on strategic alignment, strong partners, and clear value creation. FI Group brings all three to your project:
Consortium Access: With offices in France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Portugal, the Netherlands, and more, we can identify trusted partners from both academia and industry.
Bid Quality: Our team includes PhD-qualified consultants, evaluators, and experienced grant writers who know how to speak the language of funders.
UK–EU Navigation: We understand the interplay between Eureka-level evaluation and Innovate UK funding rules, ensuring your proposal meets both sets of criteria.
Post-Award Support: We do not disappear after submission. Our compliance and delivery teams support every stage of execution and reporting.
“Eurostars is more than a grant, it is a launchpad for European partnerships that shape future markets. With our presence across Europe, we help UK clients form serious, fundable consortia and deliver projects that evaluators can trust.” – Dr. Fawzi Abou-Chahine, Funding Director
Have questions about Eurostars Grants? You’re not alone. As one of the most accessible yet strategically important international funding programmes for SMEs, Eurostars prompts a wide range of queries from UK innovators. Below, our consultants answer the most common questions, drawing on real-world experience across dozens of applications and our on-the-ground presence in 13 European countries.
Spotlight on Success: Stablepharma Secures €2.5M Through the EIC Accelerator
In early 2025, Stablepharma Ltd was awarded €2.5 million in grant funding through the EIC Accelerator to advance its StablevaX™ technology, an innovation set to transform vaccine distribution by removing the need for cold‑chain logistics.
FI Group UK played a pivotal role in reviewing and strengthening the company’s final submission. Working closely with Stablepharma’s executive team, FI Group helped refine the technical narrative, align financials with key clinical milestones, and enhance the overall credibility and clarity of the application. The award made Stablepharma one of just five UK companies selected in a highly competitive round of over 1,200 applicants.
This success highlights how expert grant consultancy can significantly improve outcomes for high-potential applicants seeking funding under Horizon Europe’s most competitive instruments.
Spotlight on Success: Stablepharma Secures €2.5M Through the EIC Accelerator
In early 2025, Stablepharma Ltd was awarded €2.5 million in grant funding through the EIC Accelerator to advance its StablevaX™ technology, an innovation set to transform vaccine distribution by removing the need for cold‑chain logistics.
FI Group UK played a pivotal role in reviewing and strengthening the company’s final submission. Working closely with Stablepharma’s executive team, FI Group helped refine the technical narrative, align financials with key clinical milestones, and enhance the overall credibility and clarity of the application. The award made Stablepharma one of just five UK companies selected in a highly competitive round of over 1,200 applicants.
This success highlights how expert grant consultancy can significantly improve outcomes for high-potential applicants seeking funding under Horizon Europe’s most competitive instruments.
Leading innovators across the UK, from deep-tech start-ups to large research-driven corporates, trust FI Group to guide their most strategic grant bids. Our tailored support has helped secure multi-million euro awards through Horizon Europe, the EIC Accelerator, and Innovate UK. Clients return to us year after year for our end-to-end delivery, strategic insight, and deep evaluator understanding.
Jenny Young, Head of Business Operations, Mocean
We've had an excellent experience collaborating with FI Group. Their team of consultants demonstrated proficiency in evaluating and comprehending our innovative wave energy technology, leading to a comprehensive technical report that played a significant role in securing our R&D tax credit repayment.
Robin Lumely-Savile, Director, BeMore
The smoothest way to work on R&D Tax Credit – not only are they experts of the subject but also sectors specialists; FI Group could get all the technical elements of our business by themselves leading to a successful and remarkable result.
Praveen Sagar - Director and co-founder at OxDevice Ltd.
Giuseppe Amoroso from FI group did our R&D tax claim and successfully submitted on our behalf of OxDevice. Excellent team work in Submitting the claim.
Speak to a Eurostars Specialist
Whether you are just beginning your Eurostars journey or already planning your next consortium, FI Group is your strategic partner for success. With offices across Europe and deep knowledge of both UK and EU funding rules, we deliver expert support from start to finish.
Whether you are just beginning your Eurostars journey or already planning your next consortium, FI Group is your strategic partner for success. With offices across Europe and deep knowledge of both UK and EU funding rules, we deliver expert support from start to finish.
