€20 million to strengthen European cybersecurity capabilities

The European Union is dedicating €20 million to projects aimed at strengthening European cybersecurity capabilities and supporting the implementation of the new regulatory requirements.

As part of the Digital Europe Programme, the European Cybersecurity Industrial, Technology and Research Competence Centre (ECCC) opened the call DIGITAL-ECCC-2027-DEPLOY-CYBER-11-EULEG – Strengthening EU cybersecurity capacities and capabilities in line with legislative requirements.

The aim is to strengthen the capabilities of the European cybersecurity ecosystem and to support relevant actors in meeting new responsibilities stemming from, inter alia, the Cyber Resilience Act (CRA), the NIS2 Directive, the GDPR, DORA, the Cybersecurity Act and certain requirements of the AI Act.

Which projects can be supported?

Projects should contribute to enhancing cybersecurity capacity and cooperation. Actions may include:

• the implementation of guides, standardised processes or manuals to meet the most complex challenges related to European legislation;
• the development of awareness-raising tools and actions, in particular to facilitate the adoption by SMEs of the conformity assessments provided for in the Cyber Resilience Act;
• the establishment of mechanisms to reduce the administrative burden, for example for the reporting of incidents;
• the creation of secure channels for communication and information sharing;
• the organisation of meetings and workshops to identify good practices and strengthen collaboration between sectors.

The call may thus concern projects that seek to transform European regulatory requirements into concrete operational tools, processes and capabilities.

Up to €5 million per project

The total budget for this topic is €20 million. The ECCC plans to finance around 5 projects, with an indicative European contribution of between EUR 3 million and EUR 5 million per project. The expected funding rate is 50%.

Proposals may be submitted by organisations meeting the eligibility requirements of the Digital Europe Programme. Specific safety requirements also apply to this action.

Deadline: 14 January 2027

The call has been open since 1 September 2026 and proposals must be submitted by 14 January 2027 at 17:00 CET.

Are you developing a project related to cybersecurity, compliance or capacity building in the sector? See the detailed conditions of the call and how to apply on the Funding & Tenders Portal.

Consult the call DIGITAL-ECCC-2027-DEPLOY-CYBER-11-EULEG

This call is part of a wider ECCC call under the Digital Europe Programme, which mobilises a total of up to €96 million around seven cybersecurity priorities.