Eligibility criteria

The eligibility criteria must be fulfilled at the time of the call deadline. If it becomes clear before, during or after the evaluation phase that one or more of the eligibility criteria have not been fulfilled, the proposal will be declared ineligible and it will be withdrawn:

• Applicants must be Recognised Researchers (R2), based on the research profile descriptors of the European Commission, i.e. researchers who hold a doctorate degree (PhD) but have not yet established a significant level of independence. Recognised Researchers must be in possession of a PhD or have accumulated at least 4 years of full time equivalent postgraduate research experience prior to the call deadline.
  
  
• Applicants are eligible for a period of 5 years following successful completion of their PhD at the date of the call deadline*. Exceptions to the 5-year rule are allowed for applicants whose academic career has been interrupted for parental leave, for industrial job experience, or other special circumstances such as mandatory military service or illness. These circumstances will be indicated in the application form in the field «Additional Notes» and must be documented. Extensions will be up to one year per child in case of parental leave and up to two years for industrial breaks. The extension in the case of illness or mandatory military service will depend on its duration.
  
• Applicants must not have resided or carried out her/his main activity (work, studies, etc.) in Spain for more than 12 months in the 3 years immediately before the call deadline.  Short stays, such as holidays, will not be considered. Exceptions to the mobility rule will be considered in duly justified cases, like for researchers undergoing a procedure for obtaining refugee status under the Geneva Convention.
  
  
• Researchers from any nationality may apply.