FWO - call SBO projects (Strategic Basic Research) 2025

Research

Funding organisation:

Fonds voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek - Vlaanderen

What?

The Strategic Basic Research (SBO) programme focuses on innovative research which, if scientifically successful, will create prospects for economic or social applications (e.g. a new generation of products, processes or services).

The SBO programme breaks down into two finality parts: an economic programme part for projects with primarily an economic finality and a social programme part for projects with primarily a social finality.

Features

• Project period: 4 years. With justification, a shorter project period is acceptable.
• Acceptable costs:
  • Research staffing, operation, equipment and subcontracting contracts (in accordance with cost model rules)
    • Max. € 425.000 (excl. overhead)/year/participating legal entity with a share of more than 15% of the total project budget
  • The total cost of tasks carried out by subcontractors may not exceed 30% of the total budget
  • guideline with regard to the magnitude of the project budget: € 1.700.000
• Funding percentage: 100%

The results will be announced end on Wednesday, May 27 2026.

Important changes in call 2025-2026:

• In each call for proposals, a researcher may only act as promoter-spokesperson or co-promoter for one single SBO project, regardless of whether the project is submitted under the regular call or the thematic call 'Innovation in the agri-food sector'. This condition applies whether or not a budget is requested.
• The total number of SBO projects - including submitted proposals and ongoing projects - in which the same researcher is involved as promoter-spokesperson or co-promoter must not exceed two.
• The Flemish, national and international university supervisors and co-supervisors applying for a budget must have a ZAP appointment and thus comply with the provisions of Art. 10 of the Fundamental Research Project Regulations.
• C-scores apply to both the annual regular (i.e., bottom-up) SBO call and the biennial thematic SBO projects (innovation in the agri-food sector). Project applications that have received a C-score cannot be submitted to the next SBO call, regardless of their type.
• The same project cannot simultaneously be evaluated in two SBO channels (i.e., the SBO programme & the programme for research projects in the area of 'Innovation in the agri-food sector').
• The online application form now contains a specific tab 'Research Security'. Applicants are required, based on the topic of their research proposal, involved countries and foreign partners, to complete a set of questions regarding unwanted knowledge transfer, misuse of research results and/or interference. If the outcome of this questionnaire shows that your project proposal needs a research security approval, please contact RRI@uhasselt.be.

More information can be found in the manuals on the FWO website.

Who?

Eligible organisations: research centres (such as universities, university colleges, strategic research centers) in the Flemish region:

• IMEC, VITO, VIB, Flanders Make, VLIZ and the Flemish scientific institutions receiving an allocation from the Flemish government must submit an SBO proposal in collaboration with at least one other Flemish research centre
• Flemish university colleges (‘hogescholen’) must always submit an SBO project proposal in collaboration with or at least after a positive advice of the university with which it is associated. This
  takes the form of a document in which the university agrees to the submission of the project proposal by the university college. Flemish university colleges must always submit a proposal in
  collaboration with at least one other Flemish research centre
• max. 20% of the budget may be earmarked for non-Flemish research centres (= combined sub-budgets of non-Flemish research centres that are part of the consortium and that are carrying out specific sub-tasks as subcontracting) 

Application?

Submission mandatory pre-proposal (proposal in preparation) to the host institution (= main applicant of the proposal) through the FWO e-portal:
FWO deadline: 12 September 2025, 17u

This preliminary application should contain at least the following information:
1) Project title and duration
2) Summary of scientific & valorization goals
3) Full composition of the project consortium
4) Choice of the research topic, selection of the thematic SBO expert panel and experts to be avoided (max. 3)

Internal deadline for submission full proposal: 22 September 2025, 12u noon
Applicants need to submit their research proposal via the E-portal of FWO before the internal deadline. The applications will be automatically transferred to the research coordination office (OBI). OBI has to finalize the submission before the FWO deadline (26 September 2025, 17:00).

This internal deadline is only applicable if UHasselt is the main applicant. When UHasselt is a co-applicant, you have to respect the internal deadline of the university of the main applicant.

For main applicants only: Don't forget to transfer the proposal in application to the host institution before the deadline by clicking the button "submit to host institution".
- Deadline 12 September: After submitting the proposal OBI will reopen the application so researchers can finalize their proposal.
- Deadline 22 September: After submitting the final proposal OBI will only reopen the application if we detect non-compliance with the FWO rules and regulations.
  

More information?

More information can be found on the FWO website. 

Useful UHasselt relevant documents can be found on the intranet.

Support for applicants

Exploratory meetings at FWO

Potential applicants may request an exploratory (online) discussion with the FWO staff. Please send an e-mail to sbo@fwo.be including a short abstract (max. 1 A4 page). The applicants should also provide a number of possible dates (day and desirable hour) when this exploratory interview could take place. The information that is provided during this meeting should be interpreted as non-binding advice and no rights can be derived from this information.

Deadline

12.09.2025

Contact Hasselt University?

E-mail sarah.szyr@uhasselt.be

Tel. +3211269052