Grenzübergreifende Zusammenarbeit Bayern - Österreich; Beantragung einer Förderung

Cross-border cooperation in the Austrian-Bavarian border region is funded by the INTERREG VI-A program Bavaria - Austria 2021-2027.

European Territorial Cooperation (ETC) is an objective within the framework of EU structural funding, which is financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).

The special feature of cross-border ETC programs is that the funding priorities are adapted to the needs and potential of the participating regions. The "INTERREG VI-A Bavaria - Austria 2021-2027" program promotes cross-border cooperation between partners from Bavaria and Austria. The aim is to help overcome common challenges in the border region and contribute to the creation of a common living, natural and economic area.

The program pursues the strategy of an innovative, sustainable economy, a resilient environment, sustainable tourism and integrated regional development - embedded in joint cross-border INTERREG governance.

Funding is possible in the following five priority axes (funding priorities):

• Sustainable economy
• Resilient environment
• Sustainable tourism
• Integrated regional development
• Cross-border governance, i.e. the improvement of living and working together in everyday life in border regions

These 5 priority axes / funding priorities are subdivided into a total of 7 specific objectives, to which each project must make a contribution.

Program area: The program region consists of the following NUTS III regions:

• Austria
  Innviertel, Linz-Wels, Mühlviertel, Traunviertel, Lungau, Pinzgau-Pongau, Salzburg and surroundings, Außerfern, Innsbruck, Osttirol, Tiroler Oberland, Tiroler Unterland, Bludenz-Bregenzer Wald, Rheintal-Bodenseegebiet
• Bavaria
  independent city of Rosenheim, district of Rosenheim, Altötting, Berchtesgadener Land, Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen, Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Miesbach, Mühldorf, Traunstein, Weilheim-Schongau, independent city of Landshut, district of Landshut, independent city of Passau, district of Passau, Deggendorf, Freyung-Grafenau, Regen, Rottal-Inn, Dingolfing-Landau, independent city of Kaufbeuren, independent city of Kempten (Allgäu), independent city of Memmingen, Lindau (Lake Constance), Ostallgäu, Unterallgäu, Oberallgäu

Funding volume: For the entire period 2021-2027, ERDF funds of around € 61.5 million are available for the Austria-Bavaria funding area following approval by the European Commission. The funding rates amount to up to 75% of the total project costs eligible for co-financing.

Regional coordination offices in Bavaria: Government of Lower Bavaria, Government of Upper Bavaria, Government of Swabia

Regional coordination offices in Austria: Office of the Upper Austrian Provincial Government, Office of the Salzburg Provincial Government, Office of the Tyrolean Provincial Government, Office of the Vorarlberg Provincial Government

• Partnership declaration

  Can be downloaded from the program homepage under "Documents - Project application" - see "Further links".

Application requirements:

• At least one Austrian and one Bavarian partner must be involved in a project.
• The partners nominate a lead partner from among their number who bears overall responsibility for the project.
• The project must be assigned to a priority axis and an associated specific objective (see program document on the program homepage).
• The project must have a positive impact on the Bavarian and Austrian border regions.
• The project must fulfill at least three of four cooperation criteria:
  • joint elaboration (obligatory)
  • joint implementation (mandatory)
  • joint personnel
  • joint financing

Before submitting a formal application, the project sponsor must prepare a project outline (see program homepage under "Further links"). On the one hand, the project outline serves as a possible search for project partners (voluntary publication of the project outline on the program homepage), on the other hand, it is intended to give the Regional Coordination Offices an initial insight into the planned project and to offer the opportunity to check basic program conformity and to make an initial assessment of the project's eligibility for funding.

Applications can be submitted online from March 29, 2022 via the Joint Electronic Monitoring System (JEMS). Once the project outline has been approved by the responsible Regional Coordination Offices, the project sponsor will receive the corresponding access authorization to the system from the Joint Secretariat.

Once the application has been submitted, the formal and content-related application review takes place in accordance with the project selection criteria.

The Austrian-Bavarian Monitoring Committee decides on the scheduling of projects. It usually meets twice a year and decides autonomously and independently on the approval (subject to any conditions), deferral or rejection of the project application. Further, detailed and continuously updated program information can be found on the program's own homepage (for links see "Further links").

Small projects (total costs up to a maximum of EUR 35,000) as well as p2p projects (total budget up to a maximum of EUR 5,000) are subject to a simplified application procedure (see guidelines on budgeting and recognition of costs in projects with total costs up to EUR 35,000).

Applications (following the prior submission of a project outline) can be submitted at any time from 29.3.2022. However, the final application documents must be submitted in good time for consideration by the subsequent monitoring committee (decision-making body).