A record-breaking number of journalists applied for funding in the latest round of the IJ4EU programme, with 266 cross-border teams submitting proposals — well above the previous high of 235.
The applications, which closed on April 13, span a wide geographic footprint. In total, the teams include members based in 63 countries, slightly fewer than the 74 countries represented in the previous round.
Collectively, applicants requested €6.8 million in grant support.
The Investigative Journalism for Europe programme funds cross-border investigative journalism as a public good, backing collaborative reporting across Europe with grants and support, free from editorial interference.
The current call marks the first of two funding opportunities under IJ4EU’s 2026/27 cycle, with a second round of applications scheduled to open in December 2026.
Of the proposals received, 149 teams applied to the Investigation Support Scheme, which provides grants of up to €50,000, while 117 teams applied to the Freelancer Support Scheme, offering grants of up to €20,000 alongside tailored mentoring.
Eligibility for IJ4EU funding requires teams to meet strict geographic criteria. Each must include journalists based in at least two countries participating in the cross-sectoral strand of the European Union’s Creative Europe Programme, which co-funds the initiative.
These “core countries” comprise all 27 EU member states, as well as Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Norway, Serbia and Ukraine.
In this round, all core countries except Luxembourg and Malta were represented.
Teams that meet these criteria may also include collaborators from outside the core group. In the latest call, journalists from 27 additional countries were involved.
These additional countries were Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Azerbaijan, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Egypt, India, Israel, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Mexico, Morocco, Russia, South Africa, South Korea, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tunisia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Independent juries are set to meet in May to select the projects that will receive funding. Applicants can expect to be notified of the outcomes shortly thereafter.
Best of luck to all those who applied.