Austrian Life Sciences Programme

++ + Current information +++

The call for proposals for the years 2024 to 2026 started on March 8, 2024. 45 million euros in total are available for funding from the Federal Ministry of Labor and Economy from the transformation offensive.

The deadline for making an appointment for a preliminary meeting for the "lead project" instrument expired on July, 7 2024. These will take place as planned until August, 12 2024 at the latest. As a result, the submission deadline for funding applicants is September, 9 2024 at the latest. The "Flagship project" funding instrument is expected to be offered again in 2025.

Austrian Life Sciences therefore pursues the following goals:

Increasing Austria’s attractiveness as a research location 

High development costs, long development times and great technological development risks are particular challenges faced by companies in the Life Sciences sector. In order to meet these challenges and maintain Austria’s attractiveness as a research and development location for companies, relevant funding opportunities are needed along the entire value chain. Research and development (R&D) of new, effective, high quality, safe, as well as available and affordable medicines and medical devic es which address unmet public health needs are key to public healthcare provision. To prevent a brain drain and increase Austria’s attractiveness as a research location, funding must be available to cover both early as well as later development phases.

Increasing Austria’s competitiveness as a location for clinical studies

Clinical studies are a key component in translating new medical findings to healthcare practice. They contribute to an efficient and effective healthcare system focused on the needs of the patient and society as a whole and stimulate a competitive healthcare sector.

In view of the falling number of applications for drug studies, it is important to create an awareness among all stakeholders that global pharmaceutical companies select clinical study centres on the basis of international competition. As the priority always lies in patient benefits and safety, the regulatory requirements in the Life Sciences industry mean that, compared to other industries, drug development is not only a long-winded process, but also complex, risky, and above all, capital intensive. When selecting study centres and locations, some of the most important factors for companies in the Life Sciences industry include rapid implementation, reliability, patient numbers and quality, plus attractive financing options.

Topics and project running times

• Digitalisation of health aspects (diagnostics, telemedicine, medical devices etc.)
• Development of new, effective, high-quality, safe, available and affordable medicines and medical devices
• Interventional phase I and II clinical studies and clinical trials of medical devices in accordance with EU regulations
• Flagship Projects in the field of clinical research.

The project running times are 12 to 18 months (company projects industrial research, research and development), 12 to 24 months (clinical studies), 24 months (flagship project)

Budget and call 2024 till 2026

The call for proposals for the years 2024 to 2026 started on March 8, 2024. 45 million euros in total are available for funding from the Federal Ministry of Labor and Economy from the transformation offensive.

Budget and calls 2022, 2023

In the years 2022 and 2023, the budget for the Austrian Life Sciences Program amounts to a total of 50 million euros.

In the first call for proposals in 2022, the funding instruments "industrial research" and "experimental development"", "clinical studies" (until the submission deadline of 29.12.2022) and "flagship project" (until the submission deadline of 1.9.2022, 12 noon) were offered.

For 2023, a further call for proposals was open from 24.1.2023 to 21.12.2023 with the funding instruments from the previous year (until the submission deadline of 21.12.2023) and "flagship project" (until the submission deadline of 30.6.2023, 12 noon). In addition, submission to the Eureka Call Austria - Israel has been possible in the period from 1.6.2023 to 19.2.2024.