Funding for excellent research in 2026 – advance information on upcoming RCF funding calls

The budget proposal includes around 28 million euros for contributions to international organisations and around 50 million euros for the implementation of research projects funded by the Strategic Research Council (SRC) and the promotion of the impact of research. According to the budget proposal, the total research funding distributed through the RCF would exceed 600 million euros next year. The increase in funding is linked to the multiannual plan for the use of government research and development funding.

At its meeting on 10 October 2025, the RCF Board decided on the main lines of RCF research funding for 2026. Funding will be allocated in a balanced way to promote long-term and innovative research, competence clusters and research environments, as well as research that supports thematic priorities in a variety of ways. For a list of upcoming RCF funding calls, see the list on our website.

Spark funding supports broad-based and innovative scientific research

With its research funding, distributed through open competitions, the RCF is able to strengthen Finland’s scientific knowledge base and support the growth of the RDI talent pool. The internationally high-quality, innovative and long-term RCF funding package provides funding for the multi-year work of teams led by researchers at different career stages.

In 2026, the RCF’s funding category Spark will consist of calls for applications for Academy Project and Academy Research Fellowship funding. The RCF Board allocated nearly 240 million euros to these calls. This part of the RCF funding portfolio accounts for some 46 per cent of the 2026 budget authority.

The targeted funding will be used for the funding decisions on the winter call, which closed in November 2025. Three RCF scientific councils will make the funding decisions in June 2026.

Fifth call under Finnish Flagship Programme launches in 2026, plus new research infrastructure calls

The RCF Board also allocated funding under the Forge funding category to strengthen competence clusters and research environments. The funding provided for competence clusters and research environments aims at a systemic development of the RDI system. At the same time, the aim is to improve the conditions for international scientific cooperation by increasing Finland’s appeal.

In the Forge category, the key funding call in 2026 is the call to be opened under the Finnish Flagship Programme. The RCF Board allocated 60 million euros to the programme’s first funding period. This will be the fifth call launched under the programme. The Finnish Flagships combine strong cooperation between the business sector and other sectors of society. They create future know-how and sustainable solutions to society’s challenges, promoting economic growth by, for example, developing new business opportunities. The call text for the new flagship call will be published before the end of 2025, and the call opens in spring 2026.

The RCF’s Scientific Council for Research Infrastructures, which will begin operations at the start of 2026, will be responsible for deciding on a new type of funding package for research infrastructures. In spring 2026, the RCF will open the first call for applications for funding for shared research infrastructures. The call will be opened together with a thematic research infrastructure call. The RCF offers funding to support the establishment and development of Finnish and international research infrastructures. These new funding opportunities will enable concrete funding objectives that develop infrastructure activities in a timely manner, as well as the expansion of the pool of funding applicants.

Further under the Forge funding category, the RCF will open the next annual call for international collaboration in high-performance computing. This part of the RCF funding portfolio accounts for some 36 per cent of the 2026 budget authority.

Finnish and international thematic funding calls

The most significant reform in the Shift funding category, which focuses on solving societal challenges and funding thematic research, is the reimplementation of the call for clinical research. Both the funding call for clinical research and the Proof of Concept call, which has already been implemented three times, will be opened for applications in spring 2026. The call under the Academy Programme for Sport Science and Physical Activity (ACTIVE) closed in November 2025, and the funding decisions will be made in May 2026.

In addition to these calls, the RCF Board allocated a total of 26 million euros to funding calls to be implemented in international cooperation with other funding agencies. This includes, among other things, NordForsk’s Nordic calls, partnership calls with European partners and funding calls implemented within global cooperation networks.

This part of the RCF funding portfolio accounts for some 18 per cent of the 2026 budget authority.

Advance information on upcoming calls posted on the RCF website

Since spring 2025, the RCF has maintained a list of upcoming funding opportunities on its website. The list is available at the end of the page presenting open and upcoming funding calls. The RCF’s own calls are currently displayed until June 2026. The timetables for international collaborative calls will be agreed between the funders separately. This means that the list on the website is not complete at this stage. Information on these funding opportunities are posted on the websites of the foreign funding agencies involved, and the main details about them are published on the RCF website as soon as possible.

The RCF will also provide separate information on several funding calls to be held in the spring and will organise Ask & Apply webinars to support applicants. For instance, the Ask & Apply webinar on the clinical funding call will be organised on 11 March; registration opens in early 2026.

Inquiries and more information

• Contact us primarily via our helpdesk.
• General questions about RCF funding opportunities: Jussi Vauhkonen, Executive Director of Funding Opportunities, Research Council of Finland, tel. +358 295 335 114, firstname.lastname(at)aka.fi