New European Bauhaus 2026: €101.1 million for neighbourhoods, 9 topics with a 1 December deadline

Through call HORIZON-NEB-2026-01 ("Beautiful, inclusive and sustainable neighbourhoods for communities"), under Horizon Europe, the European Commission funds neighbourhood regeneration projects. The total budget is 101.1 million euro, divided into 9 topics. The call has been open since 5 May 2026, and proposals are submitted in a single stage by 1 December 2026, 17:00 (Brussels time). Grants range from 3.5 to 6.3 million euro per project and are awarded to international consortia. Romanian town halls, universities, architecture and construction firms and NGOs can be part of them.

In brief

• Programme: Horizon Europe – New European Bauhaus Facility, call HORIZON-NEB-2026-01
• Authority: European Commission, through the CINEA Executive Agency
• Beneficiaries: consortia from EU Member States and associated countries. Local authorities, universities and research institutes, companies and civil society organisations can take part
• Total budget: €101.1 million, across 9 topics
• Value per project: between €3.5 and 6.3 million, depending on the topic
• Submission period: 5 May – 1 December 2026, 17:00 CET, in a single stage
• Status: open

What do the 9 topics fund?

The call has three strands. Each has three topics, with the budget, estimated number of projects and value per project set by the Commission.

Participation, inclusion and housing (€37.6 million)

• PARTICIPATION-01: stable housing for homeless people, through "housing-led" approaches. It has €12.6 million, i.e. 2 projects of €6.3 million each (innovation action, IA).
• PARTICIPATION-02: participatory methods for designing public spaces in neighbourhoods. It has €10 million, i.e. 2 projects of €5 million each (IA).
• PARTICIPATION-03: research on how residents experience their neighbourhood and how this affects their health. It has €15 million, i.e. 3 projects of €5 million each (research and innovation action, RIA).

Circular regeneration of the built environment (€37 million)

• REGEN-01: affordable solutions for thermal comfort in buildings, based on vernacular principles, nature-based solutions or bioclimatic design. It has €12 million, i.e. 3 projects of €4 million each (IA, lump-sum grant).
• REGEN-02: sustainable maintenance and repair of existing buildings. It has €10 million, i.e. 2 projects of €5 million each (IA).
• REGEN-03: using the vertical space above buildings and streets (for example roofs and additional storeys) for affordable housing and green spaces. It has €15 million, i.e. 3 projects of €5 million each (IA).

Financing and business models (€26.5 million)

• BUSINESS-01: coordinating neighbourhood infrastructure and social services to reduce the number of homeless people. It has €10.5 million, i.e. 3 projects of €3.5 million each (IA).
• BUSINESS-02: how capital markets work for NEB projects in neighbourhoods. It has €7 million, i.e. 2 projects of €3.5 million each (RIA).
• BUSINESS-03: reusing vacant, obsolete or underused spaces. It has €9 million, i.e. 2 projects of €4.5 million each (RIA).

Who can apply and in what format?

This is not a call for a single company or a single town hall. Projects are submitted by consortia. Eight of the nine topics require results to be demonstrated or validated in several countries, usually in at least three neighbourhoods or buildings in different Member States or associated countries. The REGEN-03 topic sheet does not impose a minimum number of countries. Some topics explicitly require urban, peri-urban and rural neighbourhoods.

Common conditions, set out in the topic sheets:

• a participatory and transdisciplinary approach, with residents, users and owners involved in design and implementation;
• effective contribution from the social sciences and humanities, explicitly required in most topics;
• at least 0.8% of the budget allocated to collaboration with the "New European Bauhaus hub for results and impact", the Horizon Europe-funded centre for disseminating results;
• for innovation actions, a target technology readiness level at the end: TRL 5–7 for REGEN-01 and TRL 6–8 for REGEN-02 and REGEN-03.

The general rules on admissibility, country eligibility and evaluation are those in the general annexes of the Horizon Europe Work Programme (annexes A–G). Romania, as a Member State, is eligible.

How and by when do you apply?

Submission is online, via the Commission's Funding & Tenders portal, under reference HORIZON-NEB-2026-01. On the portal you will find the call text, the application forms and the partner search function, which is active for the topics. The deadline is 1 December 2026, 17:00 CET, i.e. 18:00 in Romania. The call has a single stage, so the full proposal is submitted directly.

How does it relate to the NEB call under PR North-East?

They are different funding sources. The call under the North-East Regional Programme funds local strategies in the region, from cohesion funds. The Horizon Europe call is managed directly by the Commission and is aimed at European consortia. A town hall in the North-East can use the experience from the regional project to become a credible partner in a Horizon Europe consortium. However, each application is evaluated separately, under the rules of its own programme.

What this means for your business

Our recommendation: with two months left until the deadline, the organisations with the best chances are those joining an already formed consortium as partners, not those starting now to build one as leader.

• Town halls and ADIs (intercommunity development associations) can offer what consortia are looking for: a real neighbourhood or building for demonstration, such as a heritage building, social housing or public spaces. Prepare a short site sheet now, covering the legal status of the property, energy data and the resident groups that can be involved.
• Architecture, construction and materials firms are a particularly good fit for the REGEN topics, where solutions for thermal comfort, maintenance or additional storeys are demonstrated.
• Universities and social NGOs play a key role in the topics on homeless people and residents' health, where social science expertise matters.
• Common pitfalls: forgetting the 0.8% allocation for the NEB hub, resident involvement staying merely declarative, and missing written consent from the owner of the demonstration building.

For the national and regional programmes that suit your profile, you can use the eligibility check.

Frequently asked questions

Can a Romanian town hall submit a New European Bauhaus project under Horizon Europe on its own?

No. The general Horizon Europe rules for innovation actions and for research and innovation actions require a consortium of at least three independent entities from three different countries, at least one of which is from a Member State. In addition, most topics of call HORIZON-NEB-2026-01 require demonstration or validation in several Member States or associated countries. The town hall can be leader or partner.

What is the deadline for call HORIZON-NEB-2026-01?

All 9 topics have the same deadline: 1 December 2026, 17:00 CET (18:00 Romanian time). Submission is in a single stage, via the Funding & Tenders portal.

How much can a project receive?

Between 3.5 million euro (topics BUSINESS-01 and BUSINESS-02) and 6.3 million euro (PARTICIPATION-01, on homeless people). The value depends on the topic.

Can private companies take part?

Yes. Architecture, construction, materials or financial services firms can join consortia, especially in the topics on buildings (REGEN) and the one on investment (BUSINESS-02). The eligibility rules are the general ones under Horizon Europe.

What is the New European Bauhaus hub to which 0.8% of the budget must be allocated?

It is the "New European Bauhaus hub for results and impact", funded under Horizon Europe, which gathers and disseminates the results of NEB projects. All topics require at least 0.8% of the project budget to be reserved for collaboration with it.

Official sources

• CINEA – Horizon Europe: EUR 101.1 million under the New European Bauhaus Facility
• Funding & Tenders – topic HORIZON-NEB-2026-01-REGEN-01
• Funding & Tenders – topic HORIZON-NEB-2026-01-PARTICIPATION-01

Information checked on 2 October 2026. Conditions may be changed by the managing authority — check the guide in force before you submit.