Switzerland - EU Agreement to give Switzerland access to EU programs
According to the Department of Economic Affairs, the Swiss chief negotiator Patric Franzen initialled the agreement on Swiss participation in EU programs with his counterpart from the EU Commission on Wednesday. This is to be applied as early as this year.
02.04.2025, 11:51
02.04.2025, 11:52
SDA
The agreement should enable Switzerland to become associated with the EU programs Horizon Europe, Euratom, Iter, Digital Europe, Erasmus plus and EU4Health, as announced by the Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research (EAER) on Wednesday. This is the first step in the approval process. The agreement will only enter into force once the Switzerland-EU package has been ratified.
It is an "important step towards strengthening cooperation between the EU and Switzerland", the European Commission wrote in a statement.
Gradual association of Switzerland
The first elements of the agreement could be applied provisionally, the Swiss government added. This is to take place gradually: Horizon Europe retroactively from January 1, 2025, Iter from 2026 and Erasmus plus from 2027.
Thanks to a transitional arrangement, researchers in Switzerland have been able to apply for funding from the Horizon Europe research fund since January 1, 2025. To ensure that the regulation does not expire and Switzerland remains associated with the program, the agreement on the EU programs must be signed this year.
This is not yet done with the initialling, as this term is used in diplomacy to describe a provisional signature. The formal signing in Switzerland will be carried out by the Federal Council, as was also reported.
On the Brussels side, the European Commission needs the approval of the EU member states in order to sign the agreement. In order for the agreement to be signed this year, the contract on the programs has been brought forward to the rest of the agreement package. According to the Federal Council, the signing is planned for November.
