Deadline Date: September 03, 2026
The UK–Switzerland Bilateral Call is seeking applications to support joint R and D projects between UK and Swiss partners to develop innovative commercial solutions.
The focus areas, of this call include semiconductors, life sciences, engineering biology, research and development collaboration, innovation, commercial product development, international cooperation, and market-driven technological advancement.
This call, launched by Innovate UK (part of UK Research and Innovation) and Innosuisse, supports bilateral collaboration between the United Kingdom and Switzerland in emerging fields. It aims to strengthen global competitiveness by supporting joint research and development projects with strong commercial potential.
Proposals must contribute to the development of commercial products, processes, or technical services with significant market opportunities in both countries. Projects are expected to demonstrate clear added value from UK–Swiss collaboration, complementary expertise, innovation capacity, access to research infrastructure, and accelerated development pathways.
Eligible projects must focus exclusively on semiconductors, life sciences, or engineering biology. Applications outside these three areas will not be considered for evaluation under this call.
Projects must have a duration between 18 and 36 months. Each consortium must include at least one business entity from the UK and one from Switzerland, as well as at least one research institute from either country, unless a specific exemption applies for eligible Swiss start-ups.
Additional participants such as research organisations or commercial companies may be included, provided they comply with national funding rules. To ensure genuine international collaboration, affiliated companies within a consortium are treated as a single entity, and UK and Swiss partners must remain independent.
Organisations not acting as project leads may participate in up to three applications. All projects must demonstrate strong innovation content, bilateral cooperation benefits, and a balanced contribution between countries, following the requirement that no single country contributes more than 70 percent or less than 30 percent of total person-months.
Mandatory submission requirements include a consortium agreement covering intellectual property rights and financial documentation demonstrating the ability of partners to fund their contributions. Only costs incurred within each respective country are eligible, and cross-border funding is not permitted.
For more information, visit Innosuisse.
