EU Funding for Skills

EUROPEAN UNION FUNDING INSTRUMENTS FOR UPSKILLING & RESKILLING

Several economic sectors seek funds to support the upskilling/reskilling of the workforce to keep competitiveness, to overcome the impact of enforced sanitary measures, and to address the transformations related to the green and digital goals.

To ease the task, DRIVES presents an overview of the funding instruments in the area of skills for 2021-2027, known to date.

AVAILABLE THROUGH THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION

EU programme/fund	Type of support	Objectives / supported activities (regarding skills)
ESF+ direct (EaSI) Regulation	Grants	Supports analytical activities, policy implementation, capacity building and communication and dissemination activities pursuing objectives in articles 3(1), 4(1) and 25 of the regulation.
European Globalisation Adjustment Fund for Displaced Workers Regulation	- Grants - Applications through national authorities	Supports national active labour market policy measures in coordinated packages that may include reskilling and upskilling of workers at risk of losing their job due to globalisation.
European instrument for temporary Support to mitigate Unemployment Risks in an Emergency (SURE) Regulation	Loans	Temporary support to provide financial assistance to Member States experiencing severe economic disturbance caused by the COVID-19 outbreak for the financing, primarily, of short-time work schemes or similar measures aimed at protecting employees and the self‐employed.
EU Solidarity Corps Regulation	Grants	Support of solidarity activities presenting a clear European added value, for example through their transnational character, particularly with regard to learning mobility and cooperation.
Erasmus + Regulation	Grants	Supports the educational, professional and personal development of people in the fields of education and training, youth and sport, contributing to sustainable growth, quality jobs and social cohesion, to driving innovation and to strengthening European identity and active citizenship. Actions supported in the fields of training and education are under Chapter II of the Regulation.
Digital Europe Programme Regulation	Procurement, grants and prizes	Supports the development of advanced digital skills with the following operational objectives: design and delivery of high-quality, long-term training and courses, including blended learning, for students and for the workforce; design and delivery of high-quality, short-term training and courses for the workforce, in particular in SMEs and in the public sector; Also supports high-quality on-the-job training and work placements for students, including traineeships, and the workforce, in particular in SMEs and in the public sector. All especially with regard to high performance and cloud computing, big data analytics, cybersecurity, distributed ledger technologies, quantum technologies, robotics and artificial intelligence.
Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions (Horizon Europe) Regulation	Grants	Equipping researchers with new knowledge and skills through mobility and exposure across borders, sectors and disciplines, enhancing training and career development systems as well as structuring and improving institutional and national recruitment.

AVAILABLE THROUGH NATIONAL AUTHORITIES

EU programme/fund	Type of support	Objectives / supported activities (regarding skills)
Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) Regulation	Grants and loans	Foresees support to promote education and skills, including digital skills, upskilling, reskilling and requalification of the active labour force. The implementation of this support depends on what is programmed on the national recovery and resilience plans. Links to national recovery and resilience plans
REACT-EU (Recovery Assistance for Cohesion and the Territories of Europe) Regulation	Additional resources	Provides additional resources to support actions financed through the European Social Fund and the European Regional Development fund that are linked to promoting crisis repair in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and preparing a green, digital and resilient recovery of the economy.
European Social Fund + (under shared management) Regulation	Grants	Supports the policies of Member States to ensure equal opportunities, equal access to the labour market, fair and quality working conditions, social protection and inclusion, in particular focussing on quality and inclusive education and training, lifelong learning, investment in children and young people and access to basic services. Specific objectives are under article 4 of the Regulation
European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) Regulation	Grants	Supports the improvement of equal access to inclusive and quality services in education, training and lifelong learning through developing accessible infrastructure, including by fostering resilience for distance and on-line education and training. Also supports training, life-long learning, reskilling and education activities.
Just Transition Fund Regulation	Grants	Supports activities of upskilling and reskilling of workers and jobseekers. These activities must be directly linked to the objective of enabling regions and people to address the social, employment, economic and environmental impacts of the transition towards the Union’s 2030 targets for energy and climate and a climate-neutral economy of the Union by 2050.
Erasmus+ Regulation	Grants	Supports the educational, professional and personal development of people in the fields of education and training, youth and sport, contributing to sustainable growth, quality jobs and social cohesion, to driving innovation and to strengthening European identity and active citizenship. Actions supported in the fields of training and education are under Chapter II of the Regulation.
European agricultural fund for rural development (EAFRD) The transitional regulation determined that existing 2014-2020 CAP regulations will continue to apply during the first two years of the 2021-2027 MFF	Grants	Promotion of knowledge transfer and innovation in agriculture, forestry and rural areas.

AVAILABLE THROUGH FINANCIAL IINSTITUTIONS AND NTERMEDIARIES

EU programme/fund	Type of support	Objectives / supported activities (regarding skills)
InvestEU Regulation	Repayable finance including debt and equity finance	The fund has a social investment and skills policy window, which comprises microfinance, social enterprise finance, social economy and measures to promote, gender equality, skills (demand and supply), education, training and related services.

For regular updated information on EU funding instruments for upskilling and reskilling, visit the European Commission dedicated page here