Erasmus+ Youth Participation Activities (KA154-YOU) 2026: Up to €60,000 for Youth-Led Civic Projects
Erasmus+ Youth Participation Activities (KA154-YOU) supports youth-led national, transnational, and international projects that give young people a meaningful role in civic and democratic life. The 2026 Round 2 deadline is 1 October at midday Brussels time.
Erasmus+ Youth Participation Activities (KA154-YOU) 2026: Up to €60,000 for Youth-Led Civic Projects
Erasmus+ Youth Participation Activities (KA154-YOU) funds projects in which young people help identify an issue, shape the response, take part in delivery, and reflect on the results. The action sits outside formal education and training. It is designed for civic and democratic participation, not for a student applying for an individual award or for an organisation seeking unrestricted operating money.
The 2026 call is still open for its second submission window. The official Erasmus+ Programme Guide lists 1 October 2026 at 12:00 midday Brussels time for projects starting between 1 January and 31 May of the following year. The earlier 12 February 2026 window, for projects starting between 1 June and 31 December of the same year, has passed. This page therefore uses the October deadline as its single current application deadline.
Key details
| Item | Current information |
|---|---|
| Action | Youth Participation Activities (KA154-YOU) |
| 2026 status | Round 2 is open at the time of this update |
| Application deadline | 1 October 2026, 12:00 midday Brussels time |
| Project start window for this deadline | 1 January–31 May of the following year |
| Project duration | 3 to 24 months |
| Maximum grant | €60,000 per project, excluding inclusion support for participants |
| Applicant route | National Agency in the country where the applicant organisation is established |
| Applicant types | Eligible organisations or an informal group of young people |
| Participant profile | Young people aged 13–30, plus decision-makers relevant to the project topic |
| Official source | Erasmus+ Programme Guide, Youth participation activities |
The European Commission’s current programme page is the best starting point for the rules. It describes the action, eligible applicants, award criteria, funding categories, and application route. The separate Erasmus+ application website is where an eligible applicant completes the form.
What the action is meant to support
The central question is whether the project gives young people a real opportunity to express views, influence decisions, and act on issues that affect them. A project can be local, national, transnational, or international, but every supported activity needs a clear connection to the action’s objectives and a European dimension or European added value.
Eligible formats can include workshops, debates, role-play, simulations, consultations, training, information or cultural events, digital-democracy activities, awareness campaigns, and online or in-person exchanges between young people and decision-makers. A project might, for example, begin with a youth-led consultation about access to local services, move into a series of co-designed workshops, and end with young people presenting practical recommendations to a municipality. Another project might compare youth participation methods across partner countries and test a shared digital consultation process.
The format is flexible, but attendance alone is not enough. Young people should have a meaningful role in preparation, implementation, and follow-up. The programme guide expects the project to explain how participants will identify learning outcomes and reflect on them, including through Youthpass where appropriate. It also expects the beneficiary to provide feedback to young participants about the project results and how those results were communicated or used.
The action does not support statutory meetings of organisations or networks, partisan political events, or physical infrastructure such as construction, building acquisition, or permanent equipment. A proposal that is mainly a routine organisational meeting, a party-political event, or a capital purchase is a poor fit even if young people are invited.
Who can apply
An applicant must be an eligible participating organisation established in an EU Member State or a third country associated to Erasmus+. The applicant submits on behalf of the participating organisations in the project. Eligible participating organisations include non-profit organisations and associations, NGOs, European Youth NGOs, public bodies at local, regional, or national level, social enterprises, and profit-making bodies active in corporate social responsibility with proven youth-field experience, provided their involvement has no commercial or profit-making purpose.
An informal group of young people can also be a participating organisation for this action. The official definition requires at least four young people aged 13 to 30. One member who is at least 18 must act as the group’s representative and take responsibility on behalf of the group. The group may apply independently, or an organisation may support the group and apply for the grant on its behalf.
The geography depends on the role. Participating organisations may be established in an EU Member State, a third country associated to Erasmus+, or a neighbouring third country not associated to the Programme in regions 1–4. The main budget is intended for transnational activities involving EU Member States and associated countries; the Programme Guide notes that up to 20% of the available budget can support international activities involving neighbouring non-associated countries. Activities must take place in the country of one or more participating organisations, or at the seat of an EU institution when the activity is organised there or in cooperation with that institution. Activities cannot take place in Belarus or Russia.
National projects need at least one participating organisation. Transnational and international projects need at least two participating organisations from different countries. Young participants must be 13 to 30 and reside in the country of a participating organisation. Decision-makers relevant to the subject of the project may also participate. Facilitators and accompanying persons are not counted as participants, although the funding rules can support them in relevant budget categories.
An organisation ID cannot be used in more than five applications per deadline for this action, whether the organisation is the applicant or a partner. Check this before joining a partnership, especially if the organisation regularly submits Erasmus+ proposals.
How the €60,000 budget works
The maximum grant is €60,000 per project. The official rule specifically excludes the category for inclusion support for participants from that maximum. This is a ceiling, not an automatic award: the requested amount must match the project’s activities, participant profile, travel needs, and delivery plan.
Project management is funded through a unit contribution of €500 per month. It covers management and implementation work such as preparing activities and project meetings, partner communication, evaluation, dissemination, and follow-up. If the project includes physical youth participation events, the event-support category provides €100 per person, calculated for people attending the event other than the organisation’s staff, informal-group members, and facilitators.
Mobility-related costs can be added when the project includes travel or overnight stays. Travel support is based on distance and the number of people. The Programme Guide provides separate green and non-green travel rates, and applicants must use the European Commission distance calculator. Individual support contributes to subsistence and is based on the receiving country and the number of days. Inclusion support for organisations is €125 per participant with fewer opportunities when the relevant mobility conditions are met.
Some needs are handled as real costs rather than standard unit contributions. Approved inclusion support for participants can cover 100% of eligible additional costs directly linked to participants with fewer opportunities, accompanying persons, or facilitators. Exceptional costs can cover eligible visa, residence-permit, vaccination, and medical-certification expenses. Expensive travel may also be requested where standard travel support would not cover at least 70% of the cost; the application must justify the need and the National Agency must approve it.
The guide also allows coaching when young people need support to develop and carry out the project. Coaching is needs-based and must be justified in the application. Build a budget from the activity plan rather than starting with the ceiling. For every line, explain who benefits, which activity it enables, why it is necessary, and how the amount was calculated.
Application steps for the October window
Choose the project model. Decide whether the proposal is national, transnational, or international. Confirm the participating organisations, the countries involved, the young people who will lead or contribute, and the decision-makers who could respond to the project’s findings.
Confirm applicant and registration details. The applicant must be established in an EU Member State or associated country and apply through the National Agency for that country. Check the organisation ID, legal information, authorised signatory, and application-count limit. Partner organisations should be ready to provide accession forms; the Programme Guide says these should be supplied at application stage and no later than grant-agreement signature.
Define the youth need and participation method. Start with evidence from young people, not a generic policy theme. Explain who is affected, how young people will help decide the response, and what decisions or practices the project aims to influence. Include concrete arrangements for accessibility, safeguarding, and participation by young people with fewer opportunities.
Build the activity sequence. Describe preparation, implementation, and follow-up. Show who owns each task, how partners communicate, what participants will do, and how the project will gather evidence of change. If the plan contains mobility activities or youth participation events, prepare a timetable for each one because the timetable must be annexed to the application form.
Complete the official form. Use the Erasmus+ application website and the current KA154-YOU form. Select the National Agency that serves the applicant’s establishment country. Attach the required registration and partner materials, the activity timetables where relevant, and any evidence needed to support inclusion or exceptional-cost requests.
Run a final quality check. Confirm that the dates, duration, participants, venues, partner roles, and budget all describe the same project. Check that the proposal addresses inclusion and diversity, environmental responsibility, digital possibilities, democratic participation, EU values, participant safety, learning outcomes, dissemination, and sustainability. Submit before 12:00 Brussels time on 1 October 2026 rather than relying on a last-minute upload.
What reviewers assess
Applications are scored out of 100. A proposal must reach at least 60 points overall and at least half of the maximum score in each of the three award criteria. Reviewers consider relevance, rationale and impact; quality of project design; and quality of project management.
For relevance and impact, connect the applicant’s youth work and target groups to a well-defined need. Explain how the project supports one or more EU Youth Dialogue priorities or European Youth Goals, contributes to inclusion, green, digital, and participatory dimensions, respects shared EU values, and produces a credible benefit for participants, organisations, and the wider community.
For design quality, make the chain easy to follow: identified need, objectives, participant profile, activities, learning outcomes, and results. Young people should be involved across the project rather than appearing only as the audience. Accessible design, environmentally responsible practice, and suitable digital or blended elements should be specific to the people and places involved.
For management quality, define responsibilities, communication routines, risk controls, participant-protection measures, evaluation methods, dissemination channels, and plans for results to continue after the funded project. A detailed schedule and a modest, well-supported budget are more persuasive than a large list of activities with no ownership.
Final fit check
KA154-YOU is a strong fit for a youth group or youth-serving organisation that can turn a real participation problem into a managed project with visible outputs. It is not a personal scholarship, a general operating grant, or a substitute for an organisation’s normal statutory meetings. Before applying, confirm the October start-window rule, the applicant’s National Agency, the organisation ID, the country and age rules, and the required annexes in the official application materials.
Official links: