Innovate UK (IUK) UK-Germany Bilateral Collaborative R&D: Round 5

Funding Amount

IUK will work with the Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Energie (BMWE), Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, to invest up to £2.4 million in innovation projects.

Projects must:

• Have a grant funding request of between £100,000 and £350,000

• Have most of their project work undertaken in the UK and Germany

• Have no one country or project partner represent more than 70% of the total project cost

For industrial research projects, applicants can get funding for their eligible project costs of:

• Up to 70% for a micro or small organization

• Up to 60% for a medium-sized organization

• Up to 50% for a large organization

Eligible Applicants

To lead a collaborative project, applicants must:

• Be a UK-registered SME

• Collaborate with at least one Germany-registered SME applying to the German ZIM program, which must be a separate legal entity, not linked to the UK partners

The UK team may also partner with other UK companies, if they are one of the following UK-registered:

• Business of any size

• Academic institution

• Research and technology organization (RTO)

Eligible Activities

Projects must focus on one of the following sectors:

• Clean energy

• Life sciences

• Engineering biology

CR&D proposals must demonstrate:

• A clear game-changing or disruptive innovative idea leading to new products, processes, or services

• A strong and deliverable business plan that addresses and documents market potential and needs

• Sound, practical financial plans and timelines

• Good value for money

• A clear, evidence-based plan to deliver significant economic impact, return on investment (ROI), and growth through commercialization, as soon as possible after project completion

• Clear, considerable potential to significantly benefit the UK economy or national productivity

• The benefit of participants from the countries working together and how this adds value

• A clear definition of where intellectual property (IP) can be used and shared between the participants and countries

• A clear route to market within two to three years of project completion

Program Deadline

December 1, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. (GMT)