HORIZON-CL3-2027-01-FCT-05: Effective and evidence-based responses to the increased availability… — expected outcomes, evaluation and traps

Topic	HORIZON-CL3-2027-01-FCT-05
Status	Forthcoming
Call	HORIZON-CL3-2027-01 — Civil Security for Society 2027
Destination	Better protect the EU and its citizens against Crime and Terrorism (2026-27)
Type of action	Innovation Actions · lump sum
Opening	5 May 2027
Deadline	4 November 2027
Budget	around EUR 4 million per project · 2 projects expected · EUR 8 million in total
TRL at the end	TRL 6–8
Part B page limit	45 pages (standard application form; check your call)
Template	Work Programme 2026–2027 application form

Expected outcomes

Projects should contribute to all of the expected outcomes. The topic says: “Project results are expected to contribute to all of the following expected outcomes:”

EO1 Evidence base is improved for effective prevention, treatment and harm reduction of synthetic drugs and stimulants in Europe.
EO2 Relevant European security practitioners, notably Police Authorities, Civil Society Organisations and Non-Governmental Organisations, are equipped with skills, tools and technology aimed at reducing the violence and offences associated with use and marketing of these substances, as well as at combatting drug trafficking from its origin to destination (i.e., through the entire supply chain)
EO3 Increased understanding of relevant European security practitioners and policymakers regarding the influence of external drivers of change of societal, technological, legal, economic and ethical nature to the availability and use of different types of synthetic drugs and drug markets.

Expected impacts named in the destination

The wider, long-term effects the destination seeks. Your outcomes feed them; they are not project deliverables.

EI1 Modern information analysis for Police Authorities, allowing them to efficiently fight criminals and terrorists who use novel technologies.
EI2 Improved forensics and lawful evidence collection, increasing the capabilities to apprehend criminals and terrorists and bring them to the court.
EI3 Enhanced prevention, detection and deterrence of societal issues related to various forms of crime, including cybercrime, and terrorism, such as violent radicalisation, as well as domestic sexual violence, and gender-based violence, with a particular emphasis on protecting populations in a vulnerable situation and victims at increased risk of violence, including those affected by child sexual abuse and juvenile delinquency.
EI4 Increased security of citizens against terrorism, including in public spaces (while preserving their quality and openness)
EI5 Improved intelligence picture and enhanced prevention, detection and deterrence of various forms of organised crime.
EI6 More secure cyberspace for citizens, especially children and elderly people, through a robust prevention, detection, and protection from cybercriminal activities.
EI7 challenges regarding prevention, detection and deterrence of various forms of crime and terrorism through an enhanced understanding of the related societal issues, such as tackling the nexus between disinformation, hate speech and radicalisation, countering gender-based violence, or fighting violence-as-a-service.
EI8 challenges related to counterterrorism, protection of public spaces, such as improving detection of remote explosives and explosives in closed spaces and urban environments, or use and countering of unmanned systems, including neutralisation of commercial drone attacks.
EI9 Police cooperation package (information exchange, automated data exchange for police cooperation - “Prüm II”, operational cross-border police cooperation)
EI10 Counter-Terrorism Agenda for the EU (incl. Regulation 2021/784/EU on addressing dissemination of terrorist content online & Directive 2017/541/EU on combating terrorism)
EI11 EU C-UAS Strategy (counter-drone policy)
EI12 EU Strategy to Tackle Organised crime.

What evaluators will look for in this topic

Expected outcomes

Projects should contribute to all of the expected outcomes.
For each outcome (EO1 to EO3), name who will use or adopt your results (a specific group, not “industry” or “society”), how they get them, and the indicator that shows the change, with baseline, target and date.
Use the topic's own words for each outcome, so the evaluator can tick it off.

What the scope asks for

Evaluators check the proposal against these sentences of the scope. Answer each one visibly, in the call's own words.

“In light of the underdeveloped evidence base surrounding synthetic drugs, proposals should aim to foster collaboration among researchers, policymakers, and security practitioners to create a comprehensive and effective response to this pressing issue in Europe, previous research, including but not limited to research by other Framework Programmes’ projects.”
“Coordination among the successful proposals from this topic should be envisaged to avoid duplication and to exploit complementarities as well as opportunities for increased impact.”
“To ensure the active involvement of and timely feedback from relevant security practitioners, proposals should plan a mid-term deliverable consisting in the assessment of the project’s mid-term outcomes, performed by the practitioners involved in the project.”
“Activities proposed within this topic should address, in a balanced way, both technological and societal dimensions of the issue under consideration.”
“The proposals funded under this topic are expected to engage with the Europol Innovation Lab during the lifetime of the project, including validating the outcomes, with the aim of facilitating future uptake of innovations for the law enforcement community.”
“Similarly, the proposals funded under this topic are expected to engage with the EU Drugs Agency during the lifetime of the project, including validating the outcomes.”
“Finally, proposals are expected to address all applicable considerations expressed in the Introduction of the Fighting Crime and Terrorism Destination.”

Conditions that shape the proposal

Part B, sections 1–3: 45 pages (standard application form). Text beyond the limit is not read; tables and figures count.
Lump sum: the budget is fixed per work package and paid when each work package is completed. Every work package needs activities and deliverables an evaluator can verify, and the effort must match the money.
TRL: the topic expects TRL 6–8 by the end of the project. State where you start and the evidence for it.
Innovation action: evaluators expect a plausible path to commercialisation and named first users or customers.
Other Eligible Conditions: “The following additional eligibility criteria apply: This topic requires the active involvement, as beneficiaries, of at least 3 Police Authorities[[In the context of this Destination, ‘Police Authorities’ means public authorities explicitly designated by national law, or other entities legally mandated by the…”

Impact pathway and traps

The gender dimension is named in the topic. Show how sex and gender analysis enters the research content, not only team balance.
Keep outputs, outcomes and impacts apart: what you deliver, what changes when others use it, and the long-term effect.
For each destination impact you claim, show which of your outcomes feeds it. Destination impacts are long-term effects, not project deliverables.
Name the barriers outside the project (regulation, markets, user behaviour) that could block uptake, and what you will do if they do.
Section 2.3 (the summary canvas) is optional on this call; the old split into scientific, economic and societal impact is no longer required.

The scope, as published

This topic asks for proposals that seek to develop effective and evidence-based responses to the growing prevalence of synthetic drugs and stimulants, such as cocaine and crack cocaine, within the EU. As these substances increasingly influence the drug landscape, the urgent need for enhanced understanding and strategies in their prevention, treatment, and harm reduction has never been clearer. Amongst other, there is also a lack of pharmacological data for the emerging drugs, needed to do proper risk assessments and interventions of these drugs in Europe. Key focus areas include: Evidence-based approaches, strengthening the evidence base to inform effective prevention strategies, treatment modalities, and harm reduction practices targeted at synthetic drugs and stimulants. This includes identifying best practices in current interventions and evaluating their efficacy. Reducing violence and offending exploring strategies to mitigate the violence and criminal behaviour associated with the use and marketing of synthetic drugs. This involves understanding the socio-economic and cultural factors, including the gender, age, or other social factors, that contribute to these phenomena and proposing targeted interventions. Improving technologies and tools to combat drug trafficking from its origin to destination (i.e., through the entire supply chain). External drivers of change, analysing the impact of geopolitical situations, legal frameworks, and societal factors on the availability and consumption of various drugs, and addressing how international crises affect organised crime and drug markets in the EU. This includes investigating the repercussions of global developments on local drug dynamics and identifying adaptive response strategies. In light of the underdeveloped evidence base surrounding synthetic drugs, proposals should aim to foster collaboration among researchers, policymakers, and security practitioners to create a comprehensive and effective response to this pressing issue in Europe, previous research, including but not limited to research by other Framework Programmes’ projects. Coordination among the successful proposals from this topic should be envisaged to avoid duplication and to exploit complementarities as well as opportunities for increased impact. To ensure the active involvement of and timely feedback from relevant security practitioners, proposals should plan a mid-term deliverable consisting in the assessment of the project’s mid-term outcomes, performed by the practitioners involved in the project. Activities proposed within this topic should address, in a balanced way, both technological and societal dimensions of the issue under consideration. The proposals funded under this topic are expected to engage with the Europol Innovation Lab during the lifetime of the project, including validating the outcomes, with the aim of facilitating future uptake of innovations for the law enforcement community. Similarly, the proposals funded under this topic are expected to engage with the EU Drugs Agency during the lifetime of the project, including validating the outcomes. Finally, proposals are expected to address all applicable considerations expressed in the Introduction of the Fighting Crime and Terrorism Destination.

Technology readiness, as published

Activities are expected to achieve TRL 6-8 by the end of the project – see General Annex B.

Source and attribution

Topic text from the official topic page on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal, retrieved 19 October 2026. © European Union, reused under Commission Decision 2011/833/EU (CC BY 4.0). Changes: the expected outcomes and impacts are split into numbered statements, long passages are shortened, and the evaluator checklist is GrantWise's own commentary. Your call and the Work Programme always win; check them before you submit. GrantWise is independent and not affiliated with, endorsed by, or acting on behalf of the European Commission.

Effective and evidence-based responses to the increased availability and use of synthetic drugs and stimulants in Europe

Expected outcomes

Expected impacts named in the destination

What evaluators will look for in this topic

Expected outcomes

What the scope asks for

Conditions that shape the proposal

Impact pathway and traps

Other topics in HORIZON-CL3-2027-01

Source and attribution