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FP7 - Introduction

The certification policy for the FP7 Grant Agreements has been designed with the aim to "fix the future" by focusing on the preventive ex-ante verification in order to detect and correct the most common errors identified throughout FP6 audits at the earliest possible stage.

Please look at FP6 lessons learned and the awareness leaflet [PDF] on the new and reinforced Research DGs' common audit strategy.

In addition to the Certificates on the Financial Statements, which have to be submitted after the costs are being incurred and claimed, the General Conditions of the FP7 Grant Agreement introduced two new types of ex-ante Certificates on the Methodology which may be submitted prior the costs being claimed : the Certificate on Average Personnel Costs, mandatory for any partner intending to charge average personnel calculations, and the Certificate on the Methodology for Personnel and Indirect costs, addressed to a limited number of recurring beneficiaries fulfilling the eligibility criteria set by the Commission.

Both certificates are intended to provide a set of facts and findings enabling the Commission services to asses the correctness of the method applied by the beneficiary for fixing the costs of personnel and indirect costs (in the case of the Certificate on the Methodology) to be charged to the EC Research Grants.

Whilst the Certificate on Average Personnel Costs is required for any beneficiary opting for this procedure, the Certificate on the Methodology is a voluntary choice. When the certification on the Methodology is accepted by the Commission, the requirement to provide an intermediate Certificate on the Financial Statements for claims of interim payments shall be waived.

All questions regarding the certificates shall be sent to the enquiry service at the following address: http://ec.europa.eu/research/enquiries