On 30 September 2026 the Commission launched the 2027 work programme of Creative Europe, worth EUR 402 million. I walk you through the deadlines already fixed, between 20 January and 22 April 2027, and what has not been published yet.
What it is about
According to the Commission, 2027 is the last year of implementation of the current Creative Europe programme, which will be succeeded by AgoraEU. The calls are published on the Funding & Tenders Portal, the Commission’s single entry point for directly managed grants, and run by EACEA, the EU executive agency for education and culture. Below are the calls whose official text I have checked, in order of deadline. All of them close at 17:00 Brussels time.
The deadlines already set
- 20 January 2027: News, media literacy (CREA-CROSS-2027-MEDIALITERACY). Total budget of EUR 3.5 million, up to EUR 500,000 per project at a 70% funding rate. You need at least 3 independent beneficiaries from 3 eligible countries.
- 27 January 2027: Circulation of European literary works (CREA-CULT-2027-LIT). Estimated budget of EUR 5 million, subject to final adoption of the 2027 budget. The maximum grant is EUR 200,000 for a single applicant and EUR 300,000 for a consortium, as a lump sum at a 60% funding rate. Applicants must be active in the publishing and book sector, and each project covers at least 5 European literary works.
- 4 February 2027: Journalism partnerships (CREA-CROSS-2027-JOURPART). Budget of EUR 14 million, EUR 7 million for each of the two topics. Up to EUR 2 million per project under Collaborations and up to EUR 2.5 million under Pluralism.
- 2 March 2027: European co-development (CREA-MEDIA-2027-CODEV). Indicative budget of EUR 12.5 million. Open to independent audiovisual production companies: up to EUR 120,000 for two beneficiaries, plus EUR 60,000 for each additional partner, as a lump sum at a 70% funding rate.
- 22 April 2027: Creative Innovation Lab (CREA-CROSS-2027-INNOVLAB). Budget of EUR 7,183,502, 80% funding rate and no ceiling set for the requested grant. A single applicant or a consortium of at least 2 beneficiaries can apply.
What has not been published yet
For European cooperation projects, the Culture strand plans EUR 61 million across small, medium and large scale projects. The call is announced for the first quarter of 2027, but I could not find a deadline or an official text yet: not yet confirmed. Do not mix it up with the 2026 edition, CREA-CULT-2026-COOP.
Why it matters if you have no dedicated EU grants office
Five deadlines in three months do not mean five applications to write: each call speaks to a specific sector (media, publishing, journalism, audiovisual, digital innovation). The first question is whether your profile is among the eligible applicants. The second is the partnership: the media literacy call requires 3 countries, co-development requires at least two MEDIA countries, while the Creative Innovation Lab also accepts a single applicant.
How to proceed
- Open the Funding & Tenders Portal and search for the call by its identifier.
- Read the official call document (call fiche), which sets out requirements, budget and mandatory documents.
- Register your organisation in the Participant Register and get it validated: the call texts require this for all beneficiaries and affiliated entities.