Reliability of age assessment methods in the context of security and border management
Coordination and Support Action to assess reliability and rights impact of age assessment methods for minors in EU border and security contexts.
This call funds a coordination and support action to analyze current age assessment methods used for minors at EU borders and in security contexts. It aims to improve protection of minors by evaluating scientific reliability and fundamental rights risks of these methods. The project will not develop new methods but will provide evidence-based recommendations for better age assessment practices.
Likely relevant for
- Border and coast guard authorities
- Security agencies
- Human rights organizations
- Research institutions in forensic science and social sciences
- Policy makers in migration and child protection
Project signals
What it funds
- Analysis and comparison of existing age assessment methods for minors in migration and security contexts
- Assessment of scientific reliability, sensitivity, and specificity of methods
- Evaluation of fundamental rights risks and how to minimize them
- Coordination among practitioners and authorities across EU Member States
- Contribution to knowledge exchange and policy-relevant evidence base
Expected outcomes
- Improved protection of minors through more reliable and less intrusive age assessments
- Enhanced preparedness and cooperation of authorities against human trafficking
- Expanded European knowledge on age assessment methods' reliability and effectiveness
- Evidence-based recommendations for inclusive and rights-respecting age assessment models
- Support for better identification of children in migration, security, and forensic contexts
Who can apply / participate
- Legal entities established in EU Member States or Associated Countries
- Border or Coast Guard Authorities (at least 2 from different countries as beneficiaries)
- At least 2 Border or Coast Guard Authorities from different EU Member States or Associated Countries must be active beneficiaries
- Participants must be from EU Member States or Associated Countries
- Active involvement of border/coast guard authorities is mandatory
- Proposals must comply with Horizon Europe general eligibility conditions
- Specific details on other eligible applicant types beyond border/coast guard authorities and research organizations
Must check before shortlisting
- Eligibility requires at least 2 border or coast guard authorities from different EU/Associated countries as beneficiaries
- Check lump sum funding model and related conditions
- Verify capacity to handle security sensitive information
Money
The lump sum grant for this Coordination and Support Action is set at EUR 1,330,000 for the year 2026.
- Maximum EU contribution — 1330000EURLump sum funding as per Horizon Europe rules
Application notes
- Single-stage submission model.
- Proposal page limits and layout as per Horizon Europe General Annexes and Application Form instructions.
- Eligibility requires at least 2 border or coast guard authorities from different EU/Associated countries as beneficiaries.
- Some activities may involve classified or security sensitive information; compliance with related provisions is required.
- Eligible costs are reimbursed via lump sum funding model.
- Prepare proposal following Horizon Europe guidelines and templates.
- Ensure involvement of required border/coast guard authorities and complete related application form sections.
- Submit proposal by the deadline via the Funding & Tenders Portal.
- Comply with security provisions if handling classified or sensitive information.
- No development of new age assessment methods is allowed; focus is on analysis and coordination.
- Active involvement of border/coast guard authorities is mandatory for eligibility.
- Funding is lump sum, so budget planning must align with lump sum rules.
Derived from official EU Funding portal source · updated 2 Jul 2026, 09:14 UTC. Use this as a shortlisting aid; the official call text remains authoritative.
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Official source text
Fine print from the EU source record. Expand when you need the original wording.
Topic description
Expected Outcome: Project results are expected to contribute to some or all of the following expected outcomes: Improved protection of minors, including by more reliable age assessments and by minimising the use of intrusive age assessment methods; Improved adaptation, preparedness and cooperation of authorities in the fight against human trafficking; Expanded European-based knowledge on reliability, accuracy and effectiveness of age assessment methods. Scope: Many unaccompanied children and young persons arriving at the external EU borders and seeking asylum, lack official documents showing their identity and age. Age assessment methods are important as they contribute to the determination of, for example, where an individual will be initially housed and what services, supports, and legal processes they will receive to ensure protection and, if applicable, child protection. In other cases, minors are victim of trafficking of human beings (THB) criminal activities, either across the EU external borders, or within the EU borders. In other cases again, age assessment methods are necessary for law enforcement investigations on protecting children, forensic investigation, and/or the identification of victims. No age assessment method can offer a 100% reliability. Different approaches have different sensitivity and specificity, and different sample sizes and representativeness, and some approaches are based on a non-European knowledge base. Furthermore, there is considerable variation in methods of age assessment. Methods may use approaches as diverse as interviews, psychological assessments and other holistic approaches; medical approaches such as X-rays, CT scans, DNA methylation, dental observation, or other analyses; other approaches such as image analysis; and they may use or not artificial intelligence (AI) for data analysis. EU regulations, and guidelines by the European Union Asylum Agency (EUAA)[[ EASO Age assessment practices in EU+ countries: updated findings (europa.eu) https://euaa.europa.eu/sites/default/files/EASO_Age_assessment_practices_updated.pdf []], include safeguards and recommendations, such as that the least invasive methods should be used, and that medical methods should be used as a last resort. Further studies, reports or documents have also been elaborated by the European Migration Network [1] , European networks of security practitioners for innovation, as well as at national level. The action funded by this topic should also consider these, as well as previous research, including but not limited to research by other relevant EU Framework Programmes projects. This Coordination and Support Action should not develop methods or technologies of age assessment. Rather, it will analyse, including with practitioners, the current and potential methods for age assessment. It should assess and compare scientific reliability, sensitivity and specificity of different methods, as well as their potential risks for fundamental rights and how to minimize them. While the research results would not imply any legislative or policy decision on age assessment methods, the research will develop evidence-based results on options for more (compared to the state-of-the-art) appropriate models of age assessment methods that protect fundamental rights, ensuring the use of an inclusive approach that addresses diverse needs. The results of research funded by this topic will contribute to capabilities for better identification of children and minors in the migratory, security, border management and other contexts, following the principles of the EU Strategy on the rights of the child [2] . They will also contribute to the exchange of practices among European authorities. Synergies with other Horizon Europe Cluster 3 Destinations, such as “Better protect the EU and its citizens against Crime and Terrorism” and “Disaster-Resilient Society for Europe”, as well as with Destinations of Horizon Europe Cluster 2 “Inclusive Society”. [1] https://ec.europa.eu/home-affairs/networks/european-migration-network-emn_en [2] COM(2021) 142 final.
Conditions and documents
General conditions
1. Admissibility Conditions: Proposal page limit and layout
2. Eligible Countries
described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes.
A number of non-EU/non-Associated Countries that are not automatically eligible for funding have made specific provisions for making funding available for their participants in Horizon Europe projects. See the information in the Horizon Europe Programme Guide.
3. Other Eligible Conditions
The following additional eligibility criteria apply:
This topic requires the active involvement, as beneficiaries, of at least 2 Border or Coast Guard Authorities from at least 2 different EU Member States or Associated Countries. For these participants, applicants must fill in the table “Information about security practitioners” in the application form with all the requested information, following the template provided in the submission IT tool.
described in Annex B of the Work Programme General Annexes.
4. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion
described in Annex C of the Work Programme General Annexes.
5a. Evaluation and award: Award criteria, scoring and thresholds
are described in Annex D of the Work Programme General Annexes.
5b. Evaluation and award: Submission and evaluation processes
are described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes and the Online Manual.
5c. Evaluation and award: Indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement
described in Annex F of the Work Programme General Annexes.
6. Legal and financial set-up of the grants
Eligible costs will take the form of a lump sum as defined in the Decision of 7 July 2021 authorising the use of lump sum contributions under the Horizon Europe Programme – the Framework Programme for Research and Innovation (2021-2027) – and in actions under the Research and Training Programme of the European Atomic Energy Community (2021-2025) [[This decision is available on the Funding and Tenders Portal, in the reference documents section for Horizon Europe, under ‘Simplified costs decisions’ or through this link: https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/docs/2021-2027/horizon/guidance/ls-decision_he_en.pdf]].
described in Annex G of the Work Programme General Annexes.
Specific conditions
described in the [specific topic of the Work Programme]
Some activities resulting from this topic may involve using classified background and/or producing of security sensitive results (EUCI and SEN). Please refer to the related provisions in section B Security — EU classified and sensitive information of the General Annexes.
Application and evaluation forms and model grant agreement (MGA):
Application form templates — the application form specific to this call is available in the Submission System
Standard application form (HE CSA)
Evaluation form templates — will be used with the necessary adaptations
Standard evaluation form (HE CSA)
Guidance
Model Grant Agreements (MGA)
Call-specific instructions
Additional documents:
HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 1. General Introduction
HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 6. Civil Security for Society
HE Main Work Programme 2026-2027 – 15. General Annexes
HE Framework Programme 2021/695
HE Specific Programme Decision 2021/764
EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509
Decision authorising the use of lump sum contributions under the Horizon Europe Programme
Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment
EU Grants AGA — Annotated Model Grant Agreement
Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual
Support information
Online Manual is your guide on the procedures from proposal submission to managing your grant. Horizon Europe Programme Guide contains the detailed guidance to the structure, budget and political priorities of Horizon Europe. Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ – find the answers to most frequently asked questions on submission of proposals, evaluation and grant management. Research Enquiry Service – ask questions about any aspect of European research in general and the EU Research Framework Programmes in particular. National Contact Points (NCPs) – get guidance, practical information and assistance on participation in Horizon Europe. There are also NCPs in many non-EU and non-associated countries (‘third-countries’). Enterprise Europe Network – contact your EEN national contact for advice to businesses with special focus on SMEs. The support includes guidance on the EU research funding. IT Helpdesk – contact the Funding & Tenders Portal IT helpdesk for questions such as forgotten passwords, access rights and roles, technical aspects of submission of proposals, etc. European IPR Helpdesk assists you on intellectual property issues. CEN-CENELEC Research Helpdesk and ETSI Research Helpdesk – the European Standards Organisations advise you how to tackle standardisation in your project proposal. The European Charter for Researchers and the Code of Conduct for their recruitment – consult the general principles and requirements specifying the roles, responsibilities and entitlements of researchers, employers and funders of researchers. Partner Search help you find a partner organisation for your proposal.
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