The Erasmus+ 2026 call for Centres of Vocational Excellence (CoVE) is open under the call ID ERASMUS-EDU-2026-PEX-COVE.
Centres of Vocational Excellence support large European partnerships that bring together vocational education and training providers, companies, employers, public authorities, research organisations and other relevant stakeholders.
The aim is to strengthen vocational education and training by creating strong local and regional skills ecosystems that can respond to labour market needs, support innovation and contribute to regional development and social inclusion.
Who can apply?
The call is open to legal entities active in the field of vocational education and training or in the world of work Participating organisations can include, for example:
- VET providers
- companies, employers, industry or sector representative organisations
- VET provider representative organisations
- national or regional qualification authorities
- research institutes
- innovation agencies
- regional development authorities
- international organisations active in the VET field
Projects must involve at least 8 applicants from at least 4 EU Member States or third countries associated to the Erasmus+ Programme. In each of these 4 countries, the partnership must include at least 1 VET provider and at least 1 enterprise, employer, industry or sector representative organisation.
The applicant must address 3 clusters of activities. For each cluster, a minimum number of activities must be selected from the list below:
- at least 4 activities under Cluster 1 – Teaching and learning
- at least 3 activities under Cluster 2 – Cooperation and partnership
- at least 2 activities under Cluster 3 – Governance and funding.
Funding and deadline
Projects should normally last 48 months. The maximum EU grant per project is EUR 4,000,000, with an EU funding rate of 80%.
The deadline for submission is 3 September 2026, 17:00 Brussels time. Applications must be submitted through the EU Funding & Tenders Portal.
Useful links
More information about the call can be found here:
Partnering with DOREA
DOREA Educational Institute is open to creating or joining partnerships under the Erasmus+ 2026 Centres of Vocational Excellence call as an educational research, training development and dissemination partner.
DOREA can contribute to project proposals through its experience in European project implementation, educational research, development of learning materials (including digital and blended learning) inclusion, quality assurance and evaluation, dissemination and exploitation of results.
We would be glad to connect with VET providers, employers, sector organisations, public authorities and other research organisations who are preparing proposals or exploring project ideas under this call.
