Frequently asked questions (FAQ)

Eligibility of applicants

The branch office in the eligible area has been established this year. Can the organisation participate?

The organisational unit has to prove operation of at least one year, this has to be given by the time of the submission of the project proposal (in this Call for Proposals 12 March 2012 the latest), meaning that in case of a project proposal submitted to the JTS e.g. on 1 March 2012, the branch office has to be at least operating from 28 February 2011.
How can organisations participate in projects if their headquarters is not located in the eligible programme area?
The most common situation for Project Partners is that their headquarters is registered and operating in the eligible area of the cross-border Programme (see the counties listed in Chapter 3.1.1.3 of the Guidelines for Applicants). If this is not the case, several situations are possible. If the organisation has a branch office or other organisational unit in the eligible programme area, it can participate as Project Partner. There are two cases that can be distinguished (the branch is a legal person on its own, or the branch has no legal personality), for details please refer to Chapter 3.1.1.3 of the Guidelines. If the organisation does not have a branch office or other organisational unit in the eligible programme area and its headquarters is also operating outside of the geographical boundaries of the Programme, it can participate in cross-border projects as Associated Partner, without receiving funding from the project. Please note that in all the above cases the organisation has to be non-profit as this basic eligibility criterion is to be respected throughout the whole Programme. Based on the above, organisations that are for-profit in nature cannot be Lead Beneficiaries, Project Partners (cross-border, domestic or from adjacent region) or Associated Partners. They can only be involved in project implementation as providers of external services and as such have to be selected according to the rules set out in the PraG.
How can a local unit of a regional organisation apply, if it has no legal entity but it is operating in the eligible area and the headquarters is not registered in the eligible area?
If the local unit (e.g University campus) operating in the eligible area has no legal entity, the headquarter has to apply - as Lead Beneficiary or Project Partner - for the funding. However, as indicated in the Guidelines for Applicants (see Chapter 3.1.1.3), there are other requirements to be met by the organisation. It has to be proven that the local unit or branch office has been operational in the eligible area for at least one year counted from the submission of the project proposal. Further on, the leader of the branch office has to be authorised by the head of the regional/national organisation to implement the project activities in the eligible area with the involvement of its own local staff. Please do not forget that the head of the regional/national organisation (headquarters) has to enclose a certificate to the project proposal to ensure the fulfilment of the requirements mentioned above (see in the table of Chapter 4.2.1.1 about the list of documents to be submitted).
In case the national/regional organisation's headquarters is not located in the eligible programme area and the local branch office is not a legal entity, what does the certification referred to in Point 4 of the list of documents to be submitted (Chapter 4.2.1.1 of the Guidelines) have to contain?

In the above described cases the legally authorised representative of the (national/regional) organisation has to write and sign an authorisation in which he or she declares that the head of the local branch office is, in case the project is selected for funding, as representative of the organisation towards the programme implementing structures, authorised to perform the necessary activities in connection to the implementation of the project.
Can organisations in Hungary with the statues of 'non-profit kft' and 'non-profit zrt' be project participants?
Partly due to the compulsory transition of organisations with \'kht\' status into other non-profit legal persons by 30 June 2009, organisations that are \'non-profit kft\' or \'non-profit zrt\' can be eligible for funding under the Call for Proposals if they satisfy all eligibility criteria, especially the criterion of non-profit operation. In their case, they will belong under category 3 of Chapter 3.1.1.1 of the Guidelines (non-profit organisations governed by private law).
How long has an organisation to be operating in order to be an eligible Lead Beneficiary / Project Partner?
As specified in Guidelines Chapter 3.1.1.2, "Project Partners / Lead Beneficiaries have to prove an operation of at least one year, counted back from the day of the submission of the project proposal. Cases of legal succession can be accepted when proving the necessary operational background, provided that the predecessor- and the successor organisation together can cover at least one year of continuous operation".
Is there any special requirement for educational institutions concerning accreditation?
No, this Call has no special accreditation requirements.
Is there any restriction for external experts concerning the geographical eligibility, do external experts have to come from the programme eligible area?
The geographical origin of external expertise is not limited to the eligible programme area. Thus, the geographical eligibility criterion valid for potential Lead Beneficiaries / Project Partners is not to be applied to external experts and they can come from outside the counties of the cross-border area. However, please be aware of the rules in the PraG concerning nationality and origin of natural and legal persons (see Chapter 2.3.1 of the PraG). Based on the cited Chapter, experts engaged by tenderers may be of any nationality.
In the tables for the individual Actions (see Chapter 3.2 of the Guidelines and Chapter 4 of the Handbook) there are lists of typical Lead Beneficiaries / Project Partners for the given Action. Is it possible for organisations to participate in project partnerships if they are not specifically listed in the relevant table?
As stated in the Guidelines and the Handbook, the lists of potential Lead Beneficiaries / Project Partners are only indicative, i.e. they are not exhaustive. Each organisation that satisfies the eligibility rules elaborated under Chapter 3 of the Guidelines can apply for any of the actions from the Call. Please note that any organisation applying should also take care to satisfy the conditions concerning professional and financial background listed under Chapter 3.1.1.4 of the Guidelines. All the above shall be supported by relevant documentation as listed in the table of Chapter 4.2.1.1 of the Guidelines.
When should come into force the authorisation of the head of the branch office given by the legally authorised representative of the headquarters of the Lead Beneficiary / Project Partner organisation (in case the branch office is in the eligible area but has no legal entity)?
The authorisation can come into force only after the signature of the Subsidy Contract for the Community funding, and only in terms of implementation of the relevant project part. All documents submitted within the application package have to be signed by the legal representative of the entire organisation, and the Subsidy Contract will be signed by him or her as well. Since all important acts like changes of the Subsidy Contract and other official documents like Project Progress Reportsa and supporting documents have to be signed by the legal representative, the authorised head of the branch office can make operative decisions and sign documents in connection with the implementation (e.g. procurement-related documents like request for three offers, invoices, service contracts etc.). However, this authorisation is No. 4 in the list of documents to be submitted (see Guidelines Chapter 4.2.1.1), therefore it has to be attached to the application package.
Where can I find detailed information related to the establishing documents of the Project Partners and of the Lead Beneficiary, as well as the extract from register?
In the Guidelines for Applicants for the Third Call, you can find in APPENDIX 2 – Types of establishing documents, under Point A the types of establishing documents for organisations in Hungary. Similarily, in Point B the types of establishing documents for organisations in Croatia can be found - including the name of the registeriung authority, as well as the name of the extract.
What to consider non-profit? How to interpret the term 'non-profit organisation'?
The crucial elements when defining the non-profit status are legal form, existence of result, disposal on result and ownership of the organisation in question.

In Croatia the main source for defining the non-profit status is the following: \'Popis tijela javne vlasti za 2010. godinu\' (NN 19/2010) – see Appendix 1 of the Guidelines, Annual list of the bodies of public governance in the Republic of Croatia. Please note that no new list has been published for 2011. However, the organisations listed in that document can be eligible for participating in the Programme only in the case that they are non-profit.

In Hungary to be considered as non-profit company in the Programme:

• Public - Owned by the state, or operation in public interest regulated by a specific law (owner is a public foundation / organisation);
• Non-market - Not offering the ‘products’ on the market but serving public interest;
• Annual result - Only financing ‘production’ in public interest (no right on disposal).

As examples the following categories are deemed to be non-profit from the point of view of the Programme:

• Public programme service providers in media (in HU: közszolgálati musorszolgáltatók);
• Organisations providing public services in the field of tourism, economy or infrastructure development.
How does the following rule of the ‘Handbook to Tourism Projects’ have to be interpreted? Chapter 4.3, Eligibility rules for Action 1.2.3: ‘The destination(s) / thematic route(s) of minimum three settlements should be involved in a given project.’
The referenced rule should be interpreted not on an organisational but on a content- and effect-related basis. Activities of projects under this Action shall have effect on minimum three settlements, which does not necessarily mean that Project Partner organisations from at least three settlements have to be involved in the project partnership.
Is it possible to make changes to the project partnership once the project has been selected for funding?
In line with Chapter 2.2.1 of the Project Implementation Handbook, it is possible to make changes to the project partnership. Please note, however, that changes to the Project Partners have to be approved by the Joint Monitoring Committee and always involve the preparation of an addendum to the Subsidy Contract for the Community funding.
Regarding the rule in Chapter 4.3 of the Tourism Handbook that minimum three settlements have to be involved in every project under Action 1.2.3, does the word 'settlement' also include the peripheric areas or only the inhabited areas of a village/town?
The cited rule will be interpreted in a way which involves the entire territory of the given administrational unit.
What is the recommended starting date for projects to be financed from the 3rd Call for Proposals of the HU-HR IPA CBC Programme?
The contracting procedure with the selected projects of the present Call is expected to start in November of 2012, therefore possible project starting dates stretch from 1 November 2012 to 1 January 2013. Of course it will be also possible to start project implementation earlier than the signing of the Subsidy Contract for the Community funding.
Are churches eligible Lead Beneficiaries / Project Partners in the Programme?
Yes, churches can participate in cross-border projects of the present Call for Proposals, either as Lead Beneficiary or as Project Partner or Associated Partner.