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How to apply

HOW TO APPLY?

Volunteers – How do I apply?

Volunteer should first check this database:

http://europa.eu/youth/evs_database which include the organizations looking for a volunteer to work in their project. You can decide to the country organization and area that you want to work. Also, this similar database includes specific, approved EVS opportunities: http://europa.eu/youth/vp/opportunity_list.

You should find a sending organization in the database that will be a bridge between you and hosting organization. Once you find these, you should meet your sending organization and prepare your CV and motivation letter that includes your skills that you have and also what to improve. You can then apply and have a selection process made by the hosting organization. After the organization chooses you, you will probably have a skype interview with them (be sure to include the skype name in your application) and then is a very good time to ask them everything you want to know (more details about project, time table, accommodation, what is expected of you…) but also be sure to say what to you want to learn and work on. 

Organizations – how do we apply?

ECAS Registration and PIC number

As the Erasmus+ Guide explains:

“All organisations involved in the application must be registered and provide their basic legal and financial data in the Education, Audiovisual, Culture, Citizenship and Volunteering Participant Portal, if not already done. To register in the Participant Portal, the person representing an organisation must carry out the following steps:

– Create an ECAS account. New ECAS accounts can be created via the following website:

https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/cas/eim/external/register.cgi

– Access the Participant Portal at

http://ec.europa.eu/education/participants/portal/desktop/en/organisations/register.html and register on behalf of the organisation. Guidance and Frequently Asked Questions are available on the Participant Portal.

The organisations need to register only once in the Participant Portal. Once the registration is completed, the organisation/group will obtain a Participant Identification Code (PIC). The PIC, which is a unique identifier and is necessary for the submission of applications, enables the organisation/group to fill-in the Erasmus+ electronic application forms in a simpler manner.”

Accreditation process

Similarly, according to to the Erasmus+ Guide:

“Accreditation serves to gain access to European Voluntary Service and to ensure that the principles and minimum quality standards of EVS are met. These standards are set in the EVS Charter and in the EVS Accreditation Guidelines that are published on the website of the European Commission.

Any organisation from a Programme Country, a Western Balkans country, a Southern Mediterranean country, an Eastern Partnership countrie or from the Territory of Russia as recognised by international law wishing to send or receive EVS volunteers or to coordinate an EVS project must be accredited. Organisations taking part in largescale EVS events or organisations from other Partner Countries of the world involved in Capacity Building projects can participate in EVS activities without accreditation.

To be accredited, an organisation must submit an application for accreditation. This form must be submitted to the relevant bodies responsible for accreditation (see below). The same organisation may request to be accredited for one or more purposes (as sending, as receiving and/or as coordinating organisation).

The applications for accreditation can be submitted at any time (no deadline). However, these requests must be submitted within reasonable time before the submission of the project application including EVS activities (at least 6 weeks before the submission) in order to avoid that the EVS activity is rejected due to the fact that some of the organisations involved are not yet accredited.

The accreditation of EVS organisations is carried out by:

– the National Agency of the country where the organisation is located, for organisations located in Programme Countries;

– SALTO SEE for organisations located in Western Balkans countries;

– SALTO EECA for organisations located in Eastern Partnership countries and the Territory of Russia as recognised by international law;

– SALTO Euromed (not compulsory in 2014) for organisations located in Southern Mediterranean countries. 

The accreditation can be valid for the entire duration of the Erasmus+ Programme, or for a shorter period. The applicant enters the requested validity period in the accreditation form. The bodies in charge of accreditation may carry out regular or punctual controls to verify that the accredited organisations still meet the EVS quality standards. Following these controls, the accreditation may be temporarily suspended or withdrawn.”

Applying for a grant

Once the ECAS registration, the acquisition of a PIC number and receiving accreditation are all successfully done, in this order, organizations can apply for a grant to coordinate EVS projects. To make sure that  they are ready to do this, they should use the Erasmus+ Guide (http://ec.europa.eu/programmes/erasmus-plus/documents/erasmus-plus-programme-guide_en.pdf) to check the compliance with the program criteria and the financial conditions. With all this done, they can plan the project, paying crucial attention to the selection of volunteers and of the partner organizations.

For applying an online e-form must be used which has to be downloaded from the website of the National Agencies http://ec.europa.eu/programmes/erasmus-plus/tools/national-agencies/index_en.htm . The form must be completed in one of the official languages of the EU, and taking into account the specific requirements of each National Agency.

According to activity length there can be long term and short term projects, and also a mixture of these, where both short and long term activities can be carried out.

Considering the countries involved, there are three types of EVS projects an organization can apply for. These types also define if applications are submitted to National Agencies or to the Executive Agency:

  1. EVS projects which include only Program Countries – are applied for at the National Agencies
  2. EVS projects which include Neighbouring Partner Cuntries – are applied for at the National Agencies
  3. EVS projects which include other Partner countries – are applied for at the Executive Agency

Beside this, Large Scale EVS events are also possible to be applied for, at the Executive Agency. These are projects which have mobilities of maximum 2 months, with minimum 30 volunteers, where the volunteering activities are meant to support large scale European or international events.

It is extremely important to note that applications can be submitted and hence coordinated only by organizations legally established in Program Countries. This means that Neighbouring Partner Countries and other Partner Countries can only act as Sending and Hosting organizations, but not as Coordinators.

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