Co-financing Salaries, Bonuses, Top-ups from Structural Funds during the 2007-2013 period

The legislative framework for the 2007 – 2013 period allows Member States to use Technical Assistance funding also for paying salaries, bonuses or top-ups of employees directly involved in the implementation of Structural Funds (as defined by Art. 46 of the consolidated version of the Council Regulation (EC) 1083/2006 of 11 July 2006). This should support Member States and regions in order to strengthen their capacity to manage the funds.

Purpose of the study

In order to obtain more in depth information, the Commission recently carried out an expert assessment with the aim to identify the extent and modalities of the use of Technical Assistance funds by Member States for different forms of staff salary support. The assignment was carried out by an independent expert during the second half of 2013 and covered all EU 28 Member States. The principal working methods were on-line questionnaires and interviews with all relevant national/regional stakeholders. The scope of the assignment was only ERDF and CF (ESF not covered).