Financial training for projects under BONUS call Spring 2014 (updated in January 2017)

Transcription

1 Financial training for projects under BONUS call 2012 Spring 2014 (updated in January 2017)

2 1) Introduction 2) Financial rules and guidelines 3) Financial reporting Content of the training session 4) Eligible/non-eligible costs, direct/indirect costs 5) Payment process 6) Budget changes 7) Financial audits 2

3 Development of BONUS ( ) BONUS ERA- NET Developing preconditions for a joint Baltic Sea research programme ERANET ( ) BONUS+ Implementing a joint call to test the mechanisms of collaboration among the national funding institutions ERANET Plus ( ) BONUS strategic phase Developing and preparing the start of the calls Article 185 ( >) BONUS implementation phase Durable collaborative research programme of the coastal Baltic Sea countries 3

4 A unique funding mechanism integrating the national and European Community funds for research and development with certain purpose 4

5 BONUS projects Viable ecosystem Call 2012 Call 2014 Call 2015 Innovation Sustainable ecosystem services Blue Baltic* 7 funded projects 67 beneficiaries, 10 countries BONUS funding EUR 3,3-4 million Durations 3,5 4 years 13 funded projects 52 beneficiaries, 9 countries BONUS funding EUR Durations 2-3 years 8 funded projects 46 beneficiaries, 10 countries BONUS funding EUR ,4 million Duration 3 years 12 funded projects 101 beneficiaries, 14 countries BONUS funding EUR 1-2,9 million Durations 2,5-3 years * Final outcome during spring 2017 More information on projects: 5

6 Maija Minna Kaisa Secretariat representing BONUS EEIG (European Economic Interest Grouping) Tiina Meelis Andris Meelis Meelis Meelis 6

7 Legal basis and financial rules of BONUS Guide to Financial Issues relating to FP7 Indirect Actions Guide for BONUS applicants, Guide for BONUS project participants, Guide for reporting in-kind infrastructure Model BONUS Grant agreement + annexes EU Financial Regulation, FP7 rules for participation FP7 model grant agreement BONUS Implementation Agreement Decision 862/ 2010/ EU 7

8 BONUS and FP7 The BONUS programme will be implemented under the 7th Framework Programme of the European Community The derogations compared to FP7 rules: Non-recoverable VAT is considered as an eligible cost Indirect costs are calculated as 20 % of the total direct eligible costs, excluding costs for subcontracting (unless lower % agreed in BONUS GA: Special Clause 8) The upper funding limits are different than in FP7 Participants from third countries and international organisations must cover their own project costs 8

9 Payment and reporting process FUNDERS BONUS funding = National funding + BONUS EEIG (EU) funding European Commission BENEFICIARIES BONUS EEIG National funding institution, country A National funding institution, country B National funding institution, country C National funding institution, country D Beneficiary country B Coordinator, country A Beneficiary country C Beneficiary country D Reporting flow Money flow 9

10 Financial reporting in BONUS Project financial reporting is done according to the same principles as the project budget was established ACTIVITY TYPE 1a) Fundamental research 1b) Industrial research 1c) Experimental development 2) Management 3) Other Total costs A. Personnel costs B. Subcontracting C. Other direct costs D. Indirect costs (20 % of sum of A and C) Total costs (A+B+C+D) 10

11 Costs shall be reported in Euro Reporting currency and currency exchange rates Beneficiaries with accounts in currencies other than the Euro shall report costs using: either the conversion rate published by the European Central Bank that would have applied on the date that the actual costs were incurred or its rate applicable on the first day of the month following the end of the reporting period. Example: reporting period ends 31 Dec > the applicable rate is the rate of 2 Jan Beneficiaries with accounts in Euro shall convert costs incurred in other currencies according to their usual accounting practice National cash contributions (in reporting and in payments) if have been made in currencies other than Euros shall be calculated in Euros on the basis of the exchange rate published by the European Central Bank on the date the national contribution was received by the Beneficiary. 11

12 Eligible costs a) they must be actual; b) they must be incurred by the Beneficiary; c) they must be incurred during the duration of the project; (exception: the costs incurred in relation to final reports and to certificates on the financial reports incurred during the period of up to 60 days after the end of the project) d) they must be determined in accordance with the usual accounting and management principles and practices of the Beneficiary e) they must be used for achieving the objectives of the project and its expected results, in a manner consistent with the principles of economy, efficiency and effectiveness; f) they must be recorded in the accounts of the Beneficiary g) they must be indicated in the estimated overall budget 12

13 Non-eligible costs recoverable VAT duties interest owed provisions for possible future losses or charges exchange losses, cost related to return on capital costs declared or incurred, or reimbursed in respect of another project of the BONUS, of the Union or of Euratom or of a Member or Associated Country or any other costs that are reimbursed and could cause double funding. debt and debt service charges, excessive or reckless expenditure. 13

14 Activity types 1. Research and technological development activities Activities directly aimed at creating new knowledge, new technology and products, including scientific coordination. a) Fundamental research b) Industrial research c) Experimental development Only one RTD-activity/partner shall be chosen 2. Management Management of the consortium activities; overall legal, ethical, financial and administrative management. 3. Other activities Dissemination, promotion, networking, activities related to IPRs,... 14

15 Direct/indirect costs Direct costs: all those eligible costs which can be attributed directly to the project and are identified by the Beneficiary as such, in accordance with its accounting principles and its usual internal rules. With regard to personnel costs, only the costs of the actual hours worked by the persons directly carrying out work under the project may be charged. Indirect costs: all those eligible costs which cannot be identified by the Beneficiary as being directly attributed to the project, but which can be identified and justified by its accounting system as being incurred in direct relationship with the eligible direct costs attributed to the project. Indirect costs shall represent a fair apportionment of the overall overheads of the organisation. 15

16 Personnel costs Only the costs of the actual hours worked may be charged Absences (holidays, sick leave, etc) should be excluded Working time must be recorded either by using time-sheets (e.g. in paper, in excel) or computer-based system Total actual personnel costs charged to the project = Total actual hours worked for project x Hourly rate Hourly rate = Total salary (all statutory costs: salary, pension fees, holiday pmts,...) / total productive hours Productive hours must be calculated according to the beneficiary s normal practices Can be either a standard for all employees or an individual for each employee Productive hours should exclude annual and sick leave, weekends, training, public holidays See the detailed instructions: Guide to Financial Issues relating to FP7 Indirect Actions Version 3/10/2014, p

17 Example: calculating actual personnel costs Days Total days in a year 365 Weekends -104 Annual holidays -21 Statutory holidays -15 Illness/Other -15 Workable days in a year 210 Total productive hours (210 days / year x 7,5 h / day ) Total salary Hourly rate ( / 1570 h) Total hours worked for project Total costs charged to the project (650 h x 19,1 ) 1570 h / year / year 19,1 / hour

18 Subcontracting According to the FP7 rules beneficiaries implement the project and have the necessary resources to that end. However, it is accepted that as an exception certain parts of the work may be subcontracted. Some remarks on the subcontracting (see also Guide for BONUS Applicants): Subcontracting between beneficiaries in the same consortium is not accepted The core parts of the project work should not be subcontracted, nor coordination tasks of the project coordinator. Any subcontract must be awarded to the bid offering best value for money (best price-quality ratio), under conditions of transparency and equal treatment. Framework contracts can be used, if established on these principles. The costs of the certificate on the financial report (if required) are reported as subcontracting. 18

19 Reporting during the project Periodic report for each reporting period within 60 days after the end of each period consists of three parts: 1. Scientific/technological report + publishable summary (by the coordinator; pdf-file) 2. Report on performance statistics and use of infrastructures (all project partners; EPSS table) 3. Financial report* together with a Summary financial report*, includes an explanation of the Use of the resources* (all beneficiaries receiving BONUS funding; EPSS table) Submitted to BONUS EEIG through BONUS EPSS, and financial reports also on paper must be signed by the authorised person(s) within the Beneficiary s organisation * Examples can be found on the BONUS website: 19

20 Certificate on the financial report When the cumulative amount of the BONUS EEIG financial contribution of a beneficiary is equal to or superior to EUR , a certificate on the financial statement (CFS) is required. See examples in the Guide to Financial Issues relating to FP7 Indirect Actions 18/03/2013, p The certificate must be forwarded in the form of a detailed description verified as factual by external auditor. Each Beneficiary is free to choose any qualified external auditor, including its usual external auditor Certificate template: Annex VI of the BONUS Grant agreement 20

21 Example 1: Example 2: When CFS is required Examples RP1 RP2 RP3 RP4 BONUS EEIG contribution Cumulative BONUS EEIG contribution for which a CFS has not been submitted (> ) (< ) CFS required NO YES NO NO RP1 RP2 RP3 RP4 BONUS EEIG contribution Cumulative BONUS EEIG contribution for which a CFS has not been submitted (= ) (= ) CFS required NO YES NO YES 21

22 Reporting in the end of the project Final report within 60 days after the end of the project. a final publishable summary report (covering results, conclusions and socio-economic impact of the project) a report covering the wider societal implications of the project (incl. gender equality actions, ethical issues, efforts to involve other actors and spread awareness as well as the plan for the use and dissemination of Foreground) The Coordinator shall submit a report on the distribution of the financial contribution of the BONUS EEIG between Beneficiaries and a report regarding the payment of the national contribution. This report must be submitted 30 days after receipt of the final payment. 22

23 Pre-financing payment at the start of the project 160 % of the average BONUS EEIG funding per period if duration of more than two reporting periods Paid within 45 days after the fulfilment of the cumulative conditions of Article II.6.3 of the BONUS grant agreement Interim payment(s) after reporting periods Paid after the approval of the periodic financial report and after receipt of evidence of payment of the national contributions Costs accepted by the BONUS EEIG within the periodic reports in relation to the pre-financing shall be cleared with the final payment Final payment Paid after the approval of the final report BONUS EEIG payments towards Consortium Final payment = total BONUS EEIG contribution - the amounts already paid (max 85 % of the total BONUS EEIG contribution) 23

24 Payments within Consortium The coordinator pays the funds received from the BONUS EEIG to a Beneficiary on the cumulative fulfillment of the following conditions (BONUS Grant Agreement, Annex II, II.2.3 d): The amount released towards a Beneficiary in a Participating State does not exceed the proportion of the BONUS EEIG and national contributions The national cash contribution is proven (via copies of bank statements) to have been paid by the NFI (or via the BONUS EEIG) to the Beneficiary concerned. 24

25 Practical advise on financial reporting* Remember two decimals in reporting costs and received national contributions Remember to use the correct exchange rate if non-euro accounts (see slide 11) Check that the copies of the bank statements include at least the following: the date when the national contribution was received; the names of the payer and the recipient; a reference to BONUS project (e.g. project name) or supporting document(s) The person signing the cost statement should be an authorised representative in the organisation BONUS cost statement should include ALL the costs for the period, not only those which are funded by BONUS EEIG * Frequently occurring errors in financial reporting 25

26 Some examples of the payments 26

27 Example I* * For simplicity, national funding share has been excluded in this example Project A with BONUS EEIG funding EUR /reporting period, duration 4 years, total BONUS EEIG funding EUR pre-financing 160 % of the average annual BONUS (EU) funding per period > EUR Project follows exactly the budget, i.e. approved reported costs of the 1 st reporting period EUR > interim payment EUR Approved reported costs of the 2 nd RP: EUR > interim payment EUR (85 % of the funding limit) Approved reported costs of the 3 rd RP: EUR > interim payment EUR 0 (85 % of the funding limit) Approved reported costs of the 4 th RP are EUR > final payment EUR Pre-financing RP1 RP2 RP3 RP4 Total Costs Payments

28 BONUS projects: Payment and reporting process Actor GA signing End of RP1 Example II BONUS Secretariat 9. Approval RP 1 costs 900 Interim payment after RP1 900 > Total payments Project Coordinator 1. Prepayment Combine RP1 reports left of the prepayment in the coordinator s bank account Project Beneficiary I 2. Ntl contribution EUcontr Ntl contr EU-contr Reporting RP 1 costs 300 Total 300 received (NFI and BONUS). Total costs 300. Project Beneficiary II 2. Ntl contribution EUcontr Ntl contr EU-contr Reporting RP 1 costs 600 Total 640 received (NFI and BONUS). Total costs 600. National Funding Agency 7. Approval RP 1 costs Total 470 paid in RP1. Project may choose to agree on a different payment schedule of EU contribution, as long as cumulative EU contribution does not exceed cumulative national contribution. 28

29 Example II 1. BONUS Secretariat pays the pre-payment ( 500 ) to the project coordinator according to the conditions of the BONUS Grant agreement. Project coordinator holds the pre-payment in the project s bank account. 2. National Funding Institution pays the 1st part of the national contributions ( 100 and 200 ) to the beneficiaries according to the national rules. 3. Coordinator pays to beneficiaries EU contributions equivalent to the national contributions ( 100 and 200 ). 4. National Funding Institution pays the 2nd part of national contributions ( 120 and 50 ) to the beneficiaries according to the national rules. 5. Coordinator pays to beneficiaries EU contributions equivalent to the national contributions ( 120 and 50 ). 6. Beneficiaries report the consumption of reporting period 1 to NFI according to the national rules (NB!: reporting rules and periods of NFIs might differ significantly from those of BONUS EEIG) 7. NFI checks and approves the reports 8. Coordinator combines the costs of the consortium ( 900 ) and submits RP1 report to BONUS Secretariat. 9. BONUS Secreatariat checks and approves the costs 29

30 Budget changes Should be informed once the change has become apparent (not retrospectively, e.g. when submitting a periodic financial report) Are requested in BONUS EPSS 1) Participant initiates the process by clicking the button Request for budget change -> budget opens for editing (default numbers from last approved budget). 2) Explanation is given in the text field Description of the budget change 3) Participant submits the budget change request 4) If the budget request is qualifying as significant, participants prints the request form and signs it, sends both the BONUS EPSS form and paper version to the coordinator who submits both to the BONUS Secretariat for approval. 5) BONUS Secretariat handles the request (if necessary, consults with national funding institution and coordinator). 6) If the request is approved, it overwrites the participant s previous budget. If it is not approved, participant can modify the request or abandon it, and the official budget will be unchanged. 7) One participant can have only one budget change request in processing. 30

31 Significant changes are (for example): change in the amount of total budget change between beneficiaries Significant vs. minor budget changes if a task initially meant to be carried out by a beneficiary is subcontracted In these cases the DoW should be updated as well Minor changes are (for example): changes between reporting periods within same major budget line changes between activities within same major budget line minor changes between budget lines 31

32 Financial audits The BONUS EEIG, National Funding Institutions and the European Commission may, at any time during the implementation of the project and up to five years after the end of the project, arrange for financial audits (technical audits as well). Such audits may cover financial, systemic and other aspects (such as accounting and management principles) relating to the proper execution of the Grant Agreement. The Beneficiaries shall keep the originals or, in exceptional cases, duly authenticated copies including electronic copies of all documents relating to the Grant Agreement for up to five years from the end of the project. 32

33 If any questions, please contact BONUS Secretariat or THANK YOU! 33