As established in part B (Eligibility) of the General Conditions established in the General Annexes to the Horizon Europe Work Program for 2021-22, any legal entity of a Member State or HE Associated State that is a public body, Research center or higher education institution must have a gender equality plan in place to access funding from the next Framework Program. Companies and private entities are exempted from this obligation. The plan must meet the following minimum requirements:

• Publication: it must be a formal document published on the entity's website and must be signed by the management;
• Resources: indicate the resources and experience in gender equality that will be dedicated to the implementation of the plan;
• Data and monitoring: personnel data disaggregated by sex / gender (and students where appropriate) and annual monitoring based on indicators should be included;
• Training: training on gender equality and biases should be included for staff and management;

A series of recommendations are also made regarding the content of the plan that can be consulted in part B of the General Annexes, including organizational culture and work-life balance; gender balance in decision making; gender dimension in research and teaching; gender violence and sexual harassment.

During the proposal phase, a simple statement about it will suffice. Alternative ways of meeting this eligibility criterion may be considered.

A transitional period has been established, so this eligibility criterion will not come into force until the calls with the closing date in 2022. The beneficiaries also have to take measures to promote equal opportunities between men and women in the implementation of the action. and, if applicable, in line with your gender equality plan. They should pursue, as far as possible, a gender balance at all levels of personnel engaged in action, including supervisory and management levels.