EU Funding for Startups and SMEs in 2026

Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs: How New Founders Get a Funded Stay With a Host Abroad

TL;DR: Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs is the EU exchange programme that sends a new or would-be founder to work for 1 to 6 months alongside an experienced business owner in another country, with a monthly grant of €600 to €1,200 depending on where you stay. It is free, has no deadline and accepts any sector, but you need a business plan, under 3 years of entrepreneurial experience, and a host who has run a company for more than 3 years. It is not seed money: the grant covers travel and living costs, and the real prize is a mentor and a foreign market. Below: the grant table, an eligibility check, a worked budget, a step-by-step plan and a copyable email to a host.

Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs gets filed under "EU grants for startups" a lot, so founders expect money for their company. What the programme actually gives is time inside someone else's company: you shadow a founder who has already built what you're trying to build, in a market you may want to enter, while the EU pays a monthly lump sum towards your stay.

For the right founder, that's worth more than a small grant. This guide shows who it suits, what it pays, and how to get from application to a signed exchange, using the rules on the programme's official site and the European Commission's 2024 decision on its monthly amounts, checked on 28 October 2026.

What Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs is

The European Union started the programme in 2009 to push two things at once: more people starting businesses, and more trade across borders. It runs under the EU's Single Market Programme for 2021 to 2027 and is managed by the European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA).

The idea is simple. A new entrepreneur (someone about to start a business, or who started one recently) spends time with a host entrepreneur (an experienced owner-manager of a small or medium-sized business) in another participating country. You agree together on what you will work on: market research, sales, finance, product, a new business line for the host. You come home with know-how, contacts and often a first foreign partner. The host gets a motivated extra pair of hands and a fresh look at their business.

The scale is real. On 28 October 2026 the programme's site counted 15,910 business exchanges, 29,444 applications from new entrepreneurs and 16,743 from hosts, across 45 countries.

Two things the programme is not:

Not a startup grant. The money covers your travel and living costs abroad, nothing else. It never goes to your company.
Not an internship. The programme says plainly that it does not support internships or work placements, only collaborations between two entrepreneurs. Treat your host as a peer and mentor, not as an employer.

Who can apply: the eligibility check

According to the programme's official rules, you can join as a new entrepreneur if:

You are firmly planning to start a business based on a viable business plan, or you have less than 3 years of total entrepreneurial experience.
You are over 18. There is no upper age limit, despite the word "young".
You are a permanent resident of an EU country or another country in the Single Market Programme.
You have a concrete idea written up as a business plan.
You are ready to work for the host's business and to top up the grant from your own money if you need to.
You haven't taken part before: new entrepreneurs can join only once.

Your business can be in any sector.

A host entrepreneur must:

live permanently in a participating country, with the company registered there;
own and manage a small or medium-sized enterprise, or sit at its board level (an employee can't host);
have run a company as an entrepreneur for more than 3 years;
be willing to mentor.

Hosts don't receive any EU money.

Where you can go. The participating countries include all 27 EU member states and, among others, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iceland, Kosovo, Liechtenstein, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Norway, Serbia, Türkiye, Ukraine and the United Kingdom. The site also lists Canada, Singapore and the United States, where you can stay with a host even though people living there can't join as new entrepreneurs.

Already did Erasmus+? That's fine. The official FAQ says past participants in Erasmus+ or the European Solidarity Corps can join, as long as that other exchange has ended.

How much does Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs pay?

You receive a fixed monthly amount set by the country where you stay, not the country you come from. It is paid by your local contact point (the intermediary organisation you choose when you register), in several instalments, under a financial agreement you sign with it. You are paid only for the time you spend abroad working with your host.

Country of stay	Per month
Denmark, Liechtenstein, Norway, United States	€1,200
Singapore	€1,150
Ireland, United Kingdom	€1,100
Canada	€1,050
Austria, Finland, Iceland, Italy, Sweden	€1,000
France, Netherlands	€950
Belgium, Germany, Luxembourg, Spain	€900
Armenia, Cyprus, Greece, Portugal	€850
Croatia, Estonia, Slovenia, Türkiye	€800
Czechia, Georgia, Malta	€750
Hungary, Latvia, Moldova, Slovakia	€700
Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Kosovo, Lithuania, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Serbia	€650
Albania, Ukraine	€600

Source: Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs, monthly financial assistance for exchanges starting from 1 June 2024 (Commission Decision of 3 April 2024).

Two groups get €1,200 a month wherever they stay: entrepreneurs with disabilities, and entrepreneurs travelling from or to the EU's outermost regions and overseas countries and territories.

The amount is a lump sum, so you don't send receipts for each cost. But it is meant as a contribution, and the official rules ask you to be ready to cover the rest yourself. In expensive cities, rent alone can take a large share of it, so price your stay before you pick a host.

Worked example: a 4-month stay, two ways

A generic case, not a real person: a founder in Portugal is about to launch a refill-packaging service for small food shops. She has a business plan and no company yet, so she qualifies. She wants 4 months with a host who already runs a refill business.

	Option A: host in the Netherlands	Option B: host in Spain
Monthly grant	€950	€900
Grant for 4 months	€3,800	€3,600
Her own cost estimate (rent, food, travel)	€6,000	€4,400
Her own top-up	€2,200	€800
What she learns	A mature refill market, Dutch suppliers	A market closer to home, Spanish shops as first export customers

The costs in the third row are her own example estimates, not official figures. Do the same sum with your own numbers before you choose a host, and don't pick a country only for its grant.

She could also split the stay. The official rules allow the 1 to 6 months to be divided into blocks of whole weeks, as long as the whole exchange fits within 12 months. Four separate 4-week blocks would let her keep testing at home between visits.

How to apply, step by step

There is no deadline: you can register at any time. Application and participation are free, and the programme warns that no organisation may charge you a fee.

Prepare your documents: a CV, a motivation statement and your business plan.
Register online on the Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs site and pick a local contact point in your country of residence. If your country has none, you can choose one in another European country.
Get accepted. Your contact point checks your application. Once you're in, you can search the online catalogue of other accepted applications.
Find your host. Either suggest a host you already know, or search the catalogue with your contact point's help.
Agree the plan: dates, goals and activities. Then everyone digitally signs the Commitment to Quality, and you sign the financial agreement with your contact point.
Go: 1 to 6 months, in one stay or in weekly blocks within 12 months.
Report back with a feedback questionnaire when the stay ends.

Step 4 takes the longest. Hosts in popular cities and sectors get many requests, so the founders who move fastest bring their own shortlist.

Copyable email to a potential host

Subject: Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs: [1-6] months working with you?

Hi [name],

I'm [name], about to launch [one-line business] in [your country].
I've followed [their company] because you've already done what I'm
trying to do: [specific thing, e.g. built a refill network of 40 shops].

I'd like to spend [number] months with your team through Erasmus for
Young Entrepreneurs, the EU exchange programme. It costs you nothing:
the EU pays my monthly grant, and there are no fees.

What I could take on for you:
- [task 1, e.g. market research for a [my country] launch]
- [task 2, e.g. supplier comparison or a sales test]
- [task 3, e.g. help with a new product line]

Dates: [month] to [month] [year], or in shorter blocks if that suits you.

Could we talk for 20 minutes next week? I'm happy to send my business plan.

[Name, phone, LinkedIn]

Hosts say yes when the email shows what you'll do for them. Name the tasks; don't just ask to "learn from you".

Who should apply and who can skip it

Apply if you are at the start (a plan, or a company younger than 3 years), you can afford some months away, and you want to learn a business from the inside or open a foreign market. It suits founders in trade, food, tourism, services, design and hardware especially well, where seeing daily operations beats any course.

Skip it for now if you need money for your company, you can't leave your business or family for at least a month, or you already have 3 or more years as an entrepreneur. Then look at the routes in European funds for startups and EU grants for small businesses. Women founders with deep tech should read our Women TechEU guide.

Already an experienced founder? Sign up as a host instead. It costs nothing, and you get a motivated new entrepreneur working on your business for up to six months.

Related EU funding guides

For new EU calls every month, read Mean CEO's EU Funding News on blog.mean.ceo. And to test your business plan before you take it abroad, try the Fe/male Switch startup game: it walks you through building a startup step by step.

FAQ

How much do you get paid on Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs?

You get a monthly lump sum set by the country where you stay, from €600 (Albania, Ukraine) to €1,200 (Denmark, Liechtenstein, Norway, the United States). Entrepreneurs with disabilities and those travelling from or to the EU's outermost regions get €1,200 anywhere.

Is there an age limit for Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs?

No. Despite the name, there is no upper age limit; you only need to be over 18. "Young" refers to your business: you must be planning one or have less than 3 years of entrepreneurial experience.

When is the deadline for Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs?

There isn't one. Registration is open all year, and stays can start at any time once you have a host and a signed agreement. The 2026 call with a deadline of 21 April 2026 was for the intermediary organisations that run the programme, not for entrepreneurs.

How long does an Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs exchange last?

From 1 to 6 months. You can stay in one block or split the time into weekly slots, as long as the whole exchange fits within 12 months.

Can I find my own host entrepreneur?

Yes. You can suggest a host you already know to your local contact point, or search the online catalogue of accepted hosts once your application is approved. Your host must have run a company for more than 3 years in another participating country.

Does the host entrepreneur get paid?

No. The programme gives no EU funding to hosts. They take part for the extra help, the fresh view of their business and contacts in another market, and there are no fees for them either.

About the Author

Violetta Bonenkamp, also known as MeanCEO, is an experienced startup founder with an impressive educational background including an MBA and four other higher education degrees. She has over 20 years of work experience across multiple countries, including 5 years as a solopreneur and serial entrepreneur. Throughout her startup experience she has applied for multiple startup grants at the EU level, in the Netherlands and Malta, and her startups received quite a few of those. She’s been living, studying and working in many countries around the globe and her extensive multicultural experience has influenced her immensely.

Violetta Bonenkamp

2026-10-28 20:26