Germany Sino-German Call NSFC-DFG Scholarship

The Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) launched a call for proposals for joint research projects in “Intelligent Numerical Mathematics”. Funds must be requested from the respective funding agency: NSFC for the Chinese side and DFG for the German side. The call prioritises the integrated character of projects from concept to work plan, with clearly outlined anticipated research benefit.

The call aims to bring together competitive researchers from Germany and China to design and carry out collaborative research projects. Projects must involve convincing collaboration between German and Chinese partners, with each partner expected to contribute substantially. Work packages should be delivered with a reasonably equal distribution between partners, while schedules should be well coordinated. Projects should be integrated but do not have to be symmetrical in the funds applied for.

All proposals will be reviewed by both organisations separately, and the results will be shared between the agencies; proposals and reviews will not be shared. Funding is for projects selected through these review processes and remains subject to approval by NSFC and DFG decision bodies, taking into account the availability of funds.

Selected collaborative projects receive research funding for a period of up to three years. DFG notes that there are no separate funds available for these efforts, and proposals must succeed on intellectual merit and teams. The call also states that source codes and data used and generated within the projects should be open according to usual scientific standards.

• The principal investigators on each side must be eligible to apply to their respective funding agency.
• Applicants in Germany must follow the DFG eligibility regulations for “Sachbeihilfe/Research Grants” funding programme (DFG form 50.01).
• For members of non-university institutions with permanent positions, eligibility includes the duty to cooperate (“Kooperationspflicht”) with a partner at a German university (DFG form 55.01).
• Applicants in China must meet the eligibility requirements of the NSFC.
• Projects with clear links to research with military applications or involving military research institutions are not eligible.
• All documents must be written in English.
• Documents submitted to the DFG and the NSFC must not differ regarding scientific content of the proposal or regarding the applicants involved.

• Research funding for collaborative projects for a period of up to three years.

1. Submit the joint proposal to your national funding organisation: Chinese principal investigators submit documents to the NSFC, and German principal investigators submit to the DFG.
2. Prepare all documents in English.
3. Use the DFG template “Project Description – Project Proposals (DFG form 53.01)” and select “Proposal for a Research Grant” in the Proposal Forms column.
4. In the DFG elan system, select “China-NSFC-DFG 2025 iNum-Proposals” under “Proposal Data”. Only the German budget needs to be filled in, since only applicants in Germany can receive funding from the DFG.
5. Upload CVs of the PIs from both sides in elan according to the template “Curriculum Vitae (DFG form 53.200)”.
6. Include the full proposed research programme, research team description, and describe total resources for the joint project (funds requested for both the Chinese and German groups).
7. Include mandatory explanations for any safety-related aspects (DFG form 53.01, 4.1.5.1 “Dual Use Research of Concern” and 4.1.5.2 “Risks in international cooperation”).
8. If this is the first submission to the DFG, register in the elan portal before submitting; registration must be completed by 23 October 2025.
9. Ensure proposals arrive by the submission deadline; proposals arriving late and/or not fulfilling national requirements will not be considered.
10. After selection, the DFG and the NSFC expect a cooperation agreement to be signed by the project partners.

• Project Description – Project Proposals (DFG form 53.01) (used via the DFG template Project Description – Project Proposals).
• “Proposal for a Research Grant” form (DFG proposal submission path specified).
• CVs of the PIs from both sides, uploaded in elan according to the template “Curriculum Vitae (DFG form 53.200)”.
• Mandatory safety-related explanations (DFG form 53.01, sections 4.1.5.1 “Dual Use Research of Concern” and 4.1.5.2 “Risks in international cooperation”).
• Cooperation agreement signed by project partners (expected after selection).