FWF Increases Funding for Personnel Costs

The FWF responds to inflation and increases funding for salaries in ongoing FWF projects for the year 2023. Researchers receive additional funding for personnel costs in both ad personam as well as PROFI funding mode. With this step, the FWF is helping to compensate for inflationary losses, especially for young researchers (two-thirds of all FWF-funded researchers are younger than 36 years old).
May 11, 2023

Even science and research are not safe from inflation and rising costs. To further relieve the burden on FWF-funded individuals in funded projects, the FWF is increasing personnel costs in all funded projects. This means in detail:

  • Projects approved by February 2023: For ad personam projects, the inflation adjustment for the planned employment contracts was made in February according to the collective agreement for university employees; PROFI projects receive a one-time 3% additional financing on personnel costs (based on the requested personnel costs from February 2023 until the end of the project).
  • Projects approved since February 2023: An inflation adjustment has already been taken into account for all projects in the increased standard personnel costs and salaries that went into effect in February; for PROFI projects, the FWF is additionally increasing the PROFI valorisation rate from the previous 5% to 6.85%, valid as usual from the second year until the end of the project.
  • Erwin Schrödinger mobility programme: The FWF grants a one-time inflation adjustment to Schrödinger fellows in the abroad phase who were approved by the end of 2022. This will be paid out to all active or soon to start fellows. The amount depends on the approved fellowship rates and the remaining months abroad. The researchers affected by this have already been informed.

Important note 

The increases for PROFI projects already in progress will be paid automatically by the FWF in addition to the existing instalments; researchers or the research institutions for PROFI projects do not have to take action themselves.