Open life sciences research grants

All open life sciences calls (sorted by deadline)

• British Heart Foundation12 May 2026UK

  British Heart Foundation Project Grants — Autumn 2026

  Research project grants supporting cardiovascular discovery, translational and clinical research across mechanisms, prevention, diagnosis and treatment of heart and circulatory disease.

• National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC)14 May 2026Australia

  NHMRC Ideas Grants 2026

  Australia's National Health and Medical Research Council support for innovative and creative research projects from early- to senior-career researchers.

• Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT)28 May 2026Portugal

  FCT Bolsas de Doutoramento 2026

  PhD studentships for research in Portugal or abroad via Portuguese host institutions — 4-year funding, all scientific areas.

• National Institutes of Health (NIH)5 Jun 2026US

  NIH Parent R01 Research Project 2026 (PA-26-001)

  Investigator-initiated R01 support for mature research projects aligned with NIH Institute missions across the full biomedical research agenda.

• Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT)15 Jun 2026Portugal

  FCT Estímulo ao Emprego Científico Individual 2026

  Individual research contracts for doctorate holders at junior, associate or coordinator levels in Portuguese R&D institutions — 6-year contracts.

• National Institutes of Health (NIH)16 Jun 2026US

  NIH Exploratory/Developmental R21 Grant 2026

  NIH R21 mechanism encouraging exploratory/developmental research by providing support for initial stages of project development.

• FAPESP — Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Pauloest. 1 Jul 2026BR

  Chamada FAPESP – Fundação Bracell – Fundação Itaú (Chamada FAPESP 06/2026)

  Chamada FAPESP 06/2026 Data-limite para submissão de propostas: 12/06/2026 Seleção de projetos de pesquisa com o propósito de impulsionar o fortalecimento da produção de conhecimento científico aplicado à educação infantil na pré-esc

• Fundación "la Caixa"8 Jul 2026Iberia

  la Caixa Foundation Health Research Call 2026

  Competitive biomedical research call supporting projects on oncology, neuroscience, cardiovascular disease, infectious diseases, enabling technologies and regenerative medicine.

• Wellcome Trust14 Jul 2026Global

  Wellcome Early-Career Awards 2026

  Five-year awards for researchers who are ready to develop their research identity and establish themselves as an independent researcher.

• Science Foundation Ireland / Research Ireland30 Jul 2026Ireland

  SFI Frontiers for the Future Programme 2026 (Ireland)

  Science Foundation Ireland funding for high-risk, high-reward research across STEM disciplines and oriented research with societal impact.

• European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO)15 Aug 2026EMBC

  EMBO Postdoctoral Fellowship 2026 (rolling)

  Two-year postdoctoral fellowships in life sciences for researchers moving to another country within the EMBC region.

• National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK)15 Aug 2026Global

  NIDDK Kidney Disease Research Programme 2026

  NIDDK kidney and urologic disease research opportunities across translational, clinical, epigenetics, ageing, and population research.

• Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG)28 Aug 2026Germany

  DFG Sachbeihilfe (Research Grants Programme) 2026

  German Research Foundation Research Grants Programme — the most flexible funding instrument for individual PI-led research projects.

• FWF — Austrian Science Fundest. 30 Aug 2026AT

  Clusters of Excellence

  Austrian Science Fund (FWF) — excellent=austria. See the programme page for budget, duration and the next application window.

• European Research Council (ERC)3 Sept 2026EU

  ERC Advanced Grant 2027

  Up to €2.5M over 5 years for established, leading principal investigators with a recognised track record of research achievements in the last 10 years.

• Wellcome Trust8 Sept 2026Global

  Wellcome Discovery Awards 2026

  Bold discovery research to improve human life, health and wellbeing — up to 8 years of support for established researchers and teams.

• European Commission (Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions)10 Sept 2026EU

  Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowships 2026

  European and Global Postdoctoral Fellowships supporting researcher mobility across Europe and worldwide — 2-3 year individual fellowships.

• Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)15 Sept 2026Canada

  CIHR Project Grant Competition Fall 2026

  Canadian Institutes of Health Research flagship project grant competition — semi-annual open competition across the full scope of health research.

• European Commission (HaDEA)16 Sept 2026EU

  Horizon Europe Cluster 1 Health — 2026 Calls

  Research and innovation actions on personalised medicine, rare disease, chronic disease, infectious disease, health systems, AI in health, pharmaceutical innovation.

• Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT)22 Sept 2026Portugal

  FCT Projetos de IC&DT 2026 (Investigação Científica e Desenvolvimento Tecnológico)

  Biannual FCT call for scientific research and technological development projects across all domains: health, engineering, natural sciences, humanities, social sciences.

• Human Frontier Science Program (HFSP)30 Sept 2026Global

  HFSP Research Grants 2027

  Human Frontier Science Program Research Grants for international teams tackling fundamental questions in the life sciences through interdisciplinary collaboration.

• Fundación "la Caixa"6 Oct 2026Iberia

  la Caixa Junior Leader Fellowships 2027

  Postdoctoral fellowships for outstanding researchers establishing their independent research lines at Spanish or Portuguese universities and research centres.

• Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)9 Oct 2026Brazil

  CNPq Chamada Universal 2026

  Brazil's largest research funding call — CNPq Universal supports research projects across all knowledge areas and all career stages.

• Health Research Board Ireland (HRB)22 Oct 2026Ireland

  HRB Ireland Investigator-Led Projects 2026

  Irish Health Research Board grants for investigator-initiated health research projects across biomedical, clinical, health services and population health domains.

• Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC)1 Nov 2026Canada

  NSERC Discovery Grants 2026

  NSERC Discovery Grants provide long-term support for ongoing research programs in natural sciences and engineering across Canada.

• Kidney Research UK3 Nov 2026UK

  Kidney Research UK Project Grants 2026

  Competitive project grants to advance kidney disease prevention, diagnosis, and treatment — discovery, translational and clinical research supported.

• American Heart Association (AHA)18 Nov 2026Global

  AHA Transformational Project Award 2026

  American Heart Association award for bold, high-risk, high-reward cardiovascular science that could transform the field.

• Fundação BIAL17 Dec 2026Global

  BIAL Foundation Grants Programme 2026/2027

  Biennial research grants from the BIAL Foundation for projects in clinical and health sciences and in psychophysiology and parapsychology.

• UK Research and Innovation (UKRI)21 Jan 2027UK

  UKRI Future Leaders Fellowships Round 12

  Long-term fellowships for outstanding early-career researchers and innovators across all UKRI disciplines — up to 7 years of support.

• Australian Research Council (ARC)3 Mar 2027Australia

  ARC Discovery Projects 2027

  Australian Research Council funding for excellent basic and applied research in non-medical disciplines across humanities, social sciences, engineering and natural sciences.

• European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO)15 Apr 2027EMBC

  EMBO Installation Grants 2027

  Five-year installation grants to help young group leaders establish their laboratories in specific EMBC member states, including Portugal.