FFG Basisprogramm
Austria’s bottom-up R&D funding programme, run by FFG with continuous submission. Actual-cost regime under the FFG Kostenleitfaden: five direct cost categories, a flat-rate overhead surcharge, daily hour-level timesheets, and post-project Rechnungsprüfung with sample audits — improperly documented costs can be disallowed in full.
The numbers we hold you to
These are the exact values our rule engine evaluates — from the published FFG Kostenleitfaden v3.2 (valid for submissions from 1 September 2025). Your funding contract always prevails; older grants may be governed by an earlier KLF version.
| Parameter | Value | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Annual hours divisor (Jahresstundenteiler), full-time | 1720 h — also for all-in contracts | KLF 3.2 §2.1 |
| Divisor for research institutions (EU definition) | 1290 h | KLF 3.2 §2.1 |
| Timesheet daily maximum | 12 h/day (exceptions: trips, events, experiments) | KLF 3.2 §3 |
| Owners / persons without salary proof | max €50/h, capped at €86,000/person/year across all funded projects | KLF 3.2 §2.1 |
| Flat-rate overhead surcharge (GKZ) | 20% companies / 25% research organisations — on personnel, equipment use, materials and travel; never on third-party costs | KLF 3.2 §2.6 |
| Comparison-offer threshold | €100,000, aggregated per supplier and type | KLF 3.2 §2 |
| Invoice/payment grace after period end | 3 months, justified exceptional cases only | KLF 3.2 §3 |
| Interim report (Zwischenbericht) | within 1 month of the contractual reporting date | Instrument guides |
| Final report + Endabrechnung | within 3 months of project end | Instrument guides |
| Record retention | 10 years | Förderungsvertrag / ARR |
FFG-specific checks (9)
Run on every scan, alongside the universal and actual-cost rule sets — duplicate invoices, missing evidence, overdue obligations, and more.
FFG.timesheet_daily_hours_exceededA person books more than the KLF daily maximum of 12 hours.FFG.annual_hours_exceed_divisorA person’s hours in one calendar year exceed the 1,720 h Jahresstundenteiler.FFG.time_missing_work_packageA time record has no work-package attribution (KLF minimum timesheet columns).FFG.procurement_offers_thresholdAggregated purchases from one supplier reach €100,000 without documented procurement method.FFG.ineligible_cost_typeA cost looks like a category the KLF names as ineligible.FFG.overhead_covered_costA direct cost claim looks like an overhead item already covered by the flat-rate surcharge.FFG.cost_category_not_mappableA cost category does not map to any of the five KLF categories.FFG.cost_beyond_grace_windowA cost is dated more than 3 months after the funding period ended.FFG.report_deadline_mismatchA reporting period’s due date is later than the KLF allows.The documents FFG expects you to have
This checklist is built into the product — each item becomes a trackable obligation on your project.
Förderungsvertrag (funding contract)
The signed contract, including the applicable Kostenleitfaden version, funding period, rate schedule (Ratenschema), and any programme-specific conditions.
Timesheets — daily, hour-level, per work package
For every project staff member: date, activity description, work package, hours, monthly sums. Max 12 h/day. 100% of project activity captured (KLF §3).
Jahreslohnkonten (annual payroll accounts)
Annual payroll account per charged employee — the basis of the hourly rate (gross salary + statutory employer levies ÷ 1,720 h full-time).
Invoices and payment proof
Individual receipts (Einzelbelege) for all non-personnel costs, plus bank statements proving payment — FFG samples these during report review.
Comparison offers ≥ €100,000
For procurements from €100,000 (aggregated per supplier and type): comparative offers or a documented justification; BVergG documentation where applicable.
Fixed-asset register + depreciation schedule
For equipment-use costs: the asset register entries, useful life, and the pro-rata depreciation calculation (or machine-hour-rate derivation).
Zwischenberichte / Endbericht
Interim reports (within 1 month of each reporting date) and the final report + Endabrechnung (within 3 months of project end), submitted via eCall.
Other-funding and de-minimis declarations
Declarations of all other public funding (double-funding check; de-minimis €300,000 per undertaking over 3 years, group-wide).
German or English — mapped automatically
The KLF recognises exactly 5 direct cost categories. Import spreadsheets with Personalkosten, Anlagennutzung, Sachkosten, Drittkosten, Reisekosten — or their English equivalents — and they map to the canonical categories automatically. Anything that doesn’t map becomes a finding, not a silent error.
- Personnel
- Equipment use
- Materials
- Third-party services
- Travel
What we deliberately don’t do
Grant Assurance never approves costs, certifies compliance, or submits anything to FFG. It raises source-linked findings; your team — and where needed, your tax adviser — decide. Overhead is a computed surcharge in FFG’s eCall, so we flag overhead-type items claimed as direct costs instead of “calculating” your overhead for you.
Not affiliated with FFG. Parameters follow the published guidelines; on any conflict, your Förderungsvertrag and the KLF version it references prevail.
Ready before the Rechnungsprüfung.
Create your workspace, choose “FFG Basisprogramm” as the programme, and your project starts with every one of these checks active.
Get started free