COVID19 : suspending of our projects

Hi everyone,

I hope you are all safe and coping with the current crisis situation.

I wanted to raise the issue of what happens if we suspend our grants.

The latest email that I received from my research office on 3 April was basically saying that if we suspend our projects, our salaries will be frozen and we are not entitled to any financial help from the Commission:

"During the period of suspension, any costs incurred for implementing the action become ineligible and cannot be claimed against the project (Article 6). This is true for costs relating to all beneficiaries (on multi-beneficiary grants), team members (on ERC grants) and MSCA recruited researchers. Beneficiaries will be responsible for all costs incurred during the suspension period.

Once the suspension is over and the project has resumed, the project's remaining budget can once again be used for action implementation. It is important to note that the maximum grant amount cannot be increased."

Does anyone have more updated information about this issue? Do you know if we could use our research budget as an extra payment?

All the best,

Sofia