What is the CDTI Science and Innovation Missions Program?
The Science and Innovation Missions Program is an initiative of the CDTI (Center for Industrial Technological Development) aimed at financing cooperative and multi-sector R&D projects that offer concrete solutions to the main challenges faced by Spain as a country.
Unlike other lines of CDTI, Misiones does not finance individual business projects: it seeks projects developed in a consortium.
The call has an initial budget of 60 million euros, which can be extended to An additional 90 million based on budgetary availability.
Who can apply for CDTI 2026 Missions?
The beneficiaries are business groups (consortiums) who present projects in cooperation. Companies must be validly constituted, with their own legal personality and tax address in Spain.
Each group must consist of a minimum of three and a maximum of six companies; at least two of them must be autonomous from each other and at least one of them must have the status of an SME.
The group does not have its own legal personality: one company acts as coordinator and the rest as partners. All members must sign an internal consortium agreement before submitting the application.
What are the country-challenges of the 2026 call?
The 2026 call for Missions is based on five major challenges that the CDTI Strategic Plan identifies as priorities for the modernization of Spain:
- Competitiveness: promote a productive industry that generates quality employment.
- Strategic autonomy: develop capacities that reduce external dependencies in critical sectors.
- Sustainability: innovation for environmental and social sustainability.
- Inclusion and Equality: inclusive and responsible innovation.
- Demographic challenge: provide a technological response to aging and population imbalances.
The 7 missions of the 2026 call
CDTI has selected seven specific missions for this edition, the result of a co-design process with public and private agents of the Science, Technology and Innovation System.
1. Development of a stable, flexible and resilient energy system This mission addresses the challenges of the energy transition: integration of renewables, large scale energy storage, intelligent network management and resilience of the electrical system in the face of extreme weather events.
2. Towards a more efficient, sustainable and resilient aeronautical sector The aeronautical sector is facing a radical transformation towards sustainability. This mission seeks to strengthen national industrial capacities, from large integrators to supply chain SMEs.
3. New scientific capabilities against multidrug-resistant microorganisms and other future challenges Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is one of the biggest global threats to public health. This mission promotes a One Health approach that integrates the human, animal, environmental and food dimensions, with actions in new antimicrobials, rapid diagnosis, epidemiological surveillance, vaccines and digital detection technologies.
4. New capabilities to advance strategic autonomy in security and defense In a context of growing geopolitical instability, this mission seeks to increase national technological sovereignty in areas of dual-use civilian-military defense.
5. Women's health: biosanitary research that reduces gender inequalities This mission addresses the gender gap in health: diseases that predominantly or exclusively affect women and that are under-researched. Areas of action include preventive and predictive tools, early diagnosis, specific treatments and platforms for monitoring chronic diseases.
6. Food Sovereignty in Spain: Efficiency, Quality, Sustainability and Food Safety The agri-food sector accounts for 16.4% of domestic production but presents strategic vulnerabilities. This mission promotes the digitalization and technification of the entire value chain, the reduction of external dependencies on key raw materials, biotechnology applied to the sector, the promotion of the circular bioeconomy and the reinforcement of food security through traceability and surveillance platforms.
7. Accessible, sustainable and rapidly available housing through industrialized building Access to housing is one of Spain's main socio-economic challenges. This mission is committed to industrialized construction and robotics applied to residential buildings as a response: process automation, new circular materials, robotics on site and resilience solutions in the face of natural disasters.
What type of call is it?
This is an aid in the form of competitive competition and in the format of non-refundable grant. The projects are evaluated based on their technical quality, the capacity of the consortium and the expected socio-economic and environmental impact.
What are the features of help?
Maximum grant intensities can reach:
- Until the 80% for small business
- Until the 75% for medium-sized companies
- Until the 65% for large companies
Projects must have a minimum eligible budget of 3.5 million euros and a maximum of 10 million euros, requiring each participating company to have a minimum budget of 175,000€.
In any case, the aid granted per beneficiary shall not be less than 40% of the eligible budget.
What expenses are eligible?
All direct costs of carrying out the project are eligible: personnel, instruments and inventoriable material, contractual research, technical knowledge and patents acquired at market prices, additional general expenses derived directly from the project and the expense of the auditor's report.
Projects should be multiannual, with a duration of between 3 and 4 years, and with an expected start date of January 1, 2027. In addition, it will be mandatory that projects include the relevant participation of research organizations, and must be outsourced at least 15% of the total eligible budget to this type of entity (universities, technology centers, etc.).
Do you generate a motivated report?
Yes. The funding of projects by CDTI Missions generates a motivated report, which is especially relevant for the application of tax deductions for R+D+i in Corporate Tax.
What criteria are evaluated?
The evaluation of projects is usually carried out in three axes:
- Project Technology and Innovation: from 0 to 40 points
- Consortium capacity in relation to the submitted project: from 0 to 35 points
- Socio-economic and environmental impact: from 0 to 25 points
What are the deadlines for the Missions 2026 call?
The 2026 call for the CDTI Science and Innovation Missions Program will be open from May 12, 2026 until June 12, 2026 at 12:00 noon, Peninsular time.
Requests must be submitted through the CDTI electronic office.
How can Intelectium help you?
At Intelectium, we accompany companies and consortiums throughout the application process for the Missions Program: from the initial assessment of the project's fit with the missions defined by CDTI, to the drafting of the technical report, the structuring of the consortium and monitoring during the evaluation.
If your company works in any of the sectors contemplated in the 2026 missions and you want to explore if you have a candidate project, write to us and we will analyze it together.
