The overall objective is to strengthen and extend the excellence of the European Union's scientific base through the following programmes:

1. European Research Council (ERC) - supports frontier research conducted by the best researchers and their groups. ERC grants are divided into five main funding schemes:
   • Starting Grant (StG) – Targets researchers of any nationality, emerging research leaders, with 2-7 years of experience gained after obtaining their PhD (or equivalent degree). .
   • Consolidator Grant (CoG) – Aimed at researchers of any nationality with 7-12 years of experience gained after obtaining a PhD (or equivalent degree) and with a very promising scientific track record. It targets researchers aiming to consolidate their independence in research by creating a research group and continuing to develop a successful career in Europe. 
   • Advanced Grant (AdG) – Allows exceptional and established research leaders of any age and nationality to pursue innovative and high-risk projects capable of opening new directions in their respective fields of research and other sectors. 
   • Synergy Grant (SyG) – Launched as a "pilot action" at the end of the Seventh Framework Programme, it was reintroduced in the Work Programme 2018 of Horizon 2020. It promotes substantial progress at the frontier of knowledge and encourages new lines of research as well as new methods and techniques. 
   • Proof of Concept (PoC) – Aims to bridge the gap between basic research and the market. The scheme targets researchers who have already received ERC funding. 

2. Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions - finances mobility and training to provide new knowledge and skills to researchers. The funding line consists of four types of actions:
   • Doctoral Networks - DN: Aimed at supporting excellence in research and doctoral training. These actions involve partnerships between universities, research institutions, and businesses. Doctoral Networks can be of two types, joint doctorates and industrial doctorates.
   • Postdoctoral Fellowships - PF: Target postdoctoral researchers interested in international or cross-sector mobility experiences, to enhance their creative and innovative potential by providing them with opportunities to acquire new knowledge, work on research projects in a European or international context, initiate new career prospects, or return to Europe.
   • Staff Exchanges -SE: Aim to support cross-sectoral and international collaboration at the European level, through exchanges of excellent human capital, and to promote the creation of a shared culture of research and innovation. These actions are expected to strengthen interaction between academic and non-academic organizations. . 
   • Co-funding of programmes (COFUND): Aim to support co-funded doctoral and postdoctoral fellowship programs at regional, national, and international levels.

3. Research Infrastructures 
   The Horizon Europe Research Infrastructures Program aims to equip Europe with sustainable Research Infrastructures at a global level, open and increasingly accessible to all researchers both at the European and extra-European level, with the aim of fully exploiting their potential for scientific progress and innovation. To this end, the work program is divided into 3 main areas of intervention:
   • Strengthening and consolidating the European research infrastructure community;
   • Opening, integrating, and interconnecting European research infrastructures;
   • Strengthening the European policy on research infrastructures and international cooperation. 

Joint, aligned, and flexible actions to address global challenges through industrial and technological competitiveness, for inclusive and sustainable growth. It is structured into the following 6 clusters or thematic poles:

1. Health
2. Culture, Creativity and Inclusive Society
3. Civil Security for Society
4. Digital, Industry and Space
5. Climate, Energy and Mobility
6. Food, Bioeconomy, Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment 

In addition to the six clusters, support is provided for research activities in the Joint Research Centre

Il Joint Research Centre (JRC)It is the European Commission's in-house science and knowledge service. The Joint Research Centre provides EU policies with evidence-based support throughout the policy cycle, fully independent from national, commercial, or private interests.

The JRC will support the 5 mission of Horizon Europe through new knowledge centers, progress analysis, and citizen engagement actions. The missions of Horizon Europe involve carrying out actions aimed at achieving ambitious objectives within a set period, with a broad impact on society and policy.

Missions: Horizon Europe has launched five Research and Innovation Missions aimed at increasing the effectiveness of funding by pursuing clearly identified overarching objectives and addressing some of the greatest challenges of our time.

Each of the five Missions includes a portfolio of actions - research projects, policy measures, or even legislative initiatives - aimed at achieving a bold, measurable, and relevant societal objective within a set timeframe that could not be accomplished through individual actions alone.

The 5 missions are as follows:

1. Cancer
2. Adaptation to Climate Change
3. Restore our Ocean and Waters
4. Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities
5. A Soil Deal for Europe

This pillar aims to stimulate pioneering innovations, market-creating innovations, and innovation-friendly ecosystems by identifying breakthrough innovations and technologies, particularly through the European Innovation Council (EIC).

It is structured into three programs:

• European Innovation Council (EIC) - Support for ideas with pioneering and market-creating potential;
• European Innovation ecosystems - Creation of an enabling environment for the dissemination and development of innovation at all levels;
• European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) - through the Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KICs) - Union of fundamental elements (research, education, and businesses) around a common goal to foster innovation.

Widening Participation and Strenghtening the European Research Area: This program implements a series of measures to support the expansion of participation in the Framework Program and to strengthen Spazio Europeo della Ricerca (ERA). The aim is to strengthen collaborations across Europe, contributing to improving research management capabilities within Widening Countries and support national-level policy reforms to narrow the research outcomes gap, especially from the EU13 countries. This program is divided into two components:

1. Widening participation and spreading excellence: It aims to encourage institutional reforms and transformation processes of the R&I system at national and regional levels in Widening countries in line with the principles of the European Research Area, mobilize national investments in R&I capacity, and enhance the level of excellence in the R&I community by increasing collaboration with European and international institutions.
2. Reforming and Enhancing the European R&I system:  It aims to contribute to reforming and improving the EU's R&I system in line with four of the objectives of the Communication on the European Research Area. Special emphasis is given to investments and reforms, as well as the transfer of research and innovation results into the economic system.

The European Atomic Energy Community's research and training program (Euratom program) for the period 2021-2025 aims to conduct research and training activities in the nuclear sector, with a focus on continuously improving nuclear safety and security and radiation protection, and achieving the objectives of Horizon Europe.

Horizon Europe will continue to support European Partnerships between the Commission, on one side, and member countries, the private sector, foundations, and other stakeholders, on the other. The aim is to address global challenges and industrial modernization through concerted research and innovation efforts.

By bringing together private and public partners, European Partnerships help avoid duplication of investments and should contribute to reducing fragmentation in research and innovation activities within the Union.

The program sets out the conditions and principles for creating three new types of partnerships:

1. Co-programmed partnerships: These are partnerships between the Commission and private and/or public partners. They are based on memoranda of understanding and/or contractual agreements.
2. Co-funded partnerships: These are partnerships between the Commission and primarily public partners, where the research funding agencies at the national level and other authorities of the Member States are at the core of the consortium. They are based on an R&I program agreed upon by the partners and are activated by a co-financing action of Horizon Europe.
3. Institutionalized partnerships: These are partnerships between the European Union and public and/or private entities, characterized by a long-term perspective and a high level of integration, and implemented by ad hoc structures. They are established based on Article 185 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) - public-public partnerships between the EU and Member States - Article 187 - public-private partnerships between the EU and the industrial sector (Joint Undertakings), or the regulation of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) - Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KIC).