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One common reason why you may hesitate before using the services of a European funds consultant is the perception around their consulting fee. This is often combined with the risk of working with firms that apply questionable practices or use unclear contractual clauses.
By reading this guide, you will learn how to properly assess an offer from a European funds expert, understand typical fees, and avoid common pitfalls.
On the market, you will find independent European funds consultants, small specialised teams, and consultancy firms of all sizes that work with non-repayable funding, each with its own policy regarding the type and size of projects they take on.
These different organisational models come with both advantages and disadvantages. You can weigh them against your own needs and preferences by also reviewing the differences between European funds consultancy firms and better understand their consulting fee.
Fees vary depending on the consultant’s pricing policy, the complexity and size of the project, the number of partners, and deadlines. In general, consultancy fees can reach 10–12% of the total funding value, but there is no fixed standard.
Most consultants share part of the risk with the client by deferring a portion of the payment for preparing the funding application to a later stage, usually in the form of a success fee. This pricing model clearly benefits the client, as any professional consultant will focus on projects that are, first, eligible and, second, have strong chances of approval. Apart from cases where the applicant guide sets exact limits or percentages for consultancy services, there are no other specific regulations. Prices are set on the open market and depend on the services provided and the team involved.
In many funding programmes, though not all, a certain percentage - usually up to 10% of the eligible project budget -can be allocated to a cover the consulting fee of a specialised consultancy firm.
Check which services are eligible and under what conditions, to ensure that you can recover these costs from the grant if you choose to do so.
The co-financing percentage applies to the entire eligible project value. As a result, part of the consultancy cost will still be covered by your own contribution.
Achieving a good balance between costs and added value is, of course, essential. No matter how attractive a funding line may seem, running a project with non-repayable funds requires significant working capital - often 5 to 10 times higher than the consultant’s fee. This means consultancy costs represent only a small part of the real challenge: ensuring proper project cash flow.
In this case, the question of how expensive or affordable a consulting fee is takes on a different meaning. At ILIGRA, we offer tailored training solutions that can be an easier way to go through this learning journey.
If this is not the main reason for your concern, it is worth carefully considering which challenges you choose to focus on.
Another, more significant cost is the risk that, while searching for the cheapest offer or one with no advance payment - often an illusion - the desired funding line may close. In that case, the opportunity to obtain funding disappears, regardless of whether you paid an advance or not.
What does an advance really mean, and what represents payment for services provided?
There are various payment models on the market. Some consultancy firms request an advance before starting work, while others do not. These amounts are usually modest and serve as confirmation of the beneficiary’s commitment to continue the application process.
This allows the consultant to reserve the necessary time for your project.
Given the strict deadlines of most funding programmes, any European funds consultant must follow the funder’s timetable and allocate sufficient time to each client.
An advance represents a payment plan for services that will be provided - drafting the funding application and related consultancy. It is not part of the project budget, which has not yet been approved. If the project is approved and the cost is eligible, the beneficiary may later recover that amount payed as part of the consulting fee.
It is important to know that a European funds consultant does not have direct access to non-repayable funds; only the company or organisation that wins the project can receive these funds, including the ones for reimbursing the consulting fee.
Any serious European funds consultant, whether independent or part of a firm, will explain their consulting fee payment conditions, deadlines, and pricing clearly and transparently. They will not request any advance before a contract is signed and an invoice or other similar documents are issued. The work plan will be clearly defined. After these formalities, both the consultant and the client can start a collaboration based on trust and good faith.
See also the guide on how to recognise a professional European funds consultant to avoid misleading practices related to a potential consulting fee.
These offers require special attention. First, clarify what is actually offered for free: is it only an initial stage with general information, or consultancy tailored to your specific case?
If the free services are extensive, check when and how the respective European funds consultant will charge the consulting fee for their work. These conditions are usually clearly stated in the contract. Does the offer ensure that your funding application will actually be submitted?
“I have seen various percentages online. What should I believe?” - this is a common question from clients.
First, check the source of the information: when were the fees or percentages mentioned, and in what context?
Are the figures linked to a clearly defined set of services and a specific funding programme, or are they just general estimates?
The exact percentage that can be recovered from non-repayable funding is public information and is clearly stated in the applicant guide, when available. This percentage represents a maximum that can be recovered, not an obligation. Including it in the project budget is optional.
Usually, this percentage (for example, 10%) applies to the eligible project budget value. If, for various reasons, the approved or actual value is lower than initially estimated, the funder will reimburse a proportional amount. These situations, although undesirable, can be anticipated and discussed with a European funds consultant to see what is the impact on the consulting fee.
Non-repayable funding consultancy covers many different situations, so there is no fixed fee or universally valid percentage.
At ILIGRA, you can choose from a variety of services, structured modularly according to your needs at each stage of accessing non-repayable funds. You can calculate the price of the services you need at any time using the consulting fee calculator.
A quality service should naturally come with a set of guarantees.
This is probably the most important guarantee. Depending on the working method, eligibility checks may be offered for free or included in a service package. You can also do this independently by reviewing the criteria in the funding guide.
At ILIGRA, you can find available also a dedicated eligibility verification package. Even if you do not purchase it, if you choose to prepare the funding application with us and later in the preparation process find that the proposed project is not eligible, you will only pay for the eligibility check, with no additional fees. Moreover, if our eligibility and scoring analysis is incorrect, we refund the cost of the eligibility and scoring service.
Serious consultants take responsibility for this stage, as long as clients provide the required information and documents.
At ILIGRA, you benefit from a full form and compliance guarantee: if the project is rejected due to drafting errors on our side, we refund the cost of the funding application writing service. Regardless of project size, proper information saves time and money. When you understand what you pay for and what you receive for the respective consulting fee, choosing a European funds consultant becomes a safe investment in the success of your application.
