Regulation (EU) 2021/1057 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 June 2021 establishing the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+) and repealing Regulation (EU) No 1296/2013
Modified by
  • Regulation (EU) 2024/795 of the European Parliament and of the Councilof 29 February 2024establishing the Strategic Technologies for Europe Platform (STEP), and amending Directive 2003/87/EC and Regulations (EU) 2021/1058, (EU) 2021/1056, (EU) 2021/1057, (EU) No 1303/2013, (EU) No 223/2014, (EU) 2021/1060, (EU) 2021/523, (EU) 2021/695, (EU) 2021/697 and (EU) 2021/241, 32024R0795, February 29, 2024
Corrected by
  • Corrigendum to Regulation (EU) 2021/1057 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 June 2021 establishing the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+) and repealing Regulation (EU) No 1296/2013, 32021R1057R(01), November 26, 2021
Regulation (EU) 2021/1057 of the European Parliament and of the Councilof 24 June 2021establishing the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+) and repealing Regulation (EU) No 1296/2013 PART IGENERAL PROVISIONS
Article 1Subject matterThis Regulation establishes the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+), which consists of two strands: the strand under shared management (the "ESF+ strand under shared management") and the Employment and Social Innovation strand (the "EaSI strand").This Regulation lays down the objectives of the ESF+, its budget for the period 2021 to 2027, the methods of implementation, the forms of Union funding and the rules for providing such funding.
Article 2Definitions1.For the purposes of this Regulation, the following definitions apply:(1)"lifelong learning" means learning in all its forms, namely, formal, non-formal and informal learning, that takes place at all stages in life and results in an improvement or an update in knowledge, skills, competences and attitudes or in participation in society in a personal, civic, cultural, social or employment-related perspective, including the provision of counselling and guidance services, including early childhood education and care, general education, vocational education and training, higher education, adult education, youth work and other learning settings outside formal education and training and it typically promotes cross-sectoral cooperation and flexible learning pathways;(2)"third-country national" means a person who is not a citizen of the Union, including stateless persons and persons with an undetermined nationality;(3)"basic material assistance" means goods which fulfil the basic needs of a person for a life with dignity, such as clothing, hygiene goods, including feminine hygiene products, and school material;(4)"disadvantaged group" means a group of people in vulnerable situations, including people experiencing or at risk of poverty, social exclusion or discrimination in its multiple dimensions;(5)"key competences" means the knowledge, skills and competences all individuals need, at any stage of their lives, for their personal fulfilment and development, employment, social inclusion and active citizenship, namely, literacy; multilingualism; mathematics, science, technology, arts and engineering; digital skills; media skills; personal, social and learning to learn skills; active citizenship skills; entrepreneurship; cultural and intercultural awareness and expression; and critical thinking;(6)"most deprived persons" means natural persons, whether individuals, families, households or groups of persons, including children in vulnerable situations and homeless people, whose need for assistance has been established according to the objective criteria which are set by the national competent authorities in consultation with relevant stakeholders while avoiding conflicts of interest, and which may include elements that allow for the targeting of the most deprived persons in certain geographical areas;(7)"end recipients" means the most deprived persons receiving the support as laid down in Article 4(1), point (m);(8)"social innovation" means an activity, that is social both as to its ends and its means and in particular an activity which relates to the development and implementation of new ideas concerning products, services, practices and models, that simultaneously meets social needs and creates new social relationships or collaborations between public, civil society or private organisations, thereby benefiting society and boosting its capacity to act;(9)"accompanying measure" means an activity provided in addition to the distribution of food and/or basic material assistance with the aim of addressing social exclusion and contributing to the eradication of poverty, such as referrals to or providing social and health services, including psychological support, or providing relevant information on public services or advice on managing a household budget;(10)"social experimentation" means a policy intervention that aims to provide an innovative response to social needs, implemented on a small scale and in conditions that enable its impact to be measured, prior to being implemented in other contexts including geographical and sectorial ones, or implemented on a larger scale, if the results prove to be positive;(11)"cross-border partnership" means a structure of cooperation between public employment services, the social partners or civil society located in at least two Member States;(12)"microenterprise" means an enterprise with fewer than 10 employees and an annual turnover or balance sheet below EUR 2000000;(13)"social enterprise" means an undertaking, regardless of its legal form, including social economy enterprises, or a natural person which:(a)in accordance with its articles of association, statutes or with any other legal document that may result in liability under the rules of the Member State where a social enterprise is located, has the achievement of measurable, positive social impacts, which may include environmental impacts, as its primary social objective rather than the generation of profit for other purposes, and which provides services or goods that generate a social return or employs methods of production of goods or services that embody social objectives;(b)uses its profits first and foremost to achieve its primary social objective, and has predefined procedures and rules that ensure that the distribution of profits does not undermine the primary social objective;(c)is managed in an entrepreneurial, participatory, accountable and transparent manner, in particular by involving workers, customers and stakeholders on whom its business activities have an impact;(14)"reference value" means a value which is used to set targets for common and programme specific result indicators and based on existing or previous, similar interventions;(15)"cost of purchasing food and/or basic material assistance" means the actual costs which are linked to the purchase of food and/or basic material assistance by the beneficiary and are not limited to the price of the food and/or basic material assistance;(16)"microfinance" includes guarantees, microcredit, equity and quasi-equity, coupled with accompanying business development services such as those provided in the form of individual counselling, training and mentoring, extended to persons and microenterprises that experience difficulties accessing credit for the purpose of professional and revenue-generating activities;(17)"blending operation" means an action supported by the Union budget, including within a blending facility or platform as defined in Article 2, point (6), of the Financial Regulation, combining non-repayable forms of support or financial instruments from the Union budget with repayable forms of support from development or other public finance institutions, as well as from commercial finance institutions and investors;(18)"legal entity" means a natural person, or a legal person created and recognised as such under Union, national, or international law, which has legal personality and the capacity to act in its own name, exercise rights and be subject to obligations, or an entity which does not have legal personality as referred to in Article 197(2), point (c), of the Financial Regulation;(19)"common immediate result indicator" means a common result indicator which captures effects within four weeks from the day on which the participant has left the operation;(20)"common longer-term result indicator" means a common result indicator which captures effects six months after the participant has left the operation.2.The definitions set out in Article 2 of Regulation (EU) 2021/1060 also apply to the ESF+ strand under shared management.
Article 3General objectives of the ESF+ and methods of implementation1.The ESF+ aims to support Member States and regions to achieve high employment levels, fair social protection and a skilled and resilient workforce ready for the future world of work, as well as inclusive and cohesive societies aiming to eradicating poverty and delivering on the principles set out in the European Pillar of Social Rights.2.The ESF+ shall support, complement and add value to the policies of Member States to ensure equal opportunities, equal access to the labour market, fair and quality working conditions, social protection and inclusion, in particular focussing on quality and inclusive education and training, lifelong learning, investment in children and young people and access to basic services.3.The ESF+ shall be implemented:(a)under shared management, for the part of the assistance which corresponds to the specific objectives set out in Article 4(1) (ESF+ strand under shared management); and(b)under direct and indirect management, for the part of the assistance which corresponds to the objectives set out in Article 4(1) and Article 25 (EaSI strand).
Article 4Specific objectives of the ESF+1.The ESF+ shall support the following specific objectives in the policy areas of employment and labour mobility, education, social inclusion, including contributing to poverty eradication, and thereby also contributing to the policy objective "a more social and inclusive Europe implementing the European Pillar of Social Rights" referred to in Article 5, point (d), of Regulation (EU) 2021/1060:(a)improving access to employment and activation measures for all jobseekers, in particular young people, especially through the implementation of the Youth Guarantee, for long-term unemployed and disadvantaged groups on the labour market, and for inactive people, as well as through the promotion of self-employment and the social economy;(b)modernising labour market institutions and services to assess and anticipate skills needs and ensure timely and tailor-made assistance and support for labour market matching, transitions and mobility;(c)promoting a gender-balanced labour market participation, equal working conditions, and a better work-life balance including through access to affordable childcare, and care for dependent persons;(d)promoting the adaptation of workers, enterprises and entrepreneurs to change, active and healthy ageing and a healthy and well-adapted working environment that addresses health risks;(e)improving the quality, inclusiveness, effectiveness and labour market relevance of education and training systems including through validation of non-formal and informal learning, to support acquisition of key competences including entrepreneurial and digital skills, and by promoting the introduction of dual-training systems and apprenticeships;(f)promoting equal access to and completion of quality and inclusive education and training, in particular for disadvantaged groups, from early childhood education and care through general and vocational education and training, to tertiary level, as well as adult education and learning, including facilitating learning mobility for all and accessibility for persons with disabilities;(g)promoting lifelong learning, in particular flexible upskilling and reskilling opportunities for all taking into account entrepreneurial and digital skills, better anticipating change and new skills requirements based on labour market needs, facilitating career transitions and promoting professional mobility;(h)fostering active inclusion with a view to promoting equal opportunities, non-discrimination and active participation, and improving employability, in particular for disadvantaged groups;(i)promoting socio-economic integration of third-country nationals, including migrants;(j)promoting the socio-economic integration of marginalised communities, such as Roma people;(k)enhancing equal and timely access to quality, sustainable and affordable services, including services that promote the access to housing and person-centred care including healthcare; modernising social protection systems, including promoting access to social protection, with a particular focus on children and disadvantaged groups; improving accessibility including for persons with disabilities, effectiveness and resilience of healthcare systems and long-term care services;(l)promoting social integration of people at risk of poverty or social exclusion, including the most deprived persons and children;(m)addressing material deprivation through food and/or basic material assistance to the most deprived persons, including children, and providing accompanying measures supporting their social inclusion.2.Through the actions implemented under the ESF+ strand under shared management to achieve the specific objectives referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article, the ESF+ shall aim to contribute to the other policy objectives listed in Article 5 of Regulation (EU) 2021/1060, in particular the objectives related to:(a)a smarter Europe through the development of skills for smart specialisation, skills for key enabling technologies, industrial transition, sectorial cooperation on skills and entrepreneurship, the training of researchers, networking activities and partnerships between higher education institutions, vocational and educational training institutions, research and technological centres and enterprises and clusters, and support for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises and the social economy;(b)a greener, low carbon Europe through the improvement of education and training systems necessary for the adaptation of skills and qualifications, the upskilling of all, including the labour force, the creation of new jobs in sectors related to the environment, climate, energy, the circular economy and the bioeconomy.3.Where strictly necessary as a temporary measure to respond to exceptional or unusual circumstances as referred to in Article 20 of Regulation (EU) 2021/1060, and limited to a period of 18 months, the ESF+ may support:(a)the financing of short-time work schemes without the requirement that they be combined with active measures;(b)access to healthcare including for people who are not in imminent socio-economic vulnerability.4.Where, upon a request submitted by the Member States concerned, the Commission finds that the conditions laid down in paragraph 3 are fulfilled, it shall adopt an implementing decision specifying the period during which the temporary additional support from the ESF+ is authorised.5.The Commission shall monitor the implementation of paragraph 3 of this Article and assess whether the temporary additional support from ESF+ is sufficient to facilitate the use of support from the ESF+ in response to the exceptional or unusual circumstances. On the basis of its assessment, the Commission shall, where appropriate, make proposals for amendments to this Regulation, including on the thematic concentration requirements set out in Article 7, except the thematic concentration requirement as specified in Article 7(5) and (6).
Article 5Budget1.The financial envelope for the implementation of the ESF+ for the period 2021 to 2027 shall be EUR 87995063417, in 2018 prices.2.The part of the financial envelope for the implementation of the ESF+ strand under shared management to contribute to the investment for jobs and growth goal in Member States and regions as referred to Article 5(2), point (a), of Regulation (EU) 2021/1060 shall be EUR 87319331844, in 2018 prices, of which EUR 175000000 shall be allocated for transnational cooperation to accelerate the transfer, and facilitate the scaling up, of innovative solutions as referred to in Article 25, point (i), of this Regulation and EUR 472980447, in 2018 prices, as additional funding to the outermost regions identified in Article 349 TFEU and the NUTS level 2 regions fulfilling the criteria laid down in Article 2 of Protocol No 6 on special provisions for Objective 6 in the framework of the Structural Funds in Finland, Norway and Sweden annexed to the 1994 Act of Accession (Protocol No 6).3.The part of the financial envelope for the implementation of the EaSI strand for the period 2021 to 2027 shall be EUR 675731573, in 2018 prices.4.The amount referred to in paragraph 3 may also be used for technical and administrative assistance for the implementation of the EaSI strand, such as preparatory, monitoring, control, audit and evaluation activities including corporate information technology systems.
Article 6Gender equality, equal opportunities and non-discriminationMember States and the Commission shall support specific targeted actions to promote the horizontal principles referred to in Article 9(2) and (3) of Regulation (EU) 2021/1060 and Article 28 of this Regulation that fall within any of the objectives of the ESF+. Those actions may include actions for ensuring accessibility for persons with disabilities, including in terms of information and communication technologies, and promoting the transition from residential or institutional care to family and community-based care.Through the ESF+, Member States and the Commission shall aim to increase the participation of women in employment as well as conciliation between working and personal life, combat the feminisation of poverty and gender discrimination in the labour market and in education and training.
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