# Alternative Methods to Animal Testing

**Funder:** FWF
**Duration:** Up to 4 years
**Consortium:** No
**Application:** Single stage
**Frequency:** Continuous
**Eligible countries:** AT
**Official call:** https://www.fwf.ac.at/en/funding/portfolio/subject-specific-funding/alternative-methods-to-animal-testing
**Last verified:** 20 June 2026

## Eligibility & scope

Open to researchers from all disciplines at Austrian institutions. Funds projects developing alternative methods to animal experiments aligned with the 3Rs principle (replacement, reduction, refinement). Co-funded by the Federal Ministry of Women, Science and Research (BMFWF) and FWF. No deadline or budget specified in this segment.

## Summary

FWF's Alternative Methods to Animal Testing programme funds projects developing replacement, reduction, and refinement (3Rs) approaches to animal experiments, open to researchers across all disciplines at Austrian institutions. Projects run up to four years and the call is continuous. Co-funded by the Austrian Federal Ministry of Women, Science and Research, this programme supports both methodological innovation and applied research that advances the use of non-animal or reduced-animal methods.

## Who should apply

- Researchers at accredited Austrian research institutions across all disciplines
- Projects explicitly designed around the 3Rs principle (replacement, reduction, refinement)
- Teams developing in vitro, computational, or tissue-based alternatives to animal experiments
- Researchers in pharmacology, toxicology, developmental biology, and related translational fields

## Key dates

- Continuous call with rolling deadlines; verify submission windows on the FWF portal
- Single-stage application and review
- Project duration up to four years

## Tips for applicants

- Articulate the 3Rs principle explicitly in your proposal, map which element(s) (replacement, reduction, refinement) your method advances and quantify expected reductions.
- Emphasise scalability and transferability to other research groups; FWF values methods that will become community practice, not one-off tools.
- Co-funding status means regulatory or industry validation letters strengthen applications, include letters of intent from potential adopter labs or pharmaceutical partners.

## Frequently asked questions

### What is the Alternative Methods to Animal Testing call from FWF?

It funds research projects developing alternatives aligned with the 3Rs principle (replacement, reduction, refinement) of animal experiments, open to researchers at Austrian institutions across all disciplines.

### How long can an Alternative Methods to Animal Testing project run?

Projects can run for up to four years.

### Is this FWF call continuous or does it have annual deadlines?

The call is continuous with rolling deadlines; check the FWF portal for submission windows and review timelines.

### Who can apply for the FWF Alternative Methods to Animal Testing grant?

Researchers based at accredited Austrian research institutions across all disciplines can apply.

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Source: [The Great Grantsby](https://grantsby.eu/grants/fwf-alternative-methods-to-animal-testing-2026) — EU grant monitoring for academic researchers. Always verify details on the funder's website before applying.