In order to quickly direct the available European public funds to address the consequences of the coronavirus crisis, under Article 139 of the ESIF Regulation, the European Commission has waived this year the obligation to request the refunds of unspent pre-financing from the fund until programme closure.
In addition, starting on 30 March, the European Commission has launched the 2020 annual pre-financing process for the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF) in advance and paid a sum of up to €160.3 million. This allows the Member States to use the funds to accelerate investments in response to the coronavirus outbreak and ease the socio-economic burden caused by the crisis on the fisheries and aquaculture sectors.
For more information, please read the ESIF Regulation.