Renewal and Extension of Studentships under the provisions of Law no. 24/2018

Following the publication of Law No. 24/2018, approved by the Portuguese Parliament on May 11 and published in the Diário da República on June 8, the FCT has published the guidelines for the renewal or extension of Studentship contracts for doctoral fellows funded directly or indirectly by the Foundation.

Requirements for renewing and extending Studentship contracts

The renewal or extension of Studentship contracts funded directly or indirectly by the FCT may occur when, cumulatively:

. that the Studentship contract is covered by article 23 of Law no. 57/2017, of July 19;

. that the Studentship contract has ended or is about to end following the completion of the work plan or the expiry of the period for which the Studentship was awarded.

Studentship contracts that have ended, or are about to end, for reasons other than those mentioned above are not covered by the provisions of Law no. 24/2018, namely those that have ended due to: non-compliance with the duties of a scholarship holder; false declarations by the scholarship holder; revocation by mutual agreement or change of circumstances.

In order to enjoy the right to renew or extend the Studentship contract, it is compulsory for the scholarship holder to apply for a Call that respects their profile and is in the same scientific area as that in which they work, except in the cases provided for by law.

For the purposes of this law, the host institution is the contracting institution under the terms defined for the application of the transitional rule of Decree-Law 57/2016.

1 - Renewal and extension of Studentship contracts directly funded by FCT

In the case of doctoral scholarship holders with Studentships directly funded by the FCT, the procedure can be initiated by the institution or by the scholarship holder. In any case, the following information must be sent to the FCTStudentships:

. a statement from the scholarship holder expressing their agreement with the renewal or extension of their Studentship;

. a statement from the scientific advisor taking responsibility for the orientation;

. a declaration from the host institution that it agrees to continue hosting the scholarship holder;

. declaration by the grantee regarding compliance with the exclusive dedication regime provided for in the Research Grantee Statute (draft available here).

All declarations must be current, dated and signed.

Once the conditions set out in the previous points have been met, the FCT will renew or extend the Studentship contract for an additional period of 12 months. The renewal or extension of the Studentship does not require the signing of a new contract and is communicated in writing by the FCT to the scholarship holder.

The start date of the Studentship contract will be the one indicated by the scholarship holder, as long as it is no earlier than June 9, 2018 (date of entry into force of Law no. 24/2018, published on June 8).

2 - Renewal and extension of Studentship contracts indirectly funded by FCT

In the case of scholarship holders with a Studentship contract funded indirectly by the FCT, renewals and extensions are carried out directly by the host institutions.

After the conclusion of the tendering procedures under the transitional rule, the host institution can ask the FCT to reimburse the costs of renewing/extending the Studentships, by emailing InfoDL57-2016@fct.pt.

The reimbursement request to be sent to the FCT must be accompanied by the following documents:

. List of scholarship holders with renewed/extended Studentships whose eligibility under the transitional rule has been validated by the FCT;

. Indication of the start date and duration of the renewed/extended Studentship(s);

. Proof of the situation giving rise to the termination of the Studentship(s);

. Proof of the cost of renewing/extending the Studentship(s): copies of receipts and proof of payment.

In order to pay the reimbursements due, an addendum will be made to the Program Contract signed with the host institution under the Transitional Rule.

Conditions defined by Law No. 24/2018 for the termination of renewal and extension of Studentship contracts directly or indirectly funded by the FCT and for the return of amounts awarded

. The renewal or extension of the Studentship ends on the date the employment contract is signed, provided that the scholarship holder is hired under the tendering procedure provided for in article 23 of Decree-Law no. 57/2016, of August 29, as amended by Law no. 57/2017, of July 19.

If this does not happen, the renewal or extension of the Studentship ceases when the first of the following events occurs:

. On the date of completion of the tender procedure (publication of the final ranked list), when the scholarship holder, having applied for the Call has not been in a position eligible to be hired under the tender procedure provided for in article 23 of Decree-Law no. 57/2016, of August 29, as amended by Law no. 57/2017, of July 19.

. Deadline for submitting an application to a Call for tenders opened by the scholarship holder's host institution, if the Call meets the profile and is in the same scientific area in which the doctoral scholarship holder works, and the latter does not oppose it.

It should be noted that the FCT may request a refund of the funds paid to a grant holder who does not apply for a Call with their profile and in their scientific area, opened by their host institution. Refunds are not necessary if the grant holder applies for a call opened by an institution other than their own. In such cases, as provided for in law no. 24/2018, the renewal or extension of the Studentship ceases on the date on which the scholarship holder submits an application for that other call.

Scholarship holders whose Studentship contract is renewed or extended under Law no. 24/2018 have a duty to inform the FCT of the facts that lead to the interruption of that contract. Failure to comply with this duty, for reasons attributable to the grantee, may give rise to a request for a refund of the amount found to have been unduly transferred within the scope of the Studentship renewal or extension.

news item edited on june 29th to include a draft of the grantee's declaration