Appel Insmi pour séjours dans des laboratoires à l'étranger (IRL)

General framework of this call
 

You will find the list of destinations for INSMI on this page.

In order to plan your period abroad as effectively as possible, it is essential to first discuss your plans informally with the deputy scientific director in charge of international affairs at INSMI at a very early stage (before you submit your application). Contact: insmi.international@cnrs.fr

You should then contact the director of the IRL as soon as you start preparing the project, and ask for their agreement. Take the same approach with your Head of department (DU). Reminder: CNRS departments for this call include UMRs as well as Research Federations (FR and FRA).

NB: this call is primarily for expatriations to the IRLs led by INSMI as main institute. You may however request an assignment to an IRL that is led by another CNRS Institute, if this makes sense with the research plan you propose. In this case, you should still send your documents to INSMI and inform the main affiliated institute of your application.

Applications
 

Applications should be sent to the address (insmi.international@cnrs.fr) with Cc to the director of the IRL, as well as to the director of your department.
Academics working in universities must also apply via the Galaxie platform in order to request a ‘délégation’(*).

Deadline for sending applications to INSMI: 15 October 2025

Please include in your application:

• An up-to-date curriculum vitae / resume
• An up-to-date list of publications
• A description of the research project you intend to develop at the IRL. Mention the intended dates.
• Agreement from the IRL Director (an email is sufficient)
• Agreement from your Head of department (an email is sufficient)

Once you have sent your application, the following calendar will be in place:

• Until end of March 2026: review and assessment of all applications in consultation with IRL directors
• April-May 2026: decision and communication to the applicants (the exact date will depend on when ‘délégations’ are officially published). See more explanations on this in the next paragraph.

Important remarks
 

CNRS staff interested in responding to this call must be tenured researchers.

(*) Non-CNRS staff can also apply but must obtain a ‘délégation’ (a specific position for lecturers and university professors to undertake research while having their teaching duties financially covered by CNRS). Note that obtaining a CRCT (congés pour recherches ou conversions thématiques) is not enough. 
The request for a ‘délégation’ for the 2026-2027 campaign will have to be uploaded on the specific national online application (Galaxie) according to your university calendar. You should indicate the International Research laboratory as Host laboratory (they all have a number and an abbreviated name).

CNRS operates on a calendar year basis while the calendar for ‘délégations’ is based on the university calendar. In order to accommodate everyone, INSMI will consider both projects for 2026 only (calendar year, CNRS researchers only) and for 2026-2027.

INSMI is very open to receiving applications for this call from researchers and academics affiliated to another CNRS institute. In this case, applicants should send their application directly to their affiliated institute (as ‘délégations’ and expatriation allowances will have to be covered by it). Please inform INSMI by mail if you have applied in this way.

For more information, please contact insmi.international@cnrs.fr