In June 2025, the Digital Freedom Fund approved its latest round of grants, awarding 11 projects with a combined total of approximately EUR 380,000. These grants aim to support litigation that advances digital rights across Europe. With this new round, the Fund has now awarded over 130 grants worth nearly EUR 5 million since its inception.
This latest call for applications was the most competitive to date, attracting 59 submissions from 22 countries—surpassing the previous record of 50 applications in 2024 and nearly doubling the pre-2024 high of 34. Spain and Albania led with six applications each. The approved grants are spread across 11 countries, including first-time funding in Romania and Sweden, along with grants in Albania, France, Germany, Ireland, Poland, Serbia, Spain, Turkey, and the United Kingdom.
Among the 11 newly approved grants, eight support litigation efforts. These initiatives address a wide range of digital rights issues, including access to public services, gender-based censorship, AI labor exploitation, spyware surveillance, gig worker rights, child safety online, protection against torture, and the blocking of LGBTQI+ platforms. The remaining three grants support pre-litigation activities, focusing on legal challenges related to discriminatory digital identity systems, surveillance technologies linked to oppression, and controversial government reporting laws.
Of the 59 applications received, 35 were for litigation and 24 for pre-litigation support. Grant amounts ranged from EUR 16,000 to EUR 100,000. The average litigation grant was EUR 38,000, while the average pre-litigation grant stood at EUR 28,000. A significant proportion of applicants—39 out of 59—were first-time applicants, and seven of the 11 funded projects are led by organisations new to the Fund, bringing the total number of supported entities to 81.
The Fund recently released a report titled Highlighting Litigation Success in the Digital Rights Community, summarising strategic litigation outcomes between 2018 and 2024. This report provides insights into the tangible impacts achieved through the supported cases.
Looking forward, the most recent call for applications closed in July 2025 with a record-breaking 73 submissions. A new round of grants is scheduled for approval by November 2025, and the next call is expected in December 2025. The Fund continues to promote resources such as application guides and a litigation toolkit on its website to support prospective applicants.
In addition, the Digital Freedom Fund is expanding its pilot participatory grantmaking model. Initially applied to pre-litigation applications, this model involved peer community members in assessing and selecting proposals. It will now be extended to include litigation applications as well. A detailed blog co-authored with peer reviewers reflects on the initial outcomes and future direction of this participatory approach.
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