EMBO Postdoctoral Fellowships support excellent postdoctoral researchers throughout Europe and the world for a period of up to two years. International mobility is a key requirement. The fellowship includes a salary or stipend, a relocation allowance and support for fellows with children. Awardees can attend an EMBO Laboratory Leadership course and become part of the global network of EMBO Fellows.

Five additional EMBO Postdoctoral Fellowships are reserved for researchers applying to work in one of the following countries: Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Poland, Slovenia, and Turkey. In addition, an interview by an EMBO Member or Young Investigator is now guaranteed to the researchers applying to work in those countries, provided their application passes initial screening for overall quality. These will thereby enter the final shortlist for consideration by the Fellowship Committee.

EMBO considers a first author refereed preprint equivalent to a first author publication as one of the eligibility and assessment criteria for the EMBO Postdoctoral Fellowship scheme.