Annually, the Canon Foundation in Europe grants up to 15 Fellowships to highly qualified European and Japanese researchers in all fields. The European Fellowship holders pursue a period of research in Japan whereas the Japanese Fellows do their research at host institutions in Europe.

The Fellowships are awarded for periods of minimum three months and maximum one year. The Fellowships are awarded regardless of discipline and existing employment positions.

European nationals should have permanent citizenship in the country. Candidates are required to have obtained at least a Master's degree within the previous ten years. Exceptional candidates who obtained their qualification more than ten years prior to application will also be considered. Such candidates are required to provide further supporting information in their application.

Canon Fellows from Europe are free to choose their host institutes and hosts in Japan. The same freedom is given to Japanese Canon Fellows coming to Europe. Canon Foundation Research Fellowships may be applied for when an agreement on co-operation and on a research plan has been reached between the guest researcher and the proposed host institution.

Applications can also be submitted by members of commercial, industrial, governmental or professional organisations.

Application procedure for Fellowships
The annual deadline for applications is September 15. Consideration of the applications takes several months. The Selection Committee's final decisions are convened to the applicants before end December of that year. Therefore, the earliest possible date to begin the Fellowship is January 1 of the following year.