Financial Assistant - Initiation

Overview

MAKE A DIFFERENCE - JOIN THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION Do you want to help shape the future of the European Union? Make the planet greener, promote a fairer society, or support businesses and innovation across the EU? Then come and work for the European Commission where you can really make a difference! Commission staff are a diverse group of people, who are motivated to help make Europe – and the world – a better place. They come from the 27 Member States of the European Union. Different nationalities, backgrounds, languages and cultures make the Commission a vibrant and inclusive place to work.

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To promote diversity and establish a geographically balanced pool of candidates, we strongly encourage applicants from Member States which are currently underrepresented in the European Commission workforce to apply. These Member States are currently Austria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, the Netherlands, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Latvia, Luxembourg, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Sweden. Recruitment will however remain strictly based on the merits of all applicants and no positions will be reserved for nationals of any specific Member State.

For more information ec.europa.eu/work-with-us STAFF RECRUITED ON CONTRACTS In addition to permanent officials, the European Commission offers non-permanent positions. There are two categories of non-permanent staff:

• temporary agents are recruited to fill vacant positions for a set amount of time or to perform highly specialised tasks.
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For more information on different staff categories

Financial Assistant – Initiation Directorate - General for Agriculture and Rural Development (DG AGRI) of the European Commission Selection reference: AGRI/COM/2026/1492 Domain*: Budget & Finances, Agriculture Where : Unit AGRI.R.2 - „Direct financial management and Accounting “, Brussels Staff category and Function Group : Temporary agent 2b –Assistant Grade range: AST1-3 Publication deadline : 17 .08 .2026 - 12.00 (Brussels time) WE ARE We are the central financial Unit for direct financial management and accounting in DG AGRI - Agriculture and Rural Development, making sure that taxpayers’ money is used correctly. Being a Unit with 22 members of staff we cover diverse areas of financial work related notably to public procurement, grants, agricultural research expenditure, and supervision of an international organisation, and we provide advice and ensure control. We are looking for a new colleague in our team of financial initiating agents.

WE PROPOSE We propose to the successful candidate to be part of a connected team that gives diversity and inclusion a priority as they have a direct impact on the Unit’s performance. We focus on the team cohesion and close collaboration, all striving towards correct spending of public money. We offer an interesting and challenging position of a financial assistant to ensure the regularity and legality of financial operations. You will be part of the financial team comprising twelve colleagues, handling financial operations under direct management (mainly procurement and grants). Your tasks will include the financial initiation of transactions (commitments, payments, recovery orders, forecast of revenue, etc.); the financial analysis of documents related to procurement contracts; the assistance to DG AGRI Operational Units on financial rules and procedures. The latter includes frequent contacts with the operational initiating and verification agents in these Units, to provide advice and technical support during the whole financial process. In addition, you will be responsible for drafting the Financing Decisions and their amendments, and their adoption process. With this aim you will liaise with the Operational Units to get their input and with the budget unit. You will contribute to the definition and simplification of financial and administrative procedures and assist in the distribution, monitoring and follow-up of financial files. WE LOOK FOR We look for a colleague who likes the financial work and sees this work area as an opportunity for personal development. A colleague who is a dynamic and motivated financial agent with at least 3

years of experience in financial management and knowledge of the EU Financial Regulation and Public Procurement Directives as well as rich experience in EU decision -making procedures, notably the adoption procedure for Commission implementing regulations. You should know the public procurement procedures. A good knowledge of budget rules is also required. You should have a strong sense of duty, an eye for detail, spirit of initiative and ability to work independently. You should be able to perform under pressure and within tight deadlines, yet in a smoothly organised Unit ensuring an excellent balance between professional and personal life. You should be able to prioritise the assigned workload and carry out the tasks with a sense of commitment and responsibility. The nature of the tasks requires very good inter -personal skills and sound judgement. Excellent knowledge of the relevant Commission IT tools (SUMMA, eProcurement, ARES, Decide) is a pre-requisite. Good knowledge of English and French is required.

HOW TO EXPRESS YOUR INTEREST?

You should send your documents in a single pdf in the following order:

1. your CV
2. completed application form.

Please send these documents by the publication deadline to AGRI-HR- CORRESPONDENT@ec.europa.eu indicating the selection reference AGRI/COM/2026/1492 in the subject.

No applications will be accepted after the publication deadline.

ANNEX

Selection & timeline

1. Selection

➢ Am I eligible to apply?

You must meet the following eligibility criteria when you validate your application : Our rules provide that you can only be recruited as a temporary agent at the European Commission if you: General criteria:

• Are a citizen of a Member State of the EU and enjoy full rights as a citizen
• Have fulfilled any obligations imposed by applicable laws concerning military service
• Are physically fit to perform the duties linked to the post
• Produce the appropriate character references as to suitability for the performance of the duties.

Qualifications: In order to be recruited for this position, you must have at least

• a level of post -secondary education attested by a diploma, or
• a level of secondary education attested by a diploma giving access to post -secondary education, and appropriate professional experience of at least three years .

Only qualifications issued or recognised as equivalent by EU Member State authorities (e.g. by the Ministry of Education) will be accepted. Furthermore, before recruitment, you will be required to provide the documents that corroborate the eligibility criteria (diplomas, certificates and other supporting documents).

Languages:

• have a thorough knowledge (minimum level C1) of one of the 24 official languages of the

EU2

• AND a satisfactory knowledge (minimum level B2) of a second official language of the EU, to the extent necessary for the performance of the duties.

➢ What about the selection steps?

The post was published internally within the Commission, inter -institutionally, and brought to the attention of competition laureates.

In accordance with Article 29 of the Staff Regulations, applications from Commission officials, officials from other Institutions , and laureates of competitions have priority 3. If these candidates do not best fit the requirements for the position, the Commission can recruit a temporary agent. For temporary agents under Article 2(a) of the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants , the post is published directly on the EPSO website, without mandatory prior internal publication. A selection panel will choose a limited number of candidates for interview, based on the CV and application form that they submitted. Due to the large volume of applications , we may receive, only candidates selected for the next step of the selection phase will be notified. For operational reasons and in order to complete the selection procedure as quickly as possible in the interest of the candidates and of the institution, the selection procedure will be carried out in English and possibly in a nother language.

2. Recruitment

The candidate selected for recruitment will be requested to supply documentary evidence in support of the statements made in their application.

The successful candidate will be required to undergo a mandatory pre -recruitment medical check- up, carried out by the Commission. ➢ Type of contract and working conditions The place of employment will be Brussels .

In case the successful candidate is not an official or a competition laureate , they will be recruited as a temporary agent under Article 2(b) of the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants , in function group s AST .

➢ Grade The recruitment grade, as well as the step in that grade, will be determined in accordance with Commission Decision C( 2025 )4716 on policies for the engagement and use of temporary agents and with Commission Decision C(2013)8970 laying down the criteria applicable to classification in step on engagement.

The recruitment grade will be calculated based on the qualifications and the number of years of professional experience, according to Art. 13 ofthe Commission Decision C(2025)4716 . Higher grades may be granted exceptionally.

The duration of the 1st contract will be up to 4 years. The contract might then be extended only once for a maximum of 2 years and in the interest of service , in accordance with Commission Decision C(20 25)4716 on policies for the engagement and use of temporary agents. All new staff have to successfully complete a 9 -month probationary period. The pay of staff members consists of a basic salary supplemented with specific allowances, including, where applicable, expatriation and family allowances. The provisions guiding the calculation of these allowances can be consulted in the Conditions of Employment of Other Servants. As a member of staff of the European institutions, your pay is subject to a tax raised by those institutions.

The European Commission applies a policy of equal opportunities and non -discrimination in accordance with Article 1d of the Staff Regulations.

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