Eligibility of expenditure
Article 13
1. The ESF shall provide support for eligible expenditure which, as referred to in Article 120(2)(b) of Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013, may include any financial resources collectively contributed by employers and workers. 2. The ESF may provide support for expenditure incurred for operations which take place outside the programme area, but within the Union, provided that the following two conditions are satisfied: (a) the operation is for the benefit of the programme area; (b) the obligations of the authorities for the operational programme in relation to management, control and audit concerning the operation are fulfilled by the authorities responsible for the operational programme under which that operation is supported or they enter into agreements with authorities in the Member State in which the operation is implemented provided that in that Member State the obligations in relation to management, control and audit concerning the operation are met. 3. Up to a limit of 3 % of the budget of an ESF operational programme or the ESF part of a multi-fund operational programme, expenditure incurred outside the Union shall be eligible for a contribution from the ESF provided that it concerns the thematic objectives under Article 3(1)(a) or Article 3(1)(c) and provided that the relevant monitoring committee has given its agreement to the operation or types of operations concerned. 4. In addition to the expenditure referred to in Article 69(3) of Regulation (EU) No 1303/2013, the purchase of infrastructure, land and real estate shall also not be eligible for a contribution from the ESF. 5. Contributions in kind in the form of allowances or salaries disbursed by a third party for the benefit of the participants in an operation may be eligible for a contribution from the ESF provided that the contributions in kind are incurred in accordance with national rules, including accountancy rules, and do not exceed the cost borne by the third party.