The World Trade Institute (WTI) and its Swiss National Centre of Competence in Research – International Trade Regulation (NCCR) propose to establish a COFUND International Trade Fellowship Programme (COFIT) offering incoming mobility and reintegration schemes to nationals from eligible countries. The WTI is an interdisciplinary centre of advanced studies and research in international trade regulation and policy, based in Bern, Switzerland. Its world-class teaching and research programmes foster interaction between academics, policy makers and trade professionals. Since 2005, the WTI has integrated the NCCR, a large-scale multidisciplinary research centre of law, economics, and political science, funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF). The establishment of a broad network of partner universities and research centres across Switzerland and the EU, and the scientific input and review by a pool of international scholars and experts, has made it possible for the NCCR to establish itself as a leading centre in the field of international trade policy and regulation, both in Europe and abroad. For its second phase, from September 2009 to August 2012, the SNSF has pledged to endow the NCCR with a research fund of CHF 9.38 million (€6.25 million), which will add to the WTI's continuing provision of self-funded research infrastructure and administration services in support of the NCCR and its activities. The WTI/NCCR now sees scope to enhance its critical mass and impact potential through a substantial increase in the number of fellowship programmes it is able offer. We believe that this is best achieved by pursuing a symbiotic relationship between the Swiss NCCR and the EU COFUND financing schemes, whereby the latter would be devoted entirely to the financing of trans-national fellowships, mainly for experienced EU researchers.