It has been established by the European Commission, based on Council Regulation (EC) No 58/2003.
The REA was set up by the European Commission in December 2007 (via Decision 2008/46/EC) to implement parts of the Seventh EU Framework Programme for research, technological development and demonstration activities (FP7).
In 2013, the European Commission extended REA's mandate further, delegating a significant part of Horizon 2020 actions to the agency.
The agency is managed by its current director Marc Tachelet, together with its steering committee.
Under the EU's 7th Research Framework Programme (2007–2013), the total budget managed by the REA was €6.4 billion.