Brexit and Erasmus

Subject: Brexit and Erasmus

The academic relationship between the EU and the UK is an important one, but it is under threat from Brexit. The British Government has already decided that as of September 2021, EU students will no longer pay the same tuition fees as local students. Furthermore, the UK’s participation in the Erasmus+ programme post-Brexit will depend on the outcome of the negotiations.

Erasmus is one of the most important EU programmes for young people. Each year, more than 32 000 EU citizens spend their Erasmus semester in the UK, which means that more than 200 000 EU students will miss out on the opportunity to study at a British university through the programme during the 2021-2027 period if no new arrangement is put in place.

In January 2020, the British Education Secretary Gavin Williamson said the UK was ‘open’ to participating in the Erasmus+ programme, but could also ‘develop alternative arrangements should they be needed’.

1. Does the Commission agree that protecting Erasmus+ for EU and UK students is still a priority in the negotiations on the EU’s future relationship with the UK?

2. What ‘alternative arrangements’ have been discussed in the context of student exchange programmes, and what could they look like?

Joint answer given by Ms Gabriel on behalf of the European Commission (29 October 2020)

The EU proposal for the future agreement with the United Kingdom (UK) includes mobility arrangements for students, as well as the possibility to participate in Union programmes such as Erasmus.

The UK is invited to associate to the full Erasmus programme 2021-2027 for its full duration, based on the fulfilment of all obligations that are applied to third countries associated to the programme including a financial contribution.

As any possible participation in student exchange programmes must be done under those conditions, no alternative arrangements have been discussed.