Britain is set to rejoin the Erasmus program five years after the country's participation ended following Brexit, restoring access to the EU-funded study, training and volunteering scheme for British students.
Ministers are expected to confirm the move this week, with UK students understood to be able to take part in Erasmus placements from January 2027. The government has declined to comment on details of ongoing negotiations with the EU.
The decision marks a significant policy shift after Britain withdrew from Erasmus in December 2020 as part of a post-Brexit trade deal. At the time, then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson described leaving the scheme as a “difficult decision”, arguing that participation had become “extremely expensive”. It was replaced in 2021 by the UK's own Turing Scheme, which funds international placements around the world.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer had previously signaled a desire to reset ties with the EU, suggesting in May that youth mobility arrangements could form part of a broader agreement.
Student groups have long campaigned for the return of Erasmus. Alex Stanley, vice-president of higher education at the National Union of Students (NUS), said the move would be warmly welcomed.
“It is fantastic that another generation of students will be able to be part of the Erasmus programme,” he said. “Students have been campaigning to rejoin Erasmus since the day we left. This is a huge victory for the student movement.”
Erasmus, named after the Dutch Renaissance scholar Erasmus of Rotterdam, provides funding for participants to study, train or volunteer in another European country for up to a year. It is open not only to university students, but also to those pursuing further education, apprenticeships and vocational training, as well as some school leavers.
In 2020, the final year of UK participation, Erasmus provided €144 million (£126 million) in EU funding to support a total of 55,700 participants. That year, around 9,900 UK students and trainees went abroad, while 16,100 European participants came to the UK. The universities of Glasgow, Bristol and Edinburgh send the most students, with Spain, France and Germany the most popular destinations.
In contrast, the Turing Plan allocates £105 million over the 2024–25 academic year, funding 43,200 placements around the world. Of these, 24,000 were in higher education, 12,100 in further education and 7,000 in schools. The majority of participants were from England, with smaller numbers from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Ministers who introduced Turing said it was designed to reach more students from disadvantaged backgrounds and provide more support for travel costs than Erasmus. It is unclear what will happen to the Turing scheme after the reopening of Erasmus for UK students, or whether the two programs will run alongside each other.
The return of Erasmus has also been welcomed by opposition politicians. Liberal Democrat universities spokesman Ian Sollom described the move as “a moment of real opportunity and a clear step towards repairing the disastrous Conservative Brexit deal”.
If confirmed, re-entry to Erasmus would represent one of the most concrete post-Brexit policy measures yet, reopening avenues of cultural exchange, skills development and European cooperation for UK students.
Amy Ingham
Amy is a newly qualified journalist specializing in business journalism with responsibility for news content at Business Matters, the UK's largest print and online source of current business news.
