The United Kingdom and the European Union have finalised an agreement that will allow Britain to participate in the EU’s Erasmus+ student exchange programme again. The British government says more than 100,000 people are expected to benefit once UK participants become eligible on January 1, 2027. The deal as signed covers one year, with the UK contributing £570 million (€655 million, $774 million) toward the scheme’s 2027 costs.
Erasmus+ is the EU’s flagship mobility scheme, launched in 1987 for university exchanges and since expanded to cover school exchanges, vocational training, apprenticeships, work placements and sport. It enables people to study, train or gain work experience in participating countries for up to a year. Participants are not charged tuition at their host institution and generally continue to pay fees to their home institution.
The programme includes all 27 EU member states and several non-EU partners: Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Serbia, Turkey and North Macedonia. More than 1.4 million people trained, worked or volunteered through eligible-country exchanges in 2024, the latest available annual figure.
The UK left Erasmus after Brexit. When the UK formally exited the EU in January 2020, the bloc offered Britain the option to remain in Erasmus for a fee. The government led by then-prime minister Boris Johnson declined, arguing the scheme was expensive and that the UK received more incoming students from the EU than it sent abroad. The UK officially left the programme in January 2021.
The decision to rejoin comes under Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government as part of a broader effort to reset relations with the EU. The UK announced in December 2025 that it would re-enter Erasmus. The government and EU officials have said the move will provide educational and professional benefits to young people, from language skills and confidence to valuable work experience. European Commission leaders also described stronger ties in education as beneficial for students, teachers, institutions and wider economies.
Non-EU member Switzerland will also join the Erasmus scheme under the same arrangements. Edited by Sean Sinico.