UK rejoins Erasmus+ from 2027 under revised contribution terms

The United Kingdom will rejoin the Erasmus+ Programme from 1 January 2027 under a decision adopted by the Specialised Committee on Participation in Union Programmes, the body set up under Article 8(1)(s) of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement between the European Union and the United Kingdom. The decision, Decision No 1/2026 of 15 April 2026, amends Protocol I to the agreement and was published in the Official Journal of the European Union on 27 August 2026.

The move restores UK participation in the EU’s flagship programme for education, training, youth and sport, which the UK left after Brexit. The parties agreed that the specific financial terms should “ensure a fair balance” between the UK’s contributions and the benefits it receives, and that participation in any successor programme under the next multiannual financial framework should be negotiated on mutually agreed terms informed by the experience of 2027.

A reduced contribution key

By derogation from Article 714(7) of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement, the contribution key applied in 2027 for calculating the UK’s operational contribution to Erasmus+ will be 70% of the contribution key defined in Article 714(6) of the agreement. The same 70% adjustment applies to the references to the “contribution key of year N” in Article 714(8).

The UK will participate in the programme for its remaining duration or until the end of the multiannual financial framework 2021-2027, whichever is shorter. UK entities will not be eligible for Union funding under award procedures implementing budgetary commitments for the years 2021 through 2026.

Conditions and review mechanism

Participation is conditional on the UK notifying a national authority, designating a national agency and an independent audit body, in line with Articles 26 to 29 of Regulation (EU) 2021/817, the basic act establishing Erasmus+. The European Commission must also accept, or conditionally accept, the ex-ante compliance assessment of the national agency.

• Ten months after participation begins, the Specialised Committee will review implementation based on data on UK entities’ participation in actions under indirect and direct management, including how successfully funds were allocated.
• Either party may request discussions on changes to the terms of participation, and the Committee may propose measures within the scope of the agreement.
• Statistical data on the UK will be provided by Eurostat once the relevant exchanges fall within the statistical cooperation arrangement, and in the meantime on the basis of data from the OECD.

The decision was signed by the Committee’s co-chairs, Matthew Higham and Gerald Weldon, and applies from 1 January 2027. For UK and EU students, young people and sport organisations, the decision reopens a mobility channel that had been closed since Brexit, while the reduced contribution key and the review clause give both sides a mechanism to recalibrate the partnership as the current funding period draws to a close.

Source: Official Journal of the European Union, L series 2026/1962, 27.8.2026 (official reference: Decision No 1/2026, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dec/2026/1962/oj).