UK and EU finalise agreement to bring UK into Erasmus+ in 2027 with British Council as national agency

The European Union and the United Kingdom have finalised an agreement to formally bring the UK back into Erasmus+ in 2027, they announced on 15/04/2026. The UK government also designated the British Council, an executive non-departmental public body focusing on international culture and education, as the national agency to run the programme in the UK.

"Over 100,000 people are expected to benefit in the first year alone, including apprentices on placements in leading European companies, school groups taking part in cultural exchanges and organisations collaborating on new cross-border initiatives," the UK mission to the EU said.

After leaving the student mobility programme in 2020 following Brexit, the UK said it wanted to rejoin Erasmus+ as an associated country in May 2025, during the EU-UK Summit. It was followed by almost a year of negotiations, during which the UK managed to get a 30% discount on the default contribution rate, "delivering a fair deal for taxpayers while guaranteeing full participation in the programme", the UK mission to the EU stated.

"From learning a language to…