European Commission proposes 40.8 billion euro Erasmus+ budget for 2028-2034, up from 26.2 billion in current cycle
By Muntasir • Published Jul 20, 2026 • Updated Aug 08, 2026 • Education Planning, Study in Europe, Erasmus & Exchange, Student Housing, Education News & Policy
The European Commission wants to raise the Erasmus+ budget to 40.8 billion euros for 2028-2034, up from 26.2 billion euros in the current 2021-2027 cycle. The plan is still a proposal and needs approval from the Council and the European Parliament.
💶 Proposed budget: 40.8 billion euros, up from 26.2 billion.
📩 Commission tabled the plan on 16 July 2025.
🎓 European Solidarity Corps volunteering would merge into Erasmus+.
⏱️ Parliament's rapporteur wants an even higher 47.39 billion euros.
Council agreed a partial position in May 2026, final number not settled yet.
A near-doubled budget on the table
The European Commission proposed a 40.8 billion euro budget for Erasmus+ covering 2028-2034, on 16 July 2025. That is up from 26.2 billion euros for the current 2021-2027 cycle, part of the EU's wider long-term budget package for the next seven years. Read the Commission's announcement .
Erasmus+ already reaches school education, vocational training, higher education, adult learning, youth and sport across more than 30 programme countries in the EU, EEA and associated states outside the bloc. Study and traineeship mobility grants for bachelor's and master's students get most public attention, but the current programme also funds staff training and cooperation partnerships between institutions.
The new figure would nearly double funding for study exchanges, traineeships, youth mobility and staff training across Europe. It would be the largest Erasmus+ budget proposed since the programme started in 1987. The Commission also wants to fold the European Solidarity Corps into Erasmus+, turning the programme into a single funding channel for EU-backed youth projects, including volunteering tied to humanitarian aid work.
Budget comparison
| Period | Erasmus+ budget |
|---|---|
| 2021-2027 (current) | 26.2 billion euros |
| 2028-2034 (proposed) | 40.8 billion euros |
Still a proposal, not law
Nothing here is final. The Commission's figure opens negotiations between the Council and the European Parliament. Both bodies still negotiate the final number before adoption, and either side still has room to change it before the 2028-2034 EU budget package closes.
EU laws like this one pass through the ordinary legislative procedure. The Commission proposes the text, then the Council and Parliament each agree their own position and negotiate a joint final version, called a trilogue, before both sides formally adopt it. That process typically runs well over a year, and for a budget line tied to the 2028-2034 multiannual financial framework, final figures depend on the wider seven-year budget deal for the whole EU, not the education portfolio alone.
By 11 May 2026, the Council reached a partial negotiating position that leaves financial questions open, since those depend on the outcome of the full multiannual financial framework talks for 2028-2034. Parliament's rapporteur, appointed 4 November 2025, presented a draft report to the Culture and Education Committee on 3 June 2026 that argues for a higher number: 47.39 billion euros. Track progress on the European Parliament's legislative tracker .
What it means if you study or teach abroad
If Erasmus+ funding grows as proposed, expect more grant places, wider country coverage, and higher monthly grants after 2027, once the current cycle ends. The 2021-2027 programme keeps running unchanged until then, so your Erasmus+ options and grant amounts for a 2026-27 exchange stay as they are now.
Because the proposal still needs sign-off from both the Council and Parliament, and because the wider EU budget talks for 2028-2034 remain open, treat the 40.8 billion euro figure as a starting point rather than a locked-in number. Final terms, including how much of the merged European Solidarity Corps money reaches student mobility specifically, depend on talks expected to continue through 2027.