Second Erasmus+ Mobility: Can You Use the Grant Twice in One Degree Cycle

The 12-month rule, explained

Erasmus+ funds up to 12 months of mobility for each study cycle you complete. A cycle means your bachelor's degree, your master's degree, and your doctoral studies each carry their own separate 12-month allowance. You do not lose access to Erasmus+ funding after using it once, as long as you stay under the limit in your current cycle.

Split the 12 months across multiple semesters, summer traineeships, or short mobility activities, as long as the combined duration inside one cycle stays at or under the limit. This is what makes a second Erasmus+ mobility possible within the same degree, since the rule caps total time, not the number of separate trips you take.

What counts as one study cycle

Erasmus+ follows the standard Bologna structure of three cycles: bachelor's or equivalent short-cycle study, master's, and doctoral. Each cycle resets the counter. A student who spends a full year on Erasmus+ during their bachelor's still qualifies for another 12 months of funded mobility once they start a master's degree, even at a different university or country than their exchange.

Combining study and traineeship mobility

Study periods and traineeships draw from the same 12-month pool inside a cycle. If you spend one semester, around five months, studying abroad in year two of your bachelor's, you have roughly seven months left for a traineeship or a second study exchange before you graduate. Your international office or Erasmus+ coordinator tracks your used months through the Erasmus+ mobility database, so check with them before you assume you have time left.

Using leftover months after graduation

Unused months from your most recently completed cycle stay usable for a traineeship after graduating, provided you apply and get selected before your degree officially ends. This lets recent graduates complete an Erasmus+ traineeship in the months right after finishing their bachelor's or master's, drawing on the same allowance from that cycle rather than a new one.

Doctoral mobility is a separate case

Doctoral candidates get their own 12-month allowance under the doctoral cycle, separate from anything used during a bachelor's or master's. Doctoral programs structure mobility differently from one institution to the next, so check with your doctoral school and Erasmus+ coordinator about how your specific program applies the allowance.

Your national agency has the final say

Each Erasmus+ national agency implements the programme guide for its own country, and your home institution's international office applies those rules to your specific case. If you plan an unusual combination, such as a short traineeship right before your final exams or a mobility that spans a change of degree program, ask your coordinator to confirm the exact treatment in writing rather than relying on general guidance like this article, and keep that written confirmation with your application file.

Why the rule exists

Erasmus+ funding is limited, and the 12-month cap spreads it across as many students as possible rather than letting one student draw a large share of the budget across several trips. The cap also keeps mobility tied to genuine academic progress, since it resets only when you move to a new study cycle, not simply by submitting a new application.

Example: spreading mobility across a bachelor's degree

Say you study a three-year bachelor's degree. You spend semester one of year two abroad, using five months of your 12-month allowance. In year three, you add a two-month summer traineeship, bringing your total to seven months used. You still have five months left in that cycle, usable for a short spring exchange or another traineeship before you graduate.

What happens if you switch universities or countries

Your mobility record follows you as a student, not your host university. If you complete a semester in Spain during year two and then choose a different country for a traineeship in year three, both activities draw from the same 12-month allowance for your current cycle, tracked by your home institution and national agency rather than reset by a change of destination.

Blended and virtual components

Some Erasmus+ activities combine a shorter physical stay abroad with an online, virtual component before or after travel. Ask your coordinator exactly how your specific program counts the physical portion against your 12-month allowance, since blended formats differ from a standard full-time exchange and often count only the physical days toward your 12-month total.

Check before you apply for a second mobility

• Ask your international office how many of your 12 months you have already used in your current cycle.

• Remember that study and traineeship mobility share the same 12-month total within a cycle.

• Confirm that starting a new degree level counts as a new cycle before you rely on a fresh allowance.

• Apply for a graduation-window traineeship before your current degree officially ends, not after.

• Get your remaining-months figure in writing from your coordinator rather than estimating it yourself.