Myths About Studying in the UK After Brexit, Debunked

Myth: EU students still get home tuition fees

Since the 2021-22 academic year, EU students no longer qualify for home-fee status or UK student loans, with narrow exceptions for people who already held settled or pre-settled status before the cutoff, and Irish citizens, who keep home-fee status under the Common Travel Area. Everyone else pays the international rate, typically £11,000 to £40,000 or more a year depending on the course and university (University of Essex ), against a home-student fee of £9,535 for 2025-26.

Myth: EU citizens can still enter and study without a visa

Free movement into the UK ended for study purposes from January 2021. EU citizens now apply for a Student visa through the same route as any other non-UK applicant, which requires a Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies (CAS) from a licensed university sponsor, proof of maintenance funds, and payment of the Immigration Health Surcharge for NHS access. Current maintenance-fund requirements sit at £1,529 a month for London courses and £1,171 a month elsewhere, held for up to nine months (UCL ).

Myth: Erasmus+ still funds EU students studying in the UK

The UK left the Erasmus+ program after Brexit and launched the Turing Scheme in its place from the 2021-22 academic year. Turing funds UK students studying or working abroad worldwide, including outside Europe, but it does not fund incoming mobility for EU students coming to the UK. Individual universities may still run their own bilateral exchange agreements outside Turing, so check with the specific institution rather than assuming Erasmus-style funding applies.

Myth: the post-study work visa disappeared after Brexit

The Graduate Route, reintroduced in July 2021, still runs and applies to EU graduates on the same terms as any other international graduate. Applications submitted on or before 31 December 2026 get 2 years of work permission after a bachelor's or master's degree, 3 years after a PhD, with no job offer or sponsor required to apply. From 1 January 2027, new applications drop to 18 months for bachelor's and master's graduates (UKCISA ).

Myth: EU qualifications are not recognized by UK admissions

UK universities still accept the International Baccalaureate, the French Baccalauréat, the German Abitur, and other national school-leaving qualifications from across the EU on the same basis as before Brexit. UCAS, the UK's central undergraduate application platform, continues to process applications from EU students exactly as it does for any other international applicant, with published grade equivalencies for major European qualifications.

Myth: EU citizens can still travel on a national ID card

Most EU national ID cards stopped being valid for entry to the UK from October 2021, with narrow exceptions for specific residence-status holders. EU students now need a valid passport to travel to the UK for study, the same requirement as any other non-UK, non-Irish traveler.

Myth: international student support disappeared along with home-fee status

Losing home-fee status did not change the support structure on campus. UK universities run international student offices, visa advice services, and orientation programs for every non-UK student regardless of nationality, and EU students now use exactly the same support channels as students from anywhere else outside the UK and Ireland.

Myth: EU students lost access to the NHS

Access did not disappear, the payment method changed. EU students on a Student visa pay the Immigration Health Surcharge upfront as part of their visa application, and that payment gives full access to NHS care for the length of their stay, replacing the automatic EHIC-based access EU citizens had before Brexit.

Myth: the UK cut all research and academic ties with Europe

The UK rejoined Horizon Europe, the EU's main research and innovation funding program, as an associated country from January 2024, after a period of exclusion following Brexit. UK universities apply for and receive Horizon Europe grants again, and researchers collaborate on EU-funded projects on largely the same terms as institutions inside the EU.

Myth: EU students lose local cost-of-living exemptions

Full-time students in the UK stay exempt from council tax regardless of nationality, a rule Brexit did not touch. Student discounts on transport, museums, and everyday purchases through university-issued student cards work the same way for EU students as for anyone else enrolled full-time, since these depend on student status, not immigration status.

Myth: the visa application takes months to sort out

You apply for the Student visa only after your university issues a CAS letter, confirming your place, and processing generally completes within a few weeks if you apply as soon as the CAS arrives. Building in extra time before your course start date, rather than applying at the last possible moment, is the main safeguard against delays, not the process itself running unusually slowly.

What changed and what did not

Fees, visa requirements, and loan eligibility changed. The degrees themselves, the recognition of prior EU qualifications, the international student support on campus, and the route into UK work after graduation did not disappear, they simply moved onto the same track every other non-UK, non-Irish student already uses.

Myth: it is not worth it anymore for EU students

Fees and visa steps changed, but the underlying degree, teaching quality, and Graduate Route work rights did not disappear. Whether the UK still makes sense for you comes down to comparing the actual international fee and living costs at your target university against tuition-free or lower-cost EU options, not assuming Brexit closed the door outright.