As a member of the Erasmus+ Coalition, YERUN has co-signed a joint letter to the Finance and Foreign/European Affairs Ministries of all EU Member States. The message is simple: whatever shape the next EU long-term budget takes, the Erasmus+ programme must be kept at a minimum of EUR 47.4 billion.
The Coalition brings together 88 EU-level organisations, representing more than 6,200 member organisations and millions of programme participants across education, training, youth, volunteering and sport. Within the Coalition, YERUN represents young research universities: institutions that deliver Erasmus+ on the ground every day, from student and staff mobility to transnational cooperation projects.
The letter responds to the Negotiating Box presented by the Irish Presidency of the Council of the EU on 10 October, ahead of the European Council meeting of 15–16 October. The proposal foresees significant cuts to the EU budget and has already drawn criticism from the European Parliament’s co-lead negotiators.
Under the Council’s proposal, Erasmus+ would receive EUR 39.1 billion. This is below the EUR 40.8 billion proposed by the European Commission, and far from the EUR 47.4 billion called for by the European Parliament.
The Council’s figure would leave the programme EUR 8.3 billion short of the Parliament’s position. The Coalition is therefore urging national governments to support the Parliament’s position.
Erasmus+ is not peripheral; it is central. The programme underpins learning mobility for students and staff, transnational cooperation between institutions, and the inclusion of learners from all backgrounds. It also strengthens the skills, research links and international outlook that Europe’s competitiveness depends on.
These benefits rely on predictable, adequate funding. A programme squeezed below its current ambitions would mean fewer mobility opportunities, less room for cooperation projects and harder planning for the universities that implement it.
Erasmus+ also enjoys exceptional public support. Europeans rank it as the fourth greatest achievement in the history of the EU, and it is the Union’s best-known funding programme. As Erasmus+ approaches its 40th anniversary in 2027, cutting its budget would send the wrong signal to the very generation Europe needs to invest in.
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Read the full joint letter here
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Part of YERUN’s ongoing engagement
This letter continues YERUN’s sustained work on the future of Erasmus+ for 2028–2034. On 7 January, YERUN co-signed, with other higher education organisations, the joint statement A stronger Europe needs a properly funded Erasmus+, warning that ambition without adequate resources will not deliver results. On 28 January, YERUN presented its priorities for the programme to the European Parliament’s CULT Committee.
In February, YERUN supported joint amendments to the Commission’s proposal, calling for an ambitious financial envelope and greater predictability for institutions, and showcased what Erasmus+ means for its member universities. On 2 June, YERUN co-signed the joint statement Education and Training Needs an Appropriate Budget Share in Erasmus+, urging the European Parliament to restore the share for education and training to its level under the current programme.
The message across all these initiatives is consistent: Erasmus+ is a strategic investment in Europe’s future!
