Erasmus+ returns to the UK: call expected in November, application deadlines expected in February and March 2027
The United Kingdom will once again take part in Erasmus+, the EU's education, youth and sport programme, in 2027. The call for applications is expected this November, and application deadlines are expected in February and March 2027. On 28 October the British Embassy Vilnius urged Lithuanian organisations to look for partners in the United Kingdom. This is also an opportunity for Lithuanian community organisations in the UK.
The UK Government announced its decision to return to Erasmus+ on 17 December 2025. Then, on 15 April 2026, the UK and the EU signed in Brussels the legal text that formally brings the UK into the programme. According to the UK Department for Education (DfE), the UK negotiated a 30% discount on the standard contribution. For now, participation has been agreed for 2027. Further participation will depend on further negotiations between the EU and the UK.
When to apply
The European Commission expects to publish the 2027 call for proposals in autumn 2026. According to the Commission, organisations will be able to apply for funding from the moment the call is published. On 14 November the 2027 guide was not yet on the Commission's Programme Guide page.
The UK National Agency website says that the funding call opens in November 2026, that application deadlines are expected in February and March 2027, and that applicants should receive funding outcomes between June and August 2027. The website does not yet give exact days. They will be published in the 2027 Programme Guide.
The Commission also notes that opportunities for individuals under projects selected in 2027 will arise only once those projects have started, that is, in the second half of 2027 at the earliest.
What the embassy says
In a post published on Facebook on 28 October, the British Embassy Vilnius writes that UK partners are ready to cooperate and that UK youth organisations have a great deal of experience and plans. They want to expand opportunities for young people from disadvantaged communities and to promote diversity and inclusion. The original source of this news is a LinkedIn post by the UK Mission to the European Union; the embassy says it based its own post on it.
According to the embassy, when the UK previously took part in the programme, 3,217 young people from Lithuania travelled to the United Kingdom under various Erasmus+ programmes in 2014-2020, while 1,202 people came from the UK to Lithuania.
The UK Government forecasts that more than 100,000 people in the UK will be able to benefit from the programme in the very first year.
Who will be able to take part
According to the Department for Education, the programme is intended for students, apprentices, young people and educators, as well as organisations. The British Council notes that Erasmus+ covers not only higher education but also non-formal education, schools, vocational training and sport.
The UK Government's guidance for youth projects says that young participants in these projects must be aged 13 to 30. The same guidance says that 18-year-olds from the UK will be able to apply in the spring and autumn 2027 rounds of the DiscoverEU initiative.
The British Council is acting as the UK National Agency for Erasmus+ and runs the official UK programme website, erasmusplus.org.uk.
What this means for Lithuanians in the UK
UK-registered Lithuanian community, youth and education organisations (for example, charities or associations) will be able to take part in Erasmus+ as UK organisations and look for partners in Lithuania and other countries. In youth projects, informal groups of young people will be able to take part as well. Whether a particular weekend school will be eligible will depend on its field of activity and on the rules of the UK National Agency. For finding partners, the embassy suggests using SALTO OTLAS, the SALTO platform for youth work.
The UK Government's guidance for youth projects says that most applications are submitted to the National Agency of the country where the coordinating organisation is based. The provisional timeline for the call is published on the apply page of the UK National Agency website.
Our assessment
The decision to return to Erasmus+ is not new: it was taken almost a year ago. What is new is that the clock has started ticking. The call can be expected any day now, and once it is published only a few months will remain until the February and March deadlines. In that time you have to find a partner, agree on a shared idea and write the application, and none of that gets done in a single evening.
That is why, in our view, there is no point in waiting for the official announcement. You can already start looking around for partners, agree which organisation will coordinate the project, and mark February in the calendar. For Lithuanian organisations in the UK, this is one of the rare opportunities to fund youth links with Lithuania, and it would be a pity to miss it simply because time ran out.
Useful links:
- Official UK Erasmus+ website (UK National Agency): https://www.erasmusplus.org.uk/
- Partner search (SALTO OTLAS): https://www.salto-youth.net/tools/otlas-partner-finding/
- UK Government information on Erasmus+: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-erasmus-programme
- More information and news on the British Council website: https://www.britishcouncil.org/erasmusplus
Photo gallery
4 photos. Photo: UK Mission to the European Union
Based on the British Embassy Vilnius post of 28 October 2026 and on information published by the UK Government, the European Commission, the UK National Agency and the British Council.
Republication must credit Londonozinios.com as the source.
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