Last updated: 11 January 2021

Current situation

• The United Kingdom has left the European Union. On 24 December 2020, a 1,449 page Trade and Cooperation Agreement was agreed between the UK and the EU.
• The impact of this agreement on higher education is still being analysed. The content on this website will be updated accordingly over the coming weeks.
• Even in Britain, EU law will not disappear immediately. In general, each EU directive that was implemented in British law will remain in force until a new law is in place.

For more information, visit the Dutch government's Brexit pages, the Brexit information of the Dutch Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND) and the city of Amsterdam’s Brexit information point. Other useful sites are the Brexit pages of the UK Government and of the Erasmus+ programme.

Visits to the UK

• After 1 October 2021, EU nationals need a valid passport to travel in the UK and vice versa; an identity card will no longer suffice.
• Students and researchers who want to stay in the UK for longer than 6 months need a visa.
• If you stay in the UK less than 6 months, no visa is required. It is therefore possible to take a short course, or participate in conferences for example without a visa.
• If you stay less than 6 months, your EU driving licence remains valid in the UK.
• EU citizens who are temporarily staying in the UK can still use their European Health Insurance Card for emergency care. Check your health insurance to see which medical risks are covered during travel. See also Healthcare for visitors to the UK from the EU on the UK government's website.

Impact of Brexit on universities

The UvA will make every effort to continue to cooperate with British universities and citizens, just as we do with other universities and citizens around the world. In a joint statement, Universities UK and the Association of Universities in the Netherlands (VSNU) reiterated this intent.

The Trade and Cooperation Agreement Brexit will probably not affect academic qualifications, as the UK is likely to remain a signatory to the Bologna treaty.

Erasmus+

As from 2021 the UK will no longer take part in the Erasmus+ programme.

The UK will continue to participate fully in the current (2014-2020) Erasmus+ and ESC programmes. This means that the projects successfully bid for during the current programmes will continue to receive EU funding for the full duration of the project, including those where funding runs beyond 2020. Participants who study, train, volunteer or spend time abroad through Erasmus+ and ESC exchanges that were successfully bid for during the current Erasmus+ and ESC programmes (2014-2020) will be able to participate fully and for the full duration of their exchange. This covers UK participants going abroad, as well as international participants coming to the UK.

Find out more on the Erasmus+ website