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Mobility grants increased to alleviate effects of inflation
The European Commission has opened the 2024 call for proposals for the EU’s academic mobility scheme, Erasmus+, which has a budget of €4.3 billion for the year.
Announcing the move on 29 November, the Commission said the programme will continue to support transnational mobility for university students, as well as school pupils and those in vocational training.
It also announced that the grant amounts for individuals learning abroad through the scheme will increase by 5.9 per cent to account for inflation. This adjustment will apply to “most of the mobility actions in the 2024 call”, the Commission said.
The move follows a 12 per cent adjustment in the 2023 call, as the Commission hopes to alleviate the impact of inflation on students learning abroad and allow wide participation in the scheme.
Stronger sustainability incentives
For 2024, the Commission is also introducing stronger incentives for sustainable travel under Erasmus+. Sustainable travel will be the “default option” for participants from 2024, with those from remote areas with insufficient rail networks getting compensation.
In another first, the 2024 call will offer travel contributions for intra-European higher education mobility.
“Erasmus+ has transformed the lives of millions of people in the last decades. Next year, it will work with €4.3bn to support students and other learners in getting experience abroad,” said research commissioner Iliana Ivanova.
“We are raising the grant levels to allow everyone to make use of learning mobility opportunities, and we are also encouraging green travel for these projects.”