Policy framework & challenges for 2026

The political context and strategic priorities show a clear evolution in 2026, with a stronger emphasis on specific geopolitical agreements and skills-related initiatives.

While the four horizontal priorities of Erasmus+ have been confirmed without formal changes, we observe:

• a stronger focus on environmental sustainability and green mobility, with increased references to sustainable mobility plans, participant selection criteria, and emission measurement;

• a reinforcement of digital inclusion, understood not only in terms of digital skills, but also access and reduction of the digital divide.

According to several recent analytical papers published in recent weeks, including contributions from EUF, the new Work Programme reflects a growing shift towards a more structured debate. This debate is expected to become more explicit in 2027, highlighting the gap between financial allocations and the strategic priorities set by the European Commission.

In this sense, 2026 may play a key role in shaping negotiations for the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) 2028–2034.

The Commission is progressively refining the programme and its priorities to align more explicitly with recent EU political initiatives on skills, such as the Union of Skills, and with broader geopolitical strategies, including the Pact for the Mediterranean and the Africa–Europe Youth Academy.

These changes, although incremental, are clearly influenced by the broader and more decisive debate on the future MFF.

The broader MFF debate: what is emerging

At present, the debate revolves around the Commission’s initial proposals, which foresee a budget of almost €2 trillion for the 2028–2034 period.

The European Commission is advocating for a fundamental redesign of the EU budget, making it more flexible, with simplified and more harmonised programmes.

A first signal of this approach is the recent indication that Creative Europe and CERV may be merged into a single programme, provisionally referred to as AgorEU.

The declared political objective is to finalise the agreement by the end of 2027, allowing the new MFF to enter into force on 1 January 2028.

From official sources, several key points relevant to our field emerge:

• a push towards greater flexibility and reaction capacity, enabling faster responses to emergencies and quicker allocation of resources with higher impact;

• leaner and more consolidated programmes, with a drastic reduction in the number of funding instruments, converging into a few large programmes or funds;

• increased management at national and regional level through National and Regional Partnership Plans, inspired by an “RRF 2.0” model.

And what about Erasmus+? Looking ahead

On 17 July 2025, the European Commission presented the proposal for the Erasmus+ Regulation 2028–2034(COM(2025) 549), linked to the new MFF.

The proposal includes a budget of €40.8 billion (current prices), which represents a nominal increase of around 50–60% compared to the current programme, according to various interpretations.

However, this apparent growth must be read with caution. It is expected to:

• absorb the effects of high inflation in recent years, and

• potentially integrate the European Solidarity Corps and additional schemes under the same Erasmus+ “umbrella”.

For these reasons, many stakeholders argue that the real increase in capacity may be much more limited.

From the draft regulation and available summaries, several key elements emerge:

• the three Key Actions structure (KA1, KA2, KA3) is likely to be maintained, with adjustments; Erasmus+ would remain a stand-alone programme for education and training, youth and sport;

• mobility and the Union of Skills agenda (upskilling, reskilling, micro-credentials, etc.) would be further strengthened, alongside full integration of European Universities, the European Degree, and new forms of embedded mobility;

• the regulation formally establishes the European Voluntary Humanitarian Aid Corps within Erasmus+, integrating activities currently largely covered by the European Solidarity Corps;

• a clear move towards a “lean programme” approach, with increased use of lump sums, unit costs and standardised templates, and stronger harmonisation across sectors.

The explicit goal is to make Erasmus+ easier to access, particularly for smaller organisations and newcomers.