Page Last Updated: 08 January 2021
The UK has now left the European Union and there is now a transition period until 31st December 2020 for the UK Government and EU leaders to agree the terms of their future relationship.
This page offers advice, links and contacts to help our students, future students, and staff prepare for the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union (EU).
This page will be updated as more information becomes available, so please check it regularly.
If you have any questions regarding the content of this page or would like further information on the University of Southampton and Brexit, please email: Europeanfutures@soton.ac.uk.
Skip to the subject you want to learn more about using the links below.
If you are an EU/EEA student beginning your programme at the University of Southampton in the academic year 2020/21, you will pay the same tuition fees as UK students (known as ‘home fee’ status) for the full duration of your course and you will be able to access a tuition fee loan. This will be the case whether your course begins in September 2020 or January 2021.
Find out more about EU tuition fees and loans.
On 23rd June 2020, the Minister of State for Universities confirmed that EU, EEA and Swiss nationals will no longer be eligible for home fee status or tuition fee loans/financial support for undergraduate or postgraduate courses starting in academic year 2021/22. This decision will not affect students starting courses in academic year 2020/21, nor those EU, other EEA and Swiss nationals benefitting from Citizens’ Rights under the EU Withdrawal Agreement, EEA EFTA Separation Agreement or Swiss Citizens’ Rights Agreement respectively.
It will also not apply to Irish nationals living in the UK or Ireland whose right to study and to access benefits and services will be preserved on a reciprocal basis for UK and Irish nationals under the Common Travel Area arrangement.
If you are a UK national living in the EEA or Switzerland at the end of the transition period, and wish to study in England, you will continue to be eligible for home fee status and student support from Student Finance England for courses starting up to 7 years after the end of the transition period. For UK nationals living in the EEA or Switzerland that have not previously resided in England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland, please contact the funding body in the administration you intend to study.
More information is available here: Student support in England gov.uk page
If you are an EU student beginning your programme at the University of Southampton in the academic year 2020/21, you will be able to access a tuition fee loan for the full duration of your course. This will be the case whether your course begins in September 2020 or January 2021.
EU students remain eligible to apply for UKRI-funded PhD scholarships starting in 2020/21.
Find out more about EU PhD scholarships at www.ukri.org.
On 23rd June 2020, the Minister of State for Universities confirmed that EU, EEA and Swiss nationals will no longer be eligible for home fee status or tuition fee loans/financial support for undergraduate or postgraduate courses starting in academic year 2021/22. This decision will not affect students starting courses in academic year 2020/21, nor those EU, other EEA and Swiss nationals benefitting from Citizens’ Rights under the EU Withdrawal Agreement, EEA EFTA Separation Agreement or Swiss Citizens’ Rights Agreement respectively.
It will also not apply to Irish nationals living in the UK or Ireland whose right to study and to access benefits and services will be preserved on a reciprocal basis for UK and Irish nationals under the Common Travel Area arrangement.
If you are a UK national living in the EEA or Switzerland at the end of the transition period, and wish to study in England, you will continue to be eligible for home fee status and student support from Student Finance England for courses starting up to 7 years after the end of the transition period. For UK nationals living in the EEA or Switzerland that have not previously resided in England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland, please contact the funding body in the administration you intend to study.
More information is available here: Student support in England Gov.uk page
Academic qualifications will still be recognised after the end of the transition period and the UK’s participation in the Bologna Process, as an inter-governmental rather than an EU agreement, will not be affected.
Recognition of some professional qualifications is more complicated, and while there are no changes to the current system during the transition period, it is still unclear whether mutual recognition of professional qualifications will continue from 2021.
More information and latest updates are available at www.ukcisa.org.uk.
If you are a University of Southampton student spending a year or semester abroad in the EU in 2020/2021 or 2021/2022 you will receive Erasmus+ funding and be able to travel to our current European exchange partners. The UK is committed to the current Erasmus+ programme until it finishes at the end of academic year 2021 – 2022 regardless of the announcement on Christmas Eve.
We are working hard with our European partners to ensure opportunities remain after 2021 – 2022 and will share information of the new UK Turing Scheme when possible. The University of Southampton remains committed to student mobility and European partnerships and are working hard to ensure minimum impact to student experience and partners.
If you are concerned about your safety while abroad, please contact your host institution or your exchange coordinator
The University recommends that EU, EEA or Swiss nationals currently studying or working at the University of Southampton apply for the EU Settlement Scheme as soon as possible to protect your rights to live, work, study and access public services when the transition period ends in January 2021.
The following information is for EU, EEA and Swiss nationals who are currently working and studying at University of Southampton, or who plan to join the University in the near future. You are advised to check regularly for updates. More information is available from Universities UK International and the UK Government website.
If you are an EU, EEA or Swiss national already living the UK or you arrive before 31 December 2020, you are eligible to apply for the EU Settlement Scheme. The deadline for applying to the scheme is 30 June 2021.
If you have lived in the UK continuously for five years, you and your eligible family members can apply for settled status. This will allow you to stay in the UK indefinitely.
If you and your eligible family members have lived in the UK for less than five years, you can apply for pre-settled status. This will allow you to meet the five-year residency requirement needed to apply for settled status. There is no minimum time you need to have spent in the UK to apply for pre-settled status - you only need to show evidence that you currently live in the UK.
A new immigration system will be in place for those arriving in the UK from 1st January 2021. More information will be provided once it becomes available.
Applying for the EU Settlement Scheme is free of charge.
To apply for the EU Settlement Scheme, you must first complete an online application form, and then use the EU Exit Document Checking App to upload your documents. This app is currently available on Android phones or an iPhone 7 or above. If you do not have access to a compatible phone, you can borrow one from the University's Student Services or HR. You can also submit your documents in person. Applications can be made within and outside the UK.
The application process requires certain documents to be supplied, in addition to the online application form.
To apply for Pre-settled status, you will need:
To apply for settled status, you may need additional documents to prove that you have lived continuously in the UK for five years or more. The University's HR team have provided useful information on the type of documents that can be provided and a detailed list is also available on the UK Government website.
If you meet the eligibility criteria for the scheme as outlined above, but you are temporarily absent from the UK when the UK leaves the EU for a period and/or reason described under the definition of 'continuous qualifying period' in Annex 1- Definitions, (for example, if you are on a study abroad placement as part of your course) this will not affect your eligibility to apply.
If you are an Irish citizen, you do not need to apply to the above schemes and your rights to live, study, work and access public services in the UK are protected.
Further resources:
Brexit information for individuals and families: www.gov.uk/brexit#individuals
UKCISA
Full UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA) guidance and more information on how Brexit might affect your immigration status as an EU, EEA or Swiss student is available here.
Find out more about eligibility and how to apply:
Human Resources
Webpage with detailed information on EU settled status and EU staff recruitment including FAQs documents: Settled status page.
Detailed information about healthcare in the UK for EU, EEA and Swiss nationals is available from the UK National Health Service website.
During the transition period, European Health Insurance Cards (EHIC) will still be valid for accessing medical treatment in the UK and EU. This may change from 2021, so you are advised to check for updates regularly.
If you are a UK student who is currently studying on a course in the EU which started before 31st January 2020, the UK Government has confirmed that it will cover the cost of your healthcare for the full duration of your studies, even if your course finishes after Brexit.
If you are an EU student and you started your degree programme at Southampton before 31st January 2020, the UK government has confirmed that you will be able to receive free healthcare in the UK using your European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) for the full duration of your studies, even if your courses finishes after 2020.
If you are a member of staff travelling on University business, your travel will be covered by the University's insurance policy and there will be no changes to the current cover. For personal travel during the transition period, you will be able to use your EHIC to access free healthcare in the EU, however, EHIC is not an alternative to travel insurance, and the University advises that you should have both when you travel abroad.
The situation may change from 2021, so you are advised to check for updates regularly.
The UK Government has confirmed that you can enter the UK after Brexit using a valid passport or national identity card until at least 31 December 2020. For current EU and EEA students and staff, this means that you can leave and re-enter the UK using the same documents as before Brexit until at least 2021. If you have not yet applied for pre-settled/settled status, we recommend that you carry with you evidence of your enrolment or employment at the University when you travel as a precaution. You can download an enrolment letter at any point during your studies from your University SUSSED account.
If you are a UK citizen and you are planning to visit the EU after 2020, and you will continue to be able to access free healthcare using your European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) during this period. If you are planning to travel to the EU on University business, the University's insurance team has issued an updated statement on coverage after Brexit, which is available to download from the Finance, Planning and Analytics page. There are no changes planned to the current cover.
You will still be able to access mobile data roaming when you visit EU countries until the end of the transition period.
There have been some concerns regarding the safety of British nationals travelling to the EU after Brexit. Please check the latest FCO guidance for your destination country before you travel.
The UK Government has confirmed that burgundy passports or those which have 'European Union' on the cover will continue to be valid until they expire. UK passport holders planning to travel to the EU will need to ensure they have at least 6 months left on their passport for it to be valid for travel. More information is available on www.gov.uk/brexit.
UK based scientists, researchers and businesses can continue to participate in, bid for and lead projects in Horizon 2020, as if the UK remained a Member State, even after the UK exits the EU on 31 January 2020. The ratification of the Withdrawal Agreement means that the UK continues to participate in this programme and receive EU grant funding for the lifetime of individual projects, including projects finishing after the transition period ends in 2020.
A very limited number of UK Horizon 2020 projects, which involve access to security-related sensitive information restricted for EU Member States, may be unable to continue after EU Exit in their current form. The government expects the European Commission to inform participants if this is the case.
Taken from the UK Research Office updated factsheet published on 22nd January which can be found on the UKRO PDF
The President and Vice-Chancellor has written to our key European partners to confirm our ongoing commitment to collaborate. The UK Government says it wants to have the option to associate with Horizon Europe, the EU research-funding programme that will run from 2021 to 2027 as a successor to Horizon 2020.
For more information on how Brexit might affect your pension, please see USS Brexit FAQs.
There are a number of resources available to help you find out more about how Brexit may affect you. If you have additional questions or concerns not covered by this page, please contact Europeanfutures@soton.ac.uk.