Skip to main content

Funding for EU nationals

Student funding may be available to new and continuing EU nationals.

Student Funding for EU nationals starting new courses in September 2024

Funding available will depend on your EU Settlement status, where you are ordinarily resident in the UK, how long you have lived in the UK and the course you choose to study.

In general, you can apply for student funding if you meet all of the following conditions:

  • you are an EU national or a relevant family member of an EU national
  • you have Pre-Settled or Settled Status
  • you have been ordinarily resident in the UK, Gibraltar, the European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland for the 3 years immediately before 1 September of the first year of your course
  • your main reason for being in the EEA and Switzerland was not to receive full-time education
  • your course qualifies

If you meet these conditions, where you have been ordinarily resident before the start of your course will determine what funding body you can apply to and what funding may be available to you:

Ordinarily resident in:

Funding body to apply to:

Wales

Student Finance Wales

England

Student Finance England

Scotland

Student Awards Agency Scotland (SAAS)

Northern Ireland

Student Finance Northern Ireland (SFNI)

Some important points to note:

  • If you are moving to Wales for university, you would apply to the funding body relevant to where you were living prior to 1 September of the year that you begin your course.
  • Access to student funding is governed by rules regarding previous study. Therefore, if you have previously studied in higher education, please contact the Student Funding and Advice Team for further information.
  • If you are an EU national in the UK as a migrant worker, or the dependent of a migrant worker, please contact the Student Funding and Advice Team for further information.
  • Absences from the UK once you have received pre-settled or settled status could affect your status, or ability to upgrade to settled status. Please seek advice from the EU Settlement Scheme.
  • Funding applications can take around 6 weeks to be processed by your funding body but may take longer at peak periods. If you will rely on student funding to pay your tuition fees, the University will expect you to apply for this as early as possible and your funding to be in place when you enrol. If you have any difficulties with this, please contact the Student Funding and Advice Team.

If you do not have settled or pre-settled status via the EU Settlement Scheme you will be charged international tuition fees. Please see our funding and fees pages for more details.

Continuing EU students

If you are an EU national but are a continuing student then please find specific information for you available on the student intranet.

Repaying a tuition fee loan or maintenance loan

If you are eligible for a tuition fee or maintenance loan it is intended that you will only start to repay this when you have finished your studies and are earning over a specific threshold. The threshold is determined by where you are ordinarily resident after your studies. More information about this can be found on the Student Loans Company repayment website.

Cost of living in Cardiff

Cardiff is considered to be one of the most affordable UK cities to live in while you study. See our living cost calculator for the average cost of living in Cardiff as a full time, undergraduate student.

Contact us

If you have any questions please get in touch:

Student Funding and Advice Team