UK Reportedly Weighs Home Tuition Fees for EU Students, a Possible Boost for Cypriots

London, United Kingdom. The UK government is reportedly considering letting students from the European Union pay the same university tuition fees as British students, a step that could make studying in Britain cheaper for Cypriots. The idea is also seen as a way to reverse the steep drop in enrolments recorded since Brexit.

Part of wider talks with Brussels

The proposal, reported on November 1, belongs to broader negotiations aimed at rebuilding relations between London and Brussels. According to the reports, the British government is ready to spend as much as £450 million a year to compensate universities for the income they would forgo through lower fees.

Related: University of Cyprus announces English-language degree fees from €5,300 to €25,000 a year

RelatedUniversity of Cyprus announces English-language degree fees from €5,300 to €25,000 a year

Why it matters for Cypriots

For Cypriot students the change could be significant. Costs of study in Britain have climbed considerably since the UK left the EU and scrapped the preferential fee terms that European students once enjoyed. Before Brexit, the UK ranked among the most popular destinations for Cypriots seeking higher education, thanks largely to historical and linguistic links.

Scale of the decline

Since the UK left the bloc, the number of Cypriot students at British universities has dropped by nearly half. Figures cited by the British Council show 9,730 Cypriot students enrolled in the 2017-2018 academic year, against 4,780 in February 2025.

A Cyprus Mail report published in March, citing the Higher Education Statistics Agency, said the number of students with a permanent address in Cyprus had fallen to just over 3,000 in the 2024-2025 academic year. The two sets of figures rely on different reporting measures, but both indicate how large the decline has been.

What would change

Under the proposed arrangement, EU students would pay home tuition fees instead of the higher international rates now applied to most applicants from the bloc. In England, annual fees for British undergraduates are just over £9,000, while international students may face charges of tens of thousands of pounds, depending on the university and the course.