At present, this announcement only affects those EU students who will be applying to English universities.
Current student finance rules
In the statement released on 11 October 2016, the Government provided clarification as to the current student finance rules:"Under current student finance rules, EU students are eligible to receive undergraduate tuition fee loans if they have resided in the European Economic Area for at least 3 years prior to study. EU nationals who have resided in the UK for over 5 years, are also able to apply for undergraduate maintenance
support and master's loans. Similarly, under EU law, EU students are also eligible for home fee status - which means they are charged the same tuition fees as UK students. Other, non-EU, international students do not have their tuition fees capped in this way.
Today's confirmation will mean that for EU nationals, or their family members, who are applying for a place at university from August 2017 to study a course that attracts student support, the current funding rules will remain unchanged. All applicants will be eligible for student loans and/or grants
under the current terms and, if deemed eligible, will be able to receive those for the duration of their course.
Response from Universities UK
Responding to the Government announcement, President of Universities UK, Dame Julia Goodfellow, said:
This announcement provides much needed clarity for EU students applying to start courses at English universities in autumn 2017. Over recent weeks the university sector has made very clear to government the urgent need to address this issue. It is good to see the government has recognised the value
of EU students and acted positively to guarantee their access to financial support.
Students from other EU countries can now apply for places on undergraduate courses starting in autumn 2017 with the certainty that they will not have to pay up-front tuition fees and now have a guarantee that they will receive government-backed loans to cover their tuition fee for the duration of
their courses. This announcement also guarantees that EU students commencing courses in autumn 2017 will continue to pay the same tuition fees as UK students for the duration of their courses, even after the point the UK exits the EU.