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News & Press: ELIA NEWS & EVENTS

Headlines from the EU Budget Proposal 2028-2034

Tuesday 22 July 2025  


What the European Commission’s €2 trillion budget proposal for 2028-2034 could mean for the higher arts education community and what comes next. 
 
The European Commission unveiled its proposal for the 2028 - 2034 budget, worth 2 trillion euros in total. Compared to the period 2021 - 2027, the proposal includes budget increases for programmes crucial to the higher arts education community.  
 
Here are the most important headlines for European funding for culture, education, and research: 
 
●  €40.8 billion are allocated to Erasmus+  
 
This is an increase of 50% compared to the last budget. While Erasmus+ will continue to support education and training, it has been merged with the European Solidarity Corps.  
 
●  €175 billion are allocated to Horizon Europe 
 
While part of a larger competitiveness envelope, the overall programme integrity seems to have been safeguarded. The structure of Horizon Europe has however been updated (more about that in this factsheet). The budget for the programme has been doubled compared to 2021 - 2027.  
 
●  €8.6 billion are allocated to AgoraEU  
 
AgoraEU is a new umbrella-programme that includes Creative Europe and the CERV programme (Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values). The Creative Europe budget (culture + media) has been doubled compared to 2021 - 2027. The structure and budget of this new programme is as follows:  
 
○  €1.8 billion go to Creative Europe – Culture 
○  €3.2 billion go to Media+ 
○  €3.6 billion go to Democracy, Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values 
 
None of the above is set in stone yet. The negotiations on this budget between the European Commission, the European Council and the European Parliament are just getting started and will continue throughout 2026 and 2027. It is yet to be seen if the overall budget increase that the European Commission presented will hold after scrutiny from the other European institutions.  
 
So, how much will the higher arts education community be able to benefit from this new budget? While the total budget amounts seem promising, the structure and content proposals for the funding programmes, which are still being drafted, will be a crucial factor in determining this.  
 
ELIA will continue to campaign for our members in view of the 2028 - 2034 EU budget negotiations and as the detailed programme structures are being drafted. 
 
What has ELIA been up to? And how can you get engaged: