UK eases Brexit travel restrictions for EU students on language trips
Brexit #Brexit
Students from France and other European Union countries will be able to travel more easily on language and cultural trips to the UK after the British government on Thursday simplified the rules for entering the country.
The move follows talks in March over the issue between British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and French President Emmanuel Macron.
Pupils from the EU will now be allowed to enter the UK with a national identity card instead of a passport, just as they could before Brexit – Britain’s formal departure from the EU in 2021.
Non-EU nationals attending French schools will still have to show passports to enter, but the British government has scrapped the need for them to obtain a visa costing 120 euros.
The British Educational Travel Association (Beta) described Thursday’s changes as a positive step, but said it didn’t “go all the way to meeting the needs of our industry”.
Emma English, the association’s executive director, said Beta wants a youth group travel scheme that would allow supervised groups of EU nationals and residents under 18 to travel to Britain for up to six weeks for educational and cultural tours.
(with newswires)
Read more on RFI English
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