How to write an Erasmus+ KA1 Erasmus Plan for accreditation

The Erasmus Accreditation is one of the most valuable things an Erasmus+ organisation can hold. Once accredited, you receive annual funding for mobility activities without reapplying each year — no full application, no competitive evaluation, no uncertainty. You submit a simplified annual funding request and the grant follows.

The gateway to that annual funding is the Erasmus Plan — the strategic document at the heart of the accreditation application. Getting the Erasmus Plan right is the difference between securing long-term Erasmus+ access and going through the competitive application process year after year.

This guide covers exactly what the Erasmus Plan needs to contain, how each section is evaluated, what evaluators look for in strong applications, and the mistakes that most commonly prevent organisations from reaching the minimum threshold.

What is the Erasmus Accreditation?

The Erasmus Accreditation is a quality label awarded to schools, VET providers and adult education organisations that want to make European mobility a regular, strategic part of their institutional work. It replaces the need to apply competitively for KA1 funding each year.

Once accredited, your organisation:

• Submits a simplified annual funding request — not a full competitive application
• Receives annual funding based on the activities planned in the approved Erasmus Plan
• Is eligible for the full range of KA1 mobility activities — staff job shadowing, teaching assignments, courses and training, learner mobility and ErasmusPro
• Can build long-term partnerships with receiving organisations without restarting from scratch each year
• Gains recognition as an experienced European education organisation — valuable for recruitment, quality assurance and institutional reputation

Accreditation is available in three fields: school education, vocational education and training (VET) and adult education. Each field has its own National Agency coordinator in each country, though in most countries (Romania, Serbia, North Macedonia and others) a single NA manages all fields.

The three evaluation criteria and their weight

The Erasmus Accreditation application is evaluated on three criteria. Understanding the weight and minimum threshold for each is the starting point for planning your Erasmus Plan.

The scoring structure is very different from KA210 and KA220. Quality of Project Design carries 50% of the total score — significantly more weight than in cooperation actions. This reflects the accreditation’s purpose: it is fundamentally an assessment of your organisation’s capacity to design and deliver a multi-year mobility programme. The plan itself is the primary evidence of that capacity.

What the Erasmus Plan must contain

The Erasmus Plan is not a project description — it is a strategic document. It describes your organisation’s European development goals over the accreditation period, why international mobility matters for your staff and learners, what kinds of activities you plan to organise, and how you will embed the results into your institutional life.

The 2026 Programme Guide and the application form structure the Erasmus Plan around the following core components:

1. Your organisation’s context and needs — who you are, what your learners and staff need and why European mobility addresses those needs
2. Your European development objectives — what specific changes you want to achieve through mobility, for your staff, your learners and your institution
3. Your planned activities — what types of mobility you plan to organise, for whom and in what approximate numbers
4. Your approach to quality and inclusion — how you will ensure activities are high quality and accessible to participants with fewer opportunities
5. Your follow-up and integration approach — how you will bring results back into your institution and share them with others

Criterion 1: Relevance (20 points, minimum 10)

The Relevance criterion for accreditation assesses four things:

• Organisational profile — does your organisation genuinely operate in the field of the accreditation? A school applying for school education accreditation, a VET centre for VET accreditation — this sub-criterion is straightforward but must be clearly described
• Action objectives — is your plan relevant to what Erasmus+ KA1 is designed to achieve: professional development of staff, learning mobility for learners, building the European dimension of your institution?
• EU values — does your plan reflect respect for human dignity, democracy, equality and non-discrimination? This must be present and specific, not generic
• Specific priorities — the 2026 Programme Guide identifies three priorities that make a proposal more relevant: supporting newcomers and less experienced organisations, supporting participants in long-term mobility (ErasmusPro for VET, long-term pupil mobility for schools), and supporting participants with fewer opportunities

Writing the Relevance section

Start by describing your organisation specifically — not a generic description of what a school or VET centre does, but what your specific organisation does, who your learners are, what their needs and backgrounds are, and what challenges your staff face in their professional development.

Then connect these specific organisational realities to the rationale for European mobility. Why does international professional development address the needs you have described? What will staff bring back that they cannot access nationally? Why is the European dimension specifically valuable — not just useful, but genuinely necessary — for your organisation’s development goals?

The inclusion dimension carries particular weight. If your organisation genuinely works with learners or staff with fewer opportunities — people with disabilities, learners from disadvantaged socioeconomic backgrounds, migrants, learners in rural areas with limited access to quality professional development — make this specific and verifiable. The Programme Guide explicitly prioritises organisations that plan to include these groups in mobility activities.

Criterion 2: Quality of Project Design (50 points, minimum 25)

This is the heart of the Erasmus Plan — and the most heavily weighted criterion. Four sub-criteria:

• Objectives clearly address the needs of the organisation, its staff and learners
• Proposed activities are appropriate for achieving those objectives
• Operational and logistical aspects are appropriate and cost-effective
• The plan incorporates environmentally sustainable practices and digital tools

Writing objectives that work

The most common Quality of Project Design failure in Erasmus Plan applications is objectives that describe aspirations rather than measurable changes. “To improve the quality of teaching” and “to build the European dimension of our institution” are aspirations. They are not objectives because you cannot tell, at the end of the accreditation period, whether they have been achieved.

Objectives for an Erasmus Plan should be written at two levels:

Organisational development objectives — what will be different about your organisation as an institution after implementing the plan. For example: “To develop a structured peer learning culture within the school by having at least 8 staff members per year complete a mobility activity and present their learning outcomes to colleagues in a dedicated internal session.” This is measurable, time-bounded and directly connected to organisational change.

Participant development objectives — what specific competences, knowledge or practices will mobility participants develop that are directly relevant to their work. For a VET provider: “To enable VET trainers in the automotive and electrical engineering departments to gain hands-on experience of emerging industry practices in Germany and the Netherlands, improving the currency and relevance of their teaching for learners entering these sectors.”

Each objective should connect logically to the activities described in the next section — the evaluator should be able to trace a clear line from need to objective to activity to expected outcome.

Describing your planned activities

The Erasmus Plan does not require you to plan individual mobility activities in detail — that comes at the annual funding request stage. What it requires is a coherent picture of what kinds of mobility your organisation plans to organise, for whom and why.

For each activity type you plan to include (job shadowing, teaching assignments, courses and training, ErasmusPro for VET, pupil group mobility for schools), describe:

• Who the participants will be — which staff categories, which learner groups
• What the learning or development purpose is — what specifically will participants gain that serves the plan’s objectives
• In which countries or with what type of hosting organisations — approximate destinations or sectors, not specific named organisations (these come later)
• Approximate frequency or volume — how many participants per year, in rough terms

Be realistic — an ambitious plan that your organisation cannot credibly implement will raise flag concerns. If you are a small primary school with 12 teachers, a plan to send 30 staff members per year on mobility will not be credible. Start from your actual organisational capacity and describe a plan that is ambitious relative to your size but realistic given your resources.

ErasmusPro for VET providers

If you are a VET provider, the Programme Guide gives specific priority to long-term learner mobility (ErasmusPro — placements of 30 days to 12 months). Including ErasmusPro in your Erasmus Plan is not mandatory, but it is strongly prioritised. An Erasmus Plan that includes ErasmusPro alongside staff mobility activities will score higher on the Relevance priority sub-criterion than one focused exclusively on staff training.

Digital tools and green practices

These two sub-criteria are specifically listed in the Quality of Project Design criterion and must be addressed. For digital: describe concretely how you plan to use digital tools to complement mobility — eTwinning for schools (explicitly mentioned in the Programme Guide), EPALE for adult education providers, virtual components in blended mobility activities, or digital tools for pre- and post-mobility preparation and follow-up. A generic “we will use technology” scores nothing.

For green practices: describe your approach to sustainable travel choices — green travel (train or bus) for destinations under 500km where feasible, justified exceptions for longer distances, and any green practices in the mobility activities themselves. Also consider green practices in your organisation’s regular work that the mobility activities could reinforce.

Criterion 3: Quality of Follow-up Actions (30 points, minimum 15)

This criterion evaluates whether the results of mobility activities will genuinely feed back into your organisation’s development — and whether others will benefit from what your participants learn. Four sub-criteria:

• Clear tasks and responsibilities for delivering activities in accordance with Erasmus quality standards
• Concrete steps to integrate mobility results into the organisation’s regular work
• Appropriate evaluation of project outcomes
• Concrete steps to share results within the organisation, with other organisations and publicly

Integration into regular work: the most underscored component

This is the component that most Erasmus Plan applicants write weakest. “Participants will share their experiences with colleagues” is not a concrete integration plan. Evaluators want to see that your organisation has thought through a systematic mechanism for turning individual mobility experiences into institutional knowledge and practice change.

Strong integration plans describe specific mechanisms:

• Dedicated presentation sessions in staff meetings where returning participants share structured summaries of what they learned and how it applies to their work
• Peer observation or co-teaching arrangements where returning staff demonstrate new practices with colleagues
• Integration of new methodologies into curriculum planning cycles — where what was learned abroad is reviewed in the next curriculum revision
• For VET: knowledge sharing between the trade departments where participants worked abroad and their colleagues in equivalent national industry contexts
• For schools: eTwinning projects that give non-mobile teachers a connection to the European partnerships established through mobility

Writing your evaluation approach

The evaluation sub-criterion does not require a complex methodology. What it requires is evidence that you have thought about how to measure whether mobility is achieving what you planned. A minimum credible evaluation approach for an Erasmus Plan includes:

• A short post-mobility reflection or learning report from each participant, describing what they learned and how they plan to apply it
• An annual internal review of mobility activities — what was implemented, what learning was captured, what integration happened
• A mechanism for participants to contribute to the evolution of the Erasmus Plan itself — their experience informs future activity selection
• For organisations with learner mobility: a learning outcomes assessment linked to Europass Mobility documentation

Sharing results: specific channels not good intentions

The Programme Guide requires organisations to share results publicly and acknowledge EU funding. What evaluators want to see is specificity. “We will share results on our website and social media” is the baseline expectation. Differentiated approaches score higher:

• For schools: eTwinning publications, school newsletter, open days, local education authority sharing
• For VET: EPALE publications, sector employer networks, regional VET quality networks, local chamber of commerce
• For adult education: EPALE (explicitly prioritised), local community networks, adult learning partnerships
• For all: EU funding acknowledgement on all materials, website page dedicated to the Erasmus Plan, annual results summary

What happens after accreditation is awarded

Receiving accreditation is the beginning, not the end. The Programme Guide makes clear that accreditation can be terminated if the organisation does not implement activities or keeps the Erasmus Plan updated. Key post-accreditation obligations:

• Submit an annual funding request to your National Agency — this is the simplified application that replaces the competitive grant application each year
• Implement activities in line with the approved Erasmus Plan — major deviations require notification to the NA
• Submit annual reports on implemented activities
• Keep the Erasmus Plan current — if your organisation’s context, objectives or plans change significantly, update the plan and inform your NA
• If accreditation is unused for 3 consecutive years, it can be terminated

The annual funding request does not require a full project description — it focuses on estimating the budget needed for the next set of planned activities, within the framework of the approved Erasmus Plan. This is where the time saving of accreditation becomes tangible: what previously required a competitive application every year is reduced to a budget request.

Common mistakes in Erasmus Plan applications

Writing a project description instead of a strategic plan. The Erasmus Plan is not a list of planned activities with dates and budgets. It is a strategic document describing why European mobility matters for your organisation and what you want to achieve over the accreditation period. Many applicants write an Erasmus Plan that reads like a KA122 short-term project application — specific activities, specific dates, specific partners. This misunderstands what evaluators are looking for.

Objectives that are aspirations, not measurable changes. “To improve our European dimension” is an aspiration. “To ensure that at least 60% of our teaching staff have completed at least one mobility activity by Year 3 of the accreditation, and that each returning participant delivers at least one peer learning session to colleagues” is a measurable objective.

No genuine inclusion plan. The Programme Guide specifically prioritises accreditation applications that plan to include participants with fewer opportunities. Many applications mention inclusion in passing without describing who the target participants are or what specific measures will enable their participation in mobility. An inclusion plan should name the specific groups (first-generation learners, learners with disabilities, learners from disadvantaged areas) and describe concrete support measures (additional preparation, inclusion support budget, accessible hosting organisations).

No operational plan for implementing the Erasmus Quality Standards. The Erasmus Quality Standards define minimum requirements for how mobility activities must be planned, prepared, implemented and followed up. The Quality of Follow-up criterion specifically asks whether you have defined tasks and responsibilities for delivery in accordance with these standards. Name who in your organisation is responsible for mobility coordination, how learning agreements will be managed, how Europass Mobility will be issued and how participant selection will be conducted fairly.

Leaving the plan static after accreditation. This is a post-award mistake rather than an application mistake — but it leads to termination. The Erasmus Plan must be a living document. If your organisation’s context changes, your staff priorities shift or new types of mobility become relevant, update the plan and inform your National Agency.

Frequently asked questions

Do we need previous Erasmus+ experience to apply for accreditation?

No. The Programme Guide explicitly states that “previous experience in the Programme is not required to apply for an accreditation.” The application is assessed on the quality of the Erasmus Plan — your organisation’s strategy and capacity — not on prior project track record. Many organisations receive accreditation on their first application.

How long does accreditation last?

Erasmus Accreditations awarded in the 2026 call are valid until the end of the 2027 programming period. This means one successful accreditation application gives you annual funding access for multiple years — covering 2026 and 2027 programming period activities. After 2027, a new accreditation application will be required for the next programming period.

Can a small school or VET provider apply for accreditation?

Yes — there is no minimum size requirement. What matters is that your Erasmus Plan is realistic and proportionate to your organisation’s actual capacity. A small primary school with 8 teachers can write a credible Erasmus Plan — but it should describe a plan that a school of that size can genuinely implement, not an overambitious programme that exceeds realistic staff availability and management capacity.

What is the difference between KA121 and KA122?

KA121 is the action code for accredited mobility projects — available only to organisations that hold a valid Erasmus Accreditation. KA122 is the action code for short-term mobility projects — available to any eligible organisation without accreditation, capped at 30 participants and a maximum of 3 grants in any 5-year period. The accreditation (KA121) removes these caps and eliminates the need to apply competitively each year.

How much funding can an accredited organisation receive per year?

The annual grant amount is not fixed at accreditation stage. It is determined each year at the budget allocation stage by your National Agency, based on your requested activities, the available national budget, your organisation’s previous performance and the budget allocation rules published by the NA. There is no guaranteed minimum or maximum annual grant — the amount is negotiated annually based on your activity requests and national budget availability.

All award criteria, scoring thresholds and programme rules cited in this article are extracted directly from the official Erasmus+ Programme Guide 2026 (Version 1, published 12 November 2025). Award criteria for school education accreditation are on page 115; VET and adult education accreditation criteria follow equivalent structures in their respective sections. The three criteria (Relevance 20pts, Quality of Project Design 50pts, Quality of Follow-up Actions 30pts) and the minimum threshold of 60 overall with at least 50% per criterion are confirmed from the Programme Guide. Always verify current national requirements with your National Agency before applying.