Erasmus+ and ESC Options If You Are Over 30

In the European Solidarity Corps, participants must have reached 18 and must not be older than 30 at the start date of the activity, and for participants in humanitarian aid related solidarity activities, the upper age limit at the start of the activity is 35 years old. In an Erasmus+ Youth Exchange, the eligible participants are young people aged between 13 and 30, and you must not be older than the maximum age at the start date of the activity. Youth workers, group leaders, SALTO training participants, sport staff and adult learners have other options. Our guide on Erasmus+ and European Solidarity Corps (ESC) age limits lists every age rule, and the sections below show the routes that remain.

Last updated: November 2026.

Can you still volunteer with ESC over 30?

Only in Humanitarian Aid Volunteering: for participants in humanitarian aid related solidarity activities, the upper age limit at the start of the activity is 35 years old. No age limit applies to coaches, mentors and experts who are part of the learning and training component for Humanitarian Aid Volunteering, and coaches, mentors and experts are not considered as participants. Our guide on Humanitarian Aid Volunteering explains these projects.

What stays open in youth work, training and sport?

Youth workers, group leaders, SALTO training participants, sport staff and adult learners have these options:

🧭 Youth workers: in mobility projects for youth workers, the Erasmus+ Programme Guide says "Minimum 16 years old" and participants must be resident in the country of their sending or receiving organisation. Our guide on mobility of youth workers and our guide on the role of youth workers explain this route.

🚌 Youth Exchange group leaders: as a minimum requirement for Youth Exchanges, group leaders, facilitators and accompanying persons must be at least 18 years old; they are not considered participants of the activity, but are eligible for support under certain budget categories. Our guide on what a Youth Exchange is explains how one works.

📚 SALTO training courses, seminars and study visits: many training courses, seminars and study visits published on the SALTO European Training Calendar are Training and Cooperation Activities; participants must be at least 18, and priority goes to young people active in organisations and to youth workers. Our guide on training courses, our guide on seminars and our guide on study visits explain each format.

⚽ Sport staff and volunteers: coaches, other sport staff and volunteers in sports organisations are eligible, participants must be working in the sending organisation or must be regularly working with the sending organisation, and you can not take part in the mobility activity as an athlete. Our guide on Erasmus+ Sport explains this route.

🧑‍🎓 Adult education: adult learners can be any persons benefitting from activities and services provided by organisations active in adult education, with group mobility of 2 to 30 days (at least two learners per group), short-term learning mobility of 2 to 29 days and long-term learning mobility of 30 to 365 days.

What is open if you work in education?

Staff mobility is open to teachers and other staff in school, vocational and adult education, and to higher education staff.

🏫 School education: teachers, school leaders and all other non-teaching experts and staff working in school education.

🔧 Vocational education and training: teachers, trainers, and all other non-teaching experts and staff working in initial vocational education and training and in continuing vocational education and training.

📖 Adult education: teachers, trainers, and all other non-teaching experts and staff in adult education.

🎓 Higher education: staff mobility can be carried out by any type of higher education staff or by invited staff from outside the HEIs. To ensure high-quality mobility activities with maximum impact, the mobility activity must be related to the staff's professional development and address their learning and personal development needs.

In school, vocational and adult education, participants must be working in the sending organisation, or must be regularly working with the sending organisation to help implement the organisation's core activities. In school, vocational and adult education staff mobility, the eligible activities are job shadowing (2 to 60 days), teaching or training assignments (2 to 365 days) and courses and training (2 to 10 days). Our guide on the Erasmus+ programme shows what is on offer now.

Can you do Erasmus Mundus over 30?

The condition in the Erasmus+ Programme Guide is a degree: an Erasmus Mundus Joint Master enrols students at Master level who have obtained a first higher education degree or demonstrate a recognised equivalent level of learning according to national legislation and practices in the degree-awarding countries/institutions. Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters (EMJM) offer EU-funded scholarships for the best students applying. Students who have previously obtained an EMJM scholarship are not eligible to apply for an additional scholarship under the EMJM. Our guide on Erasmus Mundus explains the programme.

How do you take part?

You take part through an organisation: in sport, the applicant organisation will select participants and send them to a hosting organisation abroad. In adult education, you take part through adult education providers and other organisations active in the field of adult education that want to organise learning mobility activities for adult learners and education staff. SALTO training courses, seminars and study visits are pulled into Youth Works Hub automatically several times a day and appear in the Erasmus+ projects category. The Youth Works Hub Match page finds projects suited to you; using Match requires creating an account on the site, and Match does not filter directly by country. Our guide on how to find Erasmus+ and ESC projects shows where the offers are published.

Frequently asked questions

Can I join a Youth Exchange at 31?

Not as a participant: the eligible participants are young people aged between 13 and 30. Group leaders and facilitators and accompanying persons are not to be considered as participants of the activity, and must be at least 18 years old. Our guide on what a Youth Exchange is explains how one works.

Is there an age limit for youth workers?

The Erasmus+ Programme Guide says only "Minimum 16 years old" for participants in mobility projects for youth workers. Our guide on mobility of youth workers explains this route.

Can I do ESC at 32?

Only in Humanitarian Aid Volunteering: the upper age limit at the start of the activity is 35 years old for participants in humanitarian aid related solidarity activities. Our guide on Humanitarian Aid Volunteering explains these projects.

Where should you look next?

Our guide on who can apply goes through the other conditions. The Youth Works Hub pages below cover the next steps.

👉 Erasmus+ projects: youthworkshub.org/?tab=erasmus-projects

👉 ESC projects: youthworkshub.org/?tab=esc-projects