The Education (Student Finance) (Miscellaneous Amendments) (Wales) (EU Exit) Regulations 2021

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations amend—

(a) the Education (Fees and Awards) (Wales) Regulations 2007 (“the Fees and Awards Regulations”) – see Part 2,

(b) the Higher Education (Qualifying Courses, Qualifying Persons and Supplementary Provision) (Wales) Regulations 2015 (“the QCP Regulations”) – see Part 3,

(c) the Education (Student Support) (Wales) Regulations 2017 (“the 2017 Regulations”) – see Part 4,

(d) the Education (Postgraduate Master’s Degree Loans) (Wales) Regulations 2017 (“the 2017 Master’s Regulations”) – see Part 5,

(e) the Education (Student Support) (Wales) Regulations 2018 (“the 2018 Regulations”) – see Part 6,

(f) the Education (Postgraduate Doctoral Degree Loans) (Wales) Regulations 2018 (“the Doctoral Degree Regulations”) – see Part 7, and

(g) the Education (Student Support) (Postgraduate Master’s Degrees) (Wales) Regulations 2019 (“the 2019 Master’s Regulations”) – see Part 8.

The amendments take effect in relation to an academic year beginning on or after 1 August 2021. The principal amendments made by these Regulations are—

(a) to make changes in consequence of the United Kingdom’s exit from the European Union;

(b) to make changes relating to persons with Calais leave or certain persons who are the victims of domestic violence or abuse or who are bereaved.

These Regulations make amendments to include the following in the categories of eligible students for the purposes of student support, those having home fee status under the Fees and Awards Regulations and those who are prescribed persons under the QCP Regulations—

• persons granted humanitarian protection, persons granted stateless leave, persons with section 67 leave to remain and persons who satisfy the requirements of paragraphs 352J, 352K, 352L or 352T of the immigration rules, including children granted “leave in line” (persons with Calais leave);

• persons who are granted leave to remain in the United Kingdom under the immigration rules as a result of being a victim of domestic violence or domestic abuse or having been bereaved and their children;

• persons settled in the United Kingdom who have been ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man and the Republic of Ireland;

• persons falling within the personal scope of the citizens’ rights provisions of the EU withdrawal agreement, the EEA EFTA separation agreement and the Swiss citizens’ rights agreement (“the Agreements”) who have leave to enter or remain in the United Kingdom granted under residence scheme immigration rules (as defined in section 17(1) of the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020);

• persons falling within the personal scope of the citizens’ rights provisions of the Agreements who are in the grace period for applications for leave under residence scheme immigration rules, or whose applications for such leave are not yet determined, and Irish citizens who do not require leave to enter or remain in the United Kingdom;

• family members of relevant persons of Northern Ireland who have indefinite leave to enter or remain in the United Kingdom under residence scheme immigration rules;

• frontier workers within the meaning of regulation 3 of the Citizens’ Rights (Frontier Workers) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/1213);

• persons settled in the United Kingdom who exercised a right of residence in the European Economic Area or Switzerland before implementation period completion day;

• United Kingdom nationals and their family members who, before implementation period completion day, have been ordinarily resident in the European Economic Area or Switzerland, in relation to courses beginning before 1 January 2028;

• family members of United Kingdom nationals who are resident in the United Kingdom, Channel Islands and Isle of Man;

• United Kingdom nationals and their family members resident in Gibraltar and persons with a right to reside in Gibraltar arising under the EU withdrawal agreement;

• children of Swiss nationals who are entitled to support by virtue of Article 18(2) of the Swiss citizens’ rights agreement;

• children of Turkish workers resident in the United Kingdom before implementation period completion day.

The amendments also make minor corrections.

Part 6 of these Regulations amends the 2018 Regulations. The 2018 Regulations provide for financial support for eligible students undertaking designated courses beginning on or after 1 August 2018.

Regulations 116 to 118 amend provision relating to eligibility for student support by including reference to the eligibility categories inserted by regulations 130 to 145 into Schedule 2 to the 2018 Regulations. The amendments restrict certain existing eligibility categories to students falling within those categories before 1 August 2021 and undertaking a course beginning before that date. Provision is also made for new eligibility categories which are not limited to students undertaking courses beginning before 1 August 2021.

The amendments made by regulations 119 to 121 take account of the new categories inserted into Schedule 2 to the 2018 Regulations by making provision for where a person ceases to have Calais leave, leave to remain as a protected partner or leave to remain under residence scheme immigration rules.

Regulations 122 to 129 make further related amendments to the 2018 Regulations, including amending the circumstances in which a student may qualify for support during the academic year to take account of the changes made to Schedule 2.

Regulations 146 to 152 make amendments to Schedules 4 and 5 to the 2018 Regulations to take account of the amendments made to Schedule 2.

Regulation 153 amends the index of defined terms in Schedule 7 to reflect the amendments made by these Regulations.

Part 2 makes similar amendments to the Fees and Awards Regulations. The Fees and Awards Regulations authorise the charging of fees which are higher in the case of students not having a specified connection with the United Kingdom than in the case of students having such a connection (those with home fee status). The Fees and Awards Regulations also authorise the adoption of rules of eligibility which confine awards to those with such a connection with the United Kingdom.

Part 3 makes similar amendments to the QCP Regulations. The QCP Regulations prescribe the qualifying courses and persons for the purposes of section 5 of the Higher Education (Wales) Act 2015, which sets out that institutions’ fee and access plans must specify or provide for the determination of fee limits in relation to qualifying courses. A fee limit is a maximum amount payable by a qualifying person in relation to a qualifying course and the Schedule to the QCP Regulations lists those persons who may be qualifying persons.

Part 4 of these Regulations makes similar amendments to the 2017 Regulations and makes amendments to revoke Part 11 of the 2017 Regulations, which is now redundant. The 2017 Regulations provide for financial support for eligible students undertaking designated higher education courses which begin before 1 September 2018.

Part 5 makes similar amendments to the 2017 Master’s Regulations. The 2017 Master’s Regulations provide for financial support for eligible students undertaking designated postgraduate master’s degree courses which begin before 1 August 2019.

Part 7 makes similar amendments to the Doctoral Degree Regulations. The Doctoral Degree Regulations provide for financial support for eligible students undertaking designated postgraduate doctoral degree courses which begin on or after 1 August 2018.

Part 8 makes similar amendments to the 2019 Master’s Regulations. The 2019 Master’s Regulations provide for financial support for eligible students undertaking designated postgraduate master’s degree courses which begin on or after 1 August 2019.

The Welsh Ministers’ Code of Practice on the carrying out of Regulatory Impact Assessments was considered in relation to these Regulations. As a result, a regulatory impact assessment has been prepared as to the likely costs and benefits of complying with these Regulations. A copy can be obtained from the Higher Education Division, Welsh Government, Cathays Park, Cardiff, CF10 3NQ.