The SNP Government has announced that free university tuition for EU students will end.
Higher Education Minister Richard Lochhead said the funding would end as a result of Brexit.
Under EU law, the free tuition policy for Scots-based students required EU citizens to be treated the same.
After the Brexit vote, Ministers announced a continuation of fee support for EU citizens in 2019/20 and this year.
However, with the Brexit transition period expiring at the end of December, speculation was mounting about the future of the policy.
Lochhead told MSPs: “Our EU law obligations cease at the end of the transition period in a few months, and continuing with this arrangement for 2021/22 would significantly increase the risk of any legal challenge.
“It is therefore with a heavy heart that we have taken the difficult decision to end free education for new EU students from the academic year 2021/2022 onwards as a consequence of Brexit.”
He added: "I can, however, confirm that we will not remove the funding we currently devote to paying EU student fees from the overall funding for the sector. On current trends and following further analysis, we estimate this could be up to £19m for 21/22."
A government document added: “Scottish institutions will be able to charge EU students international fees.”
According to Government figures, 21,505 EU students studied at Scottish universities in 2018/19, of which 15,310 full-time students received funding in the same year.
The decision followed senior SNP MSP Alex Neil’s call for the policy to end.
He told the Daily Record recently: “We should start to make savings on European Union students who come here and get taught for nothing. We are teaching, in some cases, rich EU students and we are in danger of not being able to fund education for Scottish students.”
He said: “If Brexit is going to happen on 31st December, then I certainly don’t think we can afford to continue to subsidise rich European kids at the expense of our own kids.”
“In any case, we objected to doing it in the first place, but we were forced to by EU rules.”
Tory MSP Jamie Greene said: “This is a welcome move, and some would argue long overdue, which will provide a much-needed cash boost for Scotland’s universities.
“The key is that we use this policy reversal to improve the fortune of Scottish students.
“Under the SNP, Scottish students have been repeatedly overlooked in order to fund the free tuition of European students."
