Transnational Education (TNE) can be seen as one part of ‘cross-border’,‘offshore’or ‘borderless’ education and is often associated with English speaking institutions and educational models based overseas. With many TNE institutions offering English medium instruction (EMI) programmes, there is a shift in focus away from English as a Foreign Language (EFL) to English being both an academic discipline and the mode of delivery. However, one question that remains unresolved is around the English language variety and standard that EMI TNE institutions should aim for as their ‘working language’both for everyday use and as an academic lingua franca. The paradoxical situation often exists where students are not studying in their first language, and assessed by academics who are again mostly English additional language speakers, but with a target language based on English ‘native speaker’norms.