Seán Ó Fearghaíl
Question:153 Mr. Ó Fearghaíl asked the Minister for Education and Science if a third level grant will be approved for a person (details supplied) in County Kildare. [15967/04]
View answerWednesday, 26 May 2004
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The third level student support schemes were extended to provide maintenance grants to eligible students pursuing approved full-time undergraduate courses of at least two years duration pursued in a university or a third level institution which is maintained or assisted by recurrent grants from public funds in other EU member states with effect from the 1996-7 academic year.
The extension of the schemes at that time did not include courses at post-graduate level and, accordingly, there is no grant aid available under the schemes for students pursuing post-graduate studies outside of Ireland.
An approved undergraduate course in the above context is defined as a full-time undergraduate course of not less than two years duration pursued in a university or third level institution, which is maintained or assisted by recurrent grants from public funds in another EU member state, with the exception of courses in colleges of further and higher education, other than courses which are at higher national diploma level or higher; courses provided in a college which are offered in private commercial third level colleges in the State and which are validated by that college; courses in colleges akin to private commercial colleges in Ireland.
Any extension of the current arrangements to provide for students pursuing post-graduate courses outside of Ireland could only be considered in the light of available resources and other competing demands within the education sector. At present there are no plans to expand the provisions in the grant schemes for study abroad.
However, section 21 of the Finance Act 2000, as amended by section 29 of the Finance Act 2001, provides for the introduction of tax relief for post-graduate tuition fees paid in colleges outside of Ireland. This relief, which is available from the tax year 2000-01 onwards, applies at the standard rate of tax. Further details and conditions in relation to this tax relief are available from local tax offices.