I have been advised by my officials that the student referred to by the Deputy in Question No. 594 of 10th October 2023 was awarded a Postgraduate Fee Contribution of €4,000 on the 6th June 2023 by the awarding authority.
The Student Grant Scheme makes provision for combining periods of Pandemic Unemployment Payment, Jobseeker's Allowance, Jobseeker's Benefit and other eligible payments for the purposes of meeting the 391 days eligibility requirement for the special rate of grant. Schedule 2 of the scheme states that “The Department of Social Protection Illness Benefit or COVID-19 Enhanced Illness Benefit or COVID-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment or Maternity Benefit can also be used to combine periods of Jobseeker's Allowance and Jobseeker's Benefit provided a period of Jobseeker's Allowance or Jobseeker’s Benefit comes directly before and directly after the period of Illness Benefit or COVID-19 Enhanced Illness Benefit or COVID-19 Pandemic Unemployment”.
The applicant’s income was under the Special Rate threshold of €25,000. However, whilst the applicant’s father was in receipt of an eligible Special Rate payment on 31st December 2022 (Jobseeker’s Allowance) they did not meet the required 391 number of days under the terms of the scheme, having held the payment for 363 days. The period in receipt of the Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP) could not be considered as there was no period in receipt of Jobseeker’s directly before the PUP. The Student Grant Appeals Board heard an appeal from this student on the 8th August 2023 and upheld the decision of the SUSI Appeals Officer. The student has now exhausted the appeals process.
However, a very important feature of the scheme is the change of circumstances provision. Article 32 of the Student Grant Scheme 2023 provides for a review of eligibility for the award of a grant in the event of a change of circumstances in the academic year.
Where a student experiences a change of circumstances during the course of their studies, he/she may apply to SUSI to have his/her application re-assessed at helpdesk@SUSI.ie quoting Internal Review in the Subject line. Should the student referred to by the Deputy have new information relevant to their application, they can apply to SUSI for a review of their application under this provision.
