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Higher Education Grants

Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 6 June 2012

Wednesday, 6 June 2012

Ceisteanna (177)

Joanna Tuffy

Ceist:

166 Deputy Joanna Tuffy asked the Minister for Education and Skills the entitlement to higher education grants, including postgraduate study, available to persons in receipt of the lone parents allowance; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26655/12]

Amharc ar fhreagra

Freagraí scríofa

Financial assistance is available to students under the student grant scheme, which from the 2012/2013 academic year will be administered by Student Universal Support Ireland (SUSI — a division of the City of Dublin VEC) on behalf of my Department. SUSI will accept all new applications in its first year of operation. Renewal applications will continue to be dealt with by the existing 66 grant awarding authorities. Students who are entering approved courses for the first time are eligible for grants where they satisfy the relevant conditions as to nationality, residency, previous academic attainment and means.

A person in receipt of a social welfare payment as a lone parent may be entitled to a student maintenance grant provided they meet the terms and conditions of the student grant scheme. The means-tested one parent family payment is not included in calculating reckonable income where paid to the applicant. In addition, the one parent family payment is an eligible payment for the special rate of maintenance grant. The decision on eligibility for a student grant is a matter, in the first instance, for the assessing authority.

In the context of the necessary but difficult expenditure reduction measures announced in Budget 2012, new students entering postgraduate courses, from the 2012/13 academic year onwards will not be entitled to maintenance payments under the Student Grant Scheme. Existing postgraduate students will not be affected.

Those students who meet the qualifying conditions for the special rate of grant will be eligible to have their post-graduate tuition fees paid up to the maximum fee limit under the Student Grant Scheme. In addition, a further limited number of students who would previously have qualified under the standard grant thresholds will qualify to have a €2,000 contribution made towards the costs of their fees. There will be a new income threshold for this payment which will be lower than the standard grant threshold. The income threshold for this level of grant is currently being determined in the context of the formulation of the student grant scheme for the 2012/13 academic year.

Tax relief is also available on postgraduate tuition fees. Details in relation to this relief are available from the Revenue Commissioners.

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