The estimated cost to the Exchequer of increasing all SUSI maintenance grants by 25% above 2020-2021 levels would be € 41,150,164.
The total increase to each maintenance grant needed over and above the €200 allocated for the upcoming academic year ( based on 2020/21 paid maintenance) in order to reach the 25% increase on 2020/2021 levels is €28.88M.
The following link sets out the euro increase per maintenance category for 2020/21 needed to increase all rates by 25%.
As part of Budget 2022, I have secured an additional €15m to enhance the existing financial supports under the Student Grant Scheme for implementation in 2022.
For the academic year 2022/23 this will mean:-
- An increase to all student grant maintenance payments, including the special rate of grant, of €200 per year which will benefit all students entitled to receive a maintenance Grant. There are currently circa 62,000 SUSI grant recipients receiving maintenance support.
- The income threshold to qualify for the standard rate of student grant has been increased by €1,000.
- The qualifying distance criterion for students to qualify for the non-adjacent rate of grant has been reduced from 45km to 30km, effective from the start of the 2022/23 academic year.
I have prioritised these changes for the 2022/23 academic year and they will benefit thousands of students building on the improvements that have already been made for postgraduate students. Improvements to the student grant scheme have been a priority for me since taking up my Ministerial appointment.
Increase Budget
