Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)
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Question 237: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the mechanism available to a person (details supplied) in County Kildare relating to her application for a college course; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8729/06]

Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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Under the terms of the free fees initiative my Department meets the tuition fees of eligible students. The main conditions are that students must be first-time undergraduates and hold EU nationality or official refugee status and have been ordinarily resident in an EU member state for at least three of the five years preceding their entry to an approved third level course.

The candidate referred to by the Deputy does not satisfy the eligibility conditions for the free fees initiative and is therefore liable for the cost of the tuition fees on her chosen course.

I emphasise the distinction between the criteria that determines eligibility under the free fees initiative and the criteria by which individual third level institutions establish what rates of tuition fees should be charged in cases where a student does not qualify for free fees. The third level institutions are autonomous bodies and, as such, may determine the level of fees to be charged in any cases where the free fees initiative does not apply.

I advise the Deputy of the provisions under section 473A of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997. This section provides tax relief for eligible persons, at the standard rate of tax, for tuition fees paid in respect of approved courses at approved colleges of higher education including certain approved undergraduate and postgraduate courses in EU member states and postgraduate courses in non-EU countries.

Tax relief at undergraduate level extends to approved full and part-time courses in both private and publicly funded third level colleges in the State and any other EU member state and approved full and part-time courses operated by colleges in any EU member State providing distance education in the State.

In 2001, section 29 of the 2001 Finance Act amended the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 to provide for the amalgamation of the then existing four tax reliefs for third level education fees. The section also extended the relief by removing the restrictions for repeat years, for individuals undertaking more than one course and for those already holding a third level qualification. It also removed the exclusion of certain courses in medicine, dentistry, veterinary medicine and teacher training. The relief is also extended to postgraduate fees paid for third level education in private and publicly funded third level colleges in non-EU countries. Tax relief for undergraduate fees is also now available in EU countries for duly accredited private third level colleges.

Tax relief on tuition fees is claimed directly from the tax office using an IT 31 form. Details of approved colleges and courses are also available on Revenue's website at www.revenue.ie.

Approved undergraduate courses must be of at least two years' duration and both the college and the course must satisfy the codes of standards as laid down by the Minister for Education and Science with the consent of the Minister for Finance.