Seán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein)
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82. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the criteria by which Student Universal Support Ireland assesses an independent or dependent mature adult when applying for a student maintenance grant; his plans to address concerns raised in relation to this issue (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42194/13]

Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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For student grants purposes, students are categorised according to their circumstances either as students dependent on parents or a legal guardian, or as independent mature students. A student may be assessed as an independent mature student if he or she has attained the age of 23 on the 1st of January of the year of first entry to an approved course or of re-entry following a break in studies of at least three years and is not ordinarily resident with his/her parents from the previous October. Otherwise he or she would continue to be assessed on the basis of parental income.

I have no plans at present to change the eligibility arrangements in respect of students under the age of 23 who apply for a student grant.