Seán Fleming (Laois, Fianna Fail)
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153. To ask the Minister for Social Protection if third level students who are seeking employment during summer 2016 but who have not been successful can claim while they are not attending college under the jobseeker's allowance scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16465/16]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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The jobseeker’s allowance scheme provides income support for people who have lost work and are unable to find alternative full-time employment. The 2016 Estimates for my Department provide for expenditure this year on the jobseeker’s allowance scheme of €2.45 billion.

Social welfare legislation states that a person is not entitled to jobseeker’s allowance while attending a course of study. This disqualification also extends to the holiday periods, including the summer holidays. It also provides that a person shall be regarded as attending a course of study:

- for 3 months immediately following the completion or the leaving by that person of second level education or the completion by him or her of the leaving certificate examination of the Department of Education and Skills, whichever is the later;

- for the duration of an academic year; or

- for the period immediately following the completion of one academic year, other than the final academic year of a course of study, up to the beginning of the following year.

The disqualification for receipt of jobseeker’s benefit or allowance does not apply in the case of mature students during the period between two academic years. During this period a mature student can apply for jobseeker’s benefit or allowance, subject to satisfying the standard qualifying conditions, including that of being available for full-time work.

There are no plans to amend jobseeker’s allowance legislation in relation to this issue. Any changes to the JA scheme would be a matter for Government to consider in a budgetary context.