Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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232. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills his plans or proposals to reduce the current five year residency requirement for asylum seekers and refugees to be eligible for third level under the free fees scheme; and if he willreduce the residency requirement to three years for asylum seekers and refugees. [24216/16]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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Under the terms of the Department's free fees scheme, the Exchequer through the Department meets the cost of tuition fees for full-time undergraduate students who meet the terms of the scheme. To qualify for these schemes prospective students have to meet a number of criteria including nationality and residency including a requirement that a student must have been living in an EEA member state or Switzerland three out of the five years preceding their entry to an approved third level course.

Where students do not meet the terms of the free fees schemes it is the higher education institutions that determine, in accordance with their own criteria, the rate of tuition fees (EU or non EU) to be paid by such students.

The Deputy may also be referring to the Pilot Scheme that was introduced in 2015/16 for students who are in the Protection System or at the Leave to Remain (but not deportation order) stage. This is a separate initiative to the Free Fees Scheme. The pilot scheme is intended to provide supports to qualifying students which are similar to those available in the statutory based Student Grant Scheme.

I announced the continuation of the Pilot Support Scheme for those in the protection system for 2016/17. The "five year time rule", which is in line with the recommendations of the Working Group chaired by Dr. Bryan McMahon, will continue to apply for 2016/17. There are no plans to remove this requirement.