Gino Kenny (Dublin Mid West, People Before Profit Alliance)
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49. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the top ten English language schools by numbers of students registered by GNIB, in tabular form; the nationalities and numbers of students registered in each school; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6478/17]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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I am advised by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) of my Department that the specific information sought by the Deputy is not available. The role of INIS must be understood in the broader context of the English language (ELT) sector in Ireland more generally, and my Department's responsibility in relation to the immigration status of non-EEA nationals.

The sector, which predominantly operates in the commercial sphere, recruits students from a wide range of international markets with a particular focus on recruitment from within the EEA. English language programmes are targeted at juvenile (which make up the majority of seasonal English language students each year) and adult students. Programmes of varying duration are on offer, including short intensive programmes usually less than three months, and longer examination-focused programmes of six or more months duration. The sector is not structured in a way that reflects the immigration and border control arrangements in the State and, as such, straddles all categories of international students both European and further afield.

In addition to EEA persons, who do not require permission from the immigration services to be in the State, for non-EEA nationals, registration information is recorded on the basis of the individual student and not the educational institution. Also, only persons intending to remain in the State longer than ninety days are obliged to register their presence with the immigration authorities and this obligation applies only to non-EEA nationals over sixteen years of age. Accordingly, the specific information sought by the Deputy is not available.

In 2015 the Government introduced revised arrangements as regards student immigration. In particular, educational providers intending to recruit non-EEA international students to programmes longer than ninety (90) days duration must be listed on the Interim List of Eligible Programmes ILEP. The list is only open to those offering English language (of 25 weeks or more) and higher education programmes (leading to a recognised award by an Irish awarding body) and providers are prohibited from recruiting non-EEA international students to other categories of programme. As part of the process of being listed on the ILEP, providers must submit a clear capacity statement setting out the maximum number of students that can be accommodated within their existing physical teaching resources.

A table sets out the top ten English language providers in order of their stated maximum capacity. It is important to bear in mind that this table only relates to those providers seeking to recruit non-EEA international students to programmes of at least twenty five weeks duration. It would not be unusual for such providers to offer programmes to both EU/EEA international students and non-EEA students and the maximum capacity statement applies to both categories and not just non-EEA capacity.

As outlined above, it is not possible to provide the Deputy with a breakdown of each nationality group in each institution. However, the table lists the top ten nationalities of all non-EEA international students currently registered with the immigration authorities across all programmes eligible for listing on the ILEP.