Maurice Quinlivan (Limerick City, Sinn Fein)
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195. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills to outline the estimated cost of abolishing apprenticeship fees for 2018. [53098/17]

John Halligan (Waterford, Independent)
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An Annual Student Contribution is levied on all students attending Institutes of Technology (IoTs). Previously this Annual Student Contribution was paid by FÁS/SOLAS with apprentices themselves paying the part of the contribution relating to examination fees. As part of Budget 2014, SOLAS ceased making payments to IoTs and apprentices pay the full pro rata Annual Student Contribution.

The amount charged to apprentices is calculated on a pro rata basis of the time which they spend in IoTs during the academic year. This cost would typically be one third of the Annual Student Contribution paid by students attending for the full academic year, currently €3,000 and would amount to approx. €1,000 per student per annum.

The cost of not charging the Annual Student Contribution to apprentices is estimated to be €3.8 million in 2017 and €4.2 million in 2018.

I have no plans to abolish the Annual Student Contribution for apprentices.