Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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631. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if a person (details supplied) will have their eligibility for a Student Universal Support Ireland, SUSI, grant reviewed; if technical grounds will be reviewed to facilitate their application; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11318/21]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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As part of a comprehensive customer service and communications strategy provided by Student Universal Support Ireland (SUSI), to ensure that all necessary avenues are open to applicants to receive the information they need, a dedicated email and phone line service is provided by SUSI for Oireachtas members. This was established to meet an identified need for applicants who choose to engage the assistance of their public representatives in making enquiries about their grant applications.

This service, which was set up at the behest of Oireachtas members, complements the established channels provided by SUSI which include online application tracking, a dedicated website, a telephone helpdesk, email and social media, including Facebook and Twitter. Enquiries may be emailed direct to SUSI at oireachtas@susi.ie. Staff in SUSI are responding to email queries within a matter of days.

With regard to the specific application, I have been advised by my officials that the student in question submitted an application to SUSI as a mature independent applicant. The application was cancelled in January 2021 as the applicant was under 23 at his first point of entry into higher education in 2016/17 and does not have the required three years break in studies to be reclassified as a mature independent student. The student can still re-apply to SUSI as a mature dependent applicant with his mother’s details and as with all applicants he may be required to submit documents to support his application.