Written answers

Wednesday, 13 October 2021

Department of Education and Skills

Student Accommodation

Photo of Marian HarkinMarian Harkin (Sligo-Leitrim, Independent)
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42. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if arrangements have been made for students who continue to pay huge costs for accommodation that is not being used due to the fact certain third-level colleges are holding online lectures and classes. [49758/21]

Photo of Simon HarrisSimon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Officials from the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science worked with the Department of Housing, Heritage and Local Government on legislation to lower upfront payments required from students in securing accommodation, and protect against loss should accommodation be vacated.

The Residential Tenancies (No.2) Act 2021 was signed into law on 9th July this year. It restricts any upfront payment required to secure a tenancy or license (including rent, deposit and any other charges) to no more than the equivalent of two months’ rent, and limits payments thereafter to one month’s rent at a time.

This legislation also applies to students residing under license in student-specific accommodation, allowing students to pay monthly. Ending the previous practice of paying a lump sum each term (often in the range of €2,500 to €3,500) lowers a barrier to entry to higher education as the cost of accommodation represents a significant upfront expense for students attending institutions that are distant from their family home.

The provisions of the Act relating to upfront payments have taken effect for all tenancies created at least one month after the passing of the Act, and therefore have been in effect for the beginning of the 2021 academic year.

Where a landlord or accommodation provider seeks an unlawful payment of any deposit or advance rent, they can be investigated by the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB). Landlords engaging in this type of behaviour face a sanction of written caution and/or and sanction of up to €15,000. A further €15,000 in costs can be imposed. Details on how to information the RTB of such conduct is available on the RTB website.

The co-development of the Safe Return Plan by my Department and by sectoral stakeholders in June 2021 has facilitated the significant return to campus of staff and students. This is evidenced by an exercise recently conducted by the Higher Education Authority (HEA) to establish presence rates across the higher education institutions using a reference point of the 4th October 2021. The data shows that the average daily student presence on campus at that point in time was 111,971 students or 48.7% of the student population. This represents an increase of 420% in the numbers of students on-site this time last year, in October 2020.

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