Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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356. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if a back to education allowance will be approved for a person (details supplied). [59801/21]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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The Back to Education Allowance scheme (BTEA) is an educational opportunities scheme for customers in receipt of certain social welfare payments wishing to pursue second or third level courses of education, subject to meeting the qualifying conditions.

BTEA is an administrative scheme approved by the Government.

The person concerned applied for Back to Education Allowance(BTEA) on 26th August 2021. The application was refused by a Deciding Officer on 20th September under the rules of the scheme as they were not commencing the first year of a course of study. As this is an administrative scheme decisions cannot be appealed to the Social Welfare Appeals Office. The person concerned requested a review of the decision due to mitigating circumstances. In certain circumstances, the provision that a customer must be commencing the first year of a full-time course to be approved for BTEA can be waived. Documentary evidence to support the review was requested on 21st September and was not provided. The review was completed on 1st October and the Review Officer upheld the Deciding Officer's decision to refuse the application.

Mitigating circumstances can include a long-term illness or injury requiring prolonged absence from attendance at lectures, the serious illness of an immediate family member requiring the customer undertaking a caring responsibility, force majeure or discontinuance of the course by the educational institution. Documentary evidence from the college must be provided and in the event that a medical condition existed, supporting documentation from the doctor/specialist etc. may be required.

It is open to the person concerned to submit documentary evidence to support their case of mitigating circumstances if they are now in a position to do so. It will then be considered by a Review Officer.