Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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1301. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will review the stipulation in the guidelines for SUSI grants to ensure that the “first point of entry” requirement for assessment is changed to ensure that if an applicant’s circumstances change over their years in college, they can be reassessed to take into account new circumstances, including details of a change of address that would result in being assessed as “independent”; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43925/24]

Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy may be aware that for student grant purposes, students are categorised according to their circumstances either as students dependent on parents or a legal guardian, or as independent mature students.

A student may be assessed as an independent student (i.e. assessed without reference to parental income and address) if they have attained the age of 23 on the 1st of January of the year of first entry to an approved course, and are not ordinarily resident with their parents from the previous 1st October. Otherwise, they would be assessed as a dependent student i.e. assessed with reference to parental income and address.

A student’s status for grant purposes is defined at their first point of entry to an approved further or higher education course or at their point of re-entry to an approved course following a break in studies of at least three years, and continues to apply for the duration of their studies.

Applicants who do not meet the criteria to be assessed as an independent student for grant purposes, or who cannot supply the necessary documentation to establish independent living for the required period, may still apply to SUSI to have their grant eligibility assessed as a dependent student. The relevant information, including details of parental income, would be required by SUSI to determine grant eligibility as a dependent student.

Further information regarding class of applicant (independent or dependent) and the types of documentation accepted as evidence of living independently from parents is available from SUSI’s website: susi.ie/eligibility/applicant-class/.

The Deputy will appreciate that the funding allocation for the Student Grant Scheme is determined in the context of the overall estimates and budgetary process undertaken by all Government Departments. All proposals made in relation to SUSI grant expenditure can only be considered in the context of the budgetary allocation, having regard to overall resource constraints and other competing demands in the further and higher education sector.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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1302. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if she will allow SUSI to have a discretionary role in assessing applications as not all circumstances fit easily into criteria; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43926/24]

Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
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The Student Grant Scheme is a statutory scheme. As with any statutory scheme, a core principle of the Student Grant Scheme is that there is consistency of approach and an equitable treatment for applicants. All applications are therefore assessed nationally with reference to the terms and conditions of the Scheme, which are applied impartially to all applicants.

SUSI has no discretion to vary or modify the criteria laid down within the provisions of the Student Grant Scheme and its governing legislation.

Article 32 of the Student Grant Scheme 2024 provides for a review of eligibility for the award of a grant in the event of a change of circumstances during the academic year. Where a student experiences a change of circumstances during the course of their studies, they may apply to SUSI to have their application re-assessed at support@SUSI.ie quoting Internal Review in the Subject line.

In addition, where a student considers they have been unjustly refused a student grant, they can appeal in the first instance to SUSI. If their appeal is turned down by SUSI they can further appeal to the independent Student Grant Appeals Board.

The Department reviews policy on an ongoing basis, having regard to overall resource constraints and other competing demands in the further and higher education sector.