Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
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1024. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will consider reviewing the income threshold currently being applied to the higher education access route; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39029/25]

James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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The Higher Education Access Route (HEAR) Scheme is managed and operated by the Irish Universities Association (IUA) on behalf of the Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) who are autonomous bodies.

Admissions under the scheme are regulated by the HEIs themselves.

Each institution determines its own admissions policy in relation to the schemes, the number of places they reserve and the allocation of those places, therefore it is not within my Departments remit to intervene in HEAR cases or eligibility criteria.

The IUA have confirmed that the scheme is undergoing a review to improve its effectiveness and reach more eligible applicants. The review aims to better capture National Access Plan target groups, including Traveller/Roma, homeless, and student-parent applicants. The revised scheme, launching for the 2026 admissions cycle, will prioritize these groups for offers through the CAO.

As a part of the aforementioned review, further scheme enhancements will continue for 2027, HEAR will review its income thresholds to better align with SUSI. Such an increase will indeed ensure greater representation of applicants who often fall out of HEAR-eligibility due the current low-income thresholds. These thresholds are currently under review and will aim to go live for the 2027 admissions cycle.

Queries relating to HEAR should be directed to the IUA. Further information on IUA is available here www.iua.ie