Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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1176. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if he will review the case of a person (details supplied) regarding a SUSI grant application; if he will provide an update on the person’s appeal application; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [63723/25]

James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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The decision on eligibility for a student grant is a matter, in the first instance, for the centralised student grant awarding authority SUSI (Student Universal Support Ireland) to determine.

Article 22 of the Student Grant Scheme 2025 sets out for the awarding authority the determination of reckonable income. Reckonable income shall be determined by the awarding authority on the basis of information supplied in the application form and other relevant information and documentary evidence supplied. In calculating reckonable income, the awarding authority shall consider income from all sources.

In this case, an official from my Department has advised that the student referred to by the Deputy was refused grant assistance because their income was over the threshold for postgraduate study. This was advised to the student on the 25th July 2025.

The applicant appealed on 12 August 2025, but the appeal was refused as their income remained above the threshold. A second appeal was lodged by the applicant on 25 September, 2025 and this was also refused for the same reason. The applicant was notified of this decision.

Separately, SUSI requested evidence that a sibling was attending Higher Education for the 2025/26 academic year. Confirmation was received on 10 October 2025, and following this, the applicant was awarded a Postgraduate Fee Contribution on 23 October 2025 after applying the €4,950 increment.

If the applicant is unsatisfied with their grant award, they can submit an appeal to the Student Grant Appeals Board. The timeline for making this further appeal is within 30 days of the date of the decision on your original appeal. If they have had a change in circumstances or additional information that may support their application and wish to submit this documentation, this can be done by e-mailing support@susi.ie stating in the subject box "Internal Review".