Thomas Gould (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein)
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837. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if her attention has been drawn to the fact that there are no set criteria for the assessment of ‘irreconcilable differences’ in SUSI grant applications; or guidance as to what a student should do if their appeal is refused, despite submitting evidence from their former school and all other evidence available. [36343/24]

Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
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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.

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 (ie: assessed without reference to parental income).

A student may be assessed as an independent mature student if they have attained the age of 23 on the 1st of January of the year of first entry to an approved course and is not ordinarily resident with their parent(s) or legal guardian(s) from the previous 1st October.

A student under the age of 23 may be assessed without reference to parental income only in exceptional cases, for example orphans, students in foster care, cases where there is evidence of irreconcilable estrangement from parents or legal guardians etc.

The assessment of a case of irreconcilable differences is carefully considered to ensure there is sufficient evidence to demonstrate that the exceptional circumstances pertaining in such cases genuinely exists.

The scheme does not stipulate precisely how the awarding authority satisfies itself that such circumstances prevail. This is to allow the awarding authority sufficient flexibility to assess the evidence of irreconcilable differences in each individual case. The type of documentary evidence required is dependent on the applicant's individual circumstances.

If an applicant considers they have been unjustly refused a student grant, or that the rate of grant awarded is not the correct one, they may appeal, in the first instance, to SUSI. If they have had an appeal turned down in writing by an appeals officer in SUSI and remain of the view that the scheme has not been interpreted correctly in their case, an appeal may be submitted to the independent Student Grants Appeals Board within the required timeframe (i.e. not later than 30 days after the notification of the determination of the appeals officer to the applicant).

Such appeals can be made by the appellant on line via www.studentgrantappeals.ie.