Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 20 January 2026
1069. Deputy Danny Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science to provide an update on SUSI grant income thresholds (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3597/26]
View answerUnder the Student Grant Scheme, income from employment which represents holiday earnings outside of term time (Easter, summer and Christmas holidays) can be deducted when determining the reckonable income of an applicant. The holiday earnings exemption was increased from €7,925 to €8,424 for the 2025/26 academic year.
The Student Grant Scheme is reviewed on an annual basis and any improvements are subject to the overall estimates and budgetary process undertaken by all Government Departments having regard to overall resource constraints and other competing demands.
My Department in recent years has published an annual options paper on reducing the cost of education. Within the published papers options have costed removing the provision which limits the deduction of holiday earnings to “earnings outside of term time”. In September 2025 this was costed within a range of €17m-€26m.
It is important to note that the paper considers opportunity cost.
For example, if the provision which limits the deduction of holiday earnings to "earnings outside of term time" was removed this may allow an applicant's exemption limit to be increased in circumstances where the applicant themselves earned up to the limit allowable across the year. (In effect this is akin to a very specific income threshold increase for one cohort i.e. students earnings). However, such an option may limit the potential to increase overall SUSI income thresholds which would benefit all applicants, including students who are earning.
Budget 2025 increased all thresholds with all standard rate income thresholds increasing by at least 15% in the current academic year. To put this in context: for a family with fewer than four children, standard rate thresholds increased within a range of €6,135 to €15,000. This threshold increase has provided a universal increase for all household earnings regardless of the source of income (e.g. student earnings and/or income from a parent(s)/spouse(s) where applicable) and benefited families where a parent or spouses income has increased.
I am conscious of reducing the cost of education for students and I was pleased to be in a position in Budget 2026 to permanently reduce the Student Contribution by €500 for free fees eligible students and to increase maintenance grants for non-adjacent grant holders. From September 2026 the income threshold to avail of a €500 Student Contribution Grant will also increase to €120,000.
