My Department recognises the importance of access to further and Higher education for all students In Ireland. International Protection students and displaced persons from Ukraine who are Beneficiaries of Temporary Protection may be able to avail of tertiary education supports, including through the following schemes:-
• International Protection Students (IPS) Scheme;
• Post-Leaving Certificate (PLC) Bursary for Displaced persons (Ukraine) Scheme;
• Student Grant Scheme and the Student Part-Time Fee Scheme for Specified Undergraduate Courses;
• Temporary Tuition Fee Support Scheme for displaced Persons (Ukraine) (TTFSS); and
• Free Fees Initiative as well as the Beneficiary of Temporary Protection (BOTP) Stipend. Further details of these supports are provided in the tables following. International Protection Students (IPS) SchemeThe table below outlines the number of students qualifying for support and the funding provided for the academic years 2022/2023 to 2025/2026 under the International Protection Students (IPS) Scheme,
|
IPS Scheme
|
2022/23
|
2023/24
|
2024/25
|
2025/26*
|
|
Qualifying for Support
|
8
|
9
|
4
|
17*
|
|
Funding provided
|
€48,029.00
|
€76,553.45
|
€19,070.00
|
€14,154.00*
|
* Data is as of 26 November 2025. However, these figures are likely to change as SUSI continues to process applications for academic year 2025/26. PLC Bursary for Displaced persons (Ukraine) scheme.The following table outlines the number of recipients of the PLC Bursary for Displaced Persons (Ukraine) Scheme, and the funding provided for the academic years 2022/23 to 2025/26. To be eligible, students must be in attendance of a SOLAS approved PLC Course.
|
PLC Bursary
|
2022/23
|
2023/24
|
2024/25
|
2025/26**
|
|
Qualifying for support
|
479
|
613
|
718
|
210**
|
|
Funding provided
|
€2,660,007.60
|
€3,503,192.64
|
€2,296,275.39
|
€137,324.82**
|
** Data is as of 26 November 2025. However, these figures are likely to change as SUSI continues to process applications for academic year 2025/26.The Student Grant Scheme & the Student Part-Time Fee Scheme for Specified UndergraduateCourses for 2025. For the 2025/2026 academic year, BOTP students who meet the residency criteria of the Student Grant Scheme, along with all other criteria, must apply through SUSI for financial support. Grant assistance is awarded to students attending an approved course in higher education institution and who meet the prescribed conditions of funding, including those relating to nationality, residency, previous academic attainment and means.
|
The Student Grant Scheme
|
2022/23
|
2023/24
|
2024/25
|
2025/26**
|
|
Qualifying for support
|
n/a
|
n/a
|
n/a
|
1093**
|
|
Funding provided
|
n/a
|
Na/
|
n/a
|
€1,106,277.29 **
|
** These figures are likely to change as SUSI continues to process applications for academic year 2025/26.The Temporary Tuition Fee Support Scheme for Displaced Persons (Ukraine). The Temporary Tuition Fee Support Scheme for Displaced Persons (Ukraine) is in place in the academic year 2025/2026 to support eligible new entrant and continuing undergraduate students.
|
Temporary Tuition Fee Support Scheme
|
2022/23
|
2023/24
|
2024/25
|
2025/26*
|
|
Qualifying for support
|
310
|
563
|
1340
|
1692*
|
|
Funding provided
|
€1,700,000
|
€2,800,000
|
€6,300,000
|
€7,600,000*
|
*Final numbers and costs for the 2025/26 academic year will be confirmed at the end of the academic year. Current estimates, which are subject to change, indicate that 1,692 Ukrainian students may avail of the scheme at an estimated cost of circa €7.6 million.The Free Fees Initiative. Full time undergraduate students that are Beneficiaries of Temporary Protection may be eligible to avail of the Free Fees Initiative subject to meeting the scheme criteria, including residency. To meet the eligibility criteria for the Free Fees Initiative residency criteria a student must have been resident in a qualifying jurisdiction for 3 of the previous 5 years prior to starting their course. For the 2025/2026 academic year, new entrant students whose initial Temporary Permission was granted by the Minister for Justice more than 3 Years before the start of the 2025/ 2026 Academic Year fee support is via the Free Fees Scheme rather than the aforementioned Temporary Tuition Fee Support Scheme. Nationality information is not collated as part of the Free Fees Initiative claims process, as administered by the HEA, and information on the number of BoTP students or persons with an International protection, such as official refugee status, availing of free fees is not currently available. BOTP Stipend The BoTP Stipend is a Temporary Scheme for the Academic Year 25/26 for eligible BOTPs whose Temporary Protection Permission was granted less than 3 years before the start of the 2025/2026 Academic Year and have been resident in the State for the preceding six months prior to the 1st of October 2025. In the case of students in this cohort whose primary address is less than 30kms to their college, the stipend will amount to €3,230 per annum. For those living 30kms or more from their college, it will amount to €7,586 per annum.
|
The BOTP Stipend
|
2022/23
|
2023/24
|
2024/25
|
2025/26***
|
|
Qualifying for support
|
310
|
527**
|
1291**
|
697****
|
|
Funding provided
|
€1,700,000*
|
€4,587,239**
|
€10,832,028**
|
€3,462,426****
|
* Funding was provided in 2022 was co-funded through the ERASMUS National Grant
**Figures to be finalised these are expected figures
***Final numbers and costs for the 2025/26 academic year will be confirmed at the end of the academic year.
