Temporary supports for new third-level students from Ukraine are to end in advance of the 2026/2027 academic year as the Government continues to align the financial assistance on offer with the support provided to Irish students.
Last September is the first time that some Ukrainian students will either have had to pay the €2,500 contribution fee or apply for financial assistance under the same system that applies to their Irish counterparts.
The changes to the support system for students are separate to a wider tightening of supports for people who have fled the war in Ukraine who are officially described as Beneficiaries of Temporary Protection (BOTPs).
Discussions within Government in recent days saw senior ministers agree to cut the number of days that the State offers accommodation to new arrivals from 90 days to 30.
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That decision came amid an increase in Ukrainian people arriving in Ireland after fleeing which has put pressure on the system for housing them.
There were 1,255 Ukrainian refugees studying in Ireland’s universities during the last academic year and some 600 more in further education courses.
The Department of Higher Education said the corresponding figures for the current academic year are not yet available.
Previously tuition fees were paid for full-time Ukrainian students through the Temporary Tuition Fee Support Scheme (TTFSS).
This saw the applicable EU tuition fee for the student paid to the Ukrainian student’s third-level institution.
Now a cohort of Ukrainian entrants to new higher education courses – whose initial temporary permission to stay in Ireland was granted more than three years before the start of the 2025/2026 academic year under the so-called “free fees” scheme. This scheme includes the requirement to pay the €2,500 student contribution fee.
Should they need financial assistance the same group of students were told they could apply to the means-tested Student Universal Support Ireland (SUSI) scheme. Previously all Ukrainian students were entitled to a financial stipend.
Ukrainian students who began their third level education in previous years and have continued their studies from September continue to have their fees covered under the Temporary Tuition Fee Support Scheme this year.
A statement from the Department of Higher Education said that in April the Government approved a recommendation from Minister James Lawless “to align the delivery of financial supports to BOTPs pursuing their tertiary education programme more closely with those available to Irish students.”
It said: “Noting that three years residency of the previous five years in Ireland is one of the main criteria for access to State schemes such as SUSI and the Free Fees Initiative, all BOTPs with [temporary permission] status of three years or more are now required to apply for financial supports through these schemes.”
It said: “In the case of those with less than three years [temporary permission] status, the Temporary Tuition Fees Support scheme will continue to fund their fees, and they will receive a BOTP stipend”.
The Department also said: “The Temporary Support schemes will be closed to any new entrants for the 2026/2027 Academic Year, and supports will be delivered via the means-tested State schemes.”
Asked about supports that will be available for existing Ukrainian students who wish to continue their studies next year, the Department said; “A decision on the supports available for continuing students in Academic Year 2026/27 will be confirmed in the coming weeks.”
