PUP Payments should not affect SUSI Grant application
Labour Spokesperson on Higher Education Senator Annie Hoey is calling for any and all Pandemic Unemployment Payments to be automatically included in the income disregard for applicants to the SUSI grant scheme.
Senator Hoey said:
“It has come to my attention that students who have been in receipt of the PUP payment are being put at a major disadvantage when it comes to their SUSI grant assessment. This is wholly unacceptable and I am asking Minister Harris to raise this at Cabinet as a matter of urgency.
“In the normal course, a full-time student is permitted to work for the months of June July and August each year. They can also work for two weeks at Easter and two additional weeks at Christmas.
“As it stands now here is a €4500 income disregard applied to any income earned during this period for SUSI grant application assessment purposes. However students are now being advised that income from social protection (PUP payment) are not included in this income disregard. This immediately puts students who were in receipt of a PUP payment this year at a disadvantage when it comes to their SUSI grant assessment.
“While I believe that next year’s grant scheme has not been finalised and that it’s possible that PUP payments will be included in the income disregard, details of next year’s scheme will be available in early spring 2021. However this is of no comfort to current applicants and I am calling on Minister Harris to address this as a matter of urgency.”