It has been reported that there are dozens of students left out of pocket, waiting to receive large sums of money owed to them.
The Irish Council for International Students (ICOS) has stated that they are currently aware of 30 students waiting to receive money that is owed to them. These said cases includes prospective students whose visa applications were refused after they had paid school fees.
People from non-EEA countries must pay fees before applying for an Irish student visa. If a visa is found unsuccessful the school must return fees within 20 working days.
According to the ICOS, "Under Ireland's immigration regulations, all education providers (English language schools and third level institutions) that sell courses to non-EEA students are required to show their refunds policy on their website. Students have the right to a refund of their course fees if they are unsuccessful in applying for a visa to come to Ireland to study."
RTE interviewed a student currently struggling to receive her fees. She is currently owed €2,810 and has already been waiting 10 months for the payment to be refunded. In Febraury 2025, the student applied for a 25 week English language course. Already paying the €2,810, her visa was denied, and after alerting the school in June of the same year and sending multiple emails as a reminder. The school stopped responding to her, according to reports.
ICOS contacted the college on her behalf and on the behalf of another student, asking why they have not yet been refunded. ICOS has stated that they have not received a response from the college despite their efforts to contact.
"I feel very deceived and I have lost confidence. €2,810 is a significant sum of money here in Colombia. This experience has not been good for me," RTE quoted the student from Columbia.
The ICOS has stated that they are aware of €60,000 that is currently owed to students by ten differen schools in Ireland.
"We are very concerned. Since the start of 2026 we have had an exceptional number of students contacting us who are waiting for their refunds", Brian Hearne, Policy and Communications manager with ICOS said.
Hearne points out that the ICOS thinks that there is a higher number of students waiting for a refund. "The students who have contacted us are from developing countries, and the sums of money that they have paid to these language schools are extraordinary figures for them. In some cases it could be six or even 12 months of their annual salary. English is not their first language and they don’t know the system here or who to contact," he said.
The Department of Justice sent an email to English language schools in Ireland to remind them of their obligations. "We are seeing evidence of an increase in requests from refused visa applicants seeking their refunds from ILEP listed providers, some of these who are very concerned and worried about the delays they are experiencing," they wrote.
Providing further reminder and information on their obligations, they wrote: "For handling of advance payments dependent on the visa application process, ILEP Providers must operate an escrow/delayed payment account. The operation of the account must be in accordance with the following key steps: -Students pay programme fees in advance of making a visa application-Funds must remain in this account until the student's visa application is determined: If the visa application is refused, the funds (less any pre-indicated handling charge) must be refunded within 20 working days of the decision being communicated to the Provider."
