Northern Ireland: fee status

Last modified: 24 February 2017

Publicly funded educational institutions normally charge two levels of fee: a lower 'home' fee and a higher 'overseas' fee. Private sector institutions often have only one level of tuition fee, which all students must pay.

Whether you pay a 'home' or 'overseas' fee depends on whether you meet certain criteria.

Please read the information on Home or Overseas fees? before looking at our explanation of the fees regulations/guidance for your relevant area of the UK.

Remember that, in the context of the fees regulations/guidance, certain terms mean what is explained for them in the 'definitions' and not what you might interpret from an ‘everyday’ understanding of the words.

Higher education (HE) courses at HE institutions

Courses at further education (FE) institutions

Definitions: for fee status assessment

Higher education (HE) courses at HE institutions

Last modified: 15 August 2017

This information explains the conditions you must meet to be entitled to pay tuition fees at the 'home' rate for study at a HE institution in Northern Ireland. Information is based on The Student Fees (Qualifying Courses and Persons) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2007 (as amended).

Private sector institutions often have just one level of tuition fee, which all students must pay. However, we understand from the Northern Ireland Government that publicly funded educational institutions in Northern Ireland will charge one of three levels of fee:

a ‘home’ fee (£3,575); or
a middle rate capped fee which certain, specified students who are not eligible for the 'home' fee may qualify for. New fee regulations came into force in September 2012 which mean that students who started a course on/after that date are assessed differently, in a small number of ways, to those who began their course before that date. Institutions have agreed with the Northern Ireland Government to cap this middle rate fee at £9000; or
a top-rate, uncapped ‘overseas’ fee for all other students.

1. 'Settled' in the UK

(a) you must be settled in the UK on the first day of the first academic year of the course; and

(b) you must satisfy one of the following:

you must be ordinarily resident in Northern Ireland on the first day of the first academic year of the course. However, if you are ordinarily resident in Northern Ireland because you moved from England, Wales, Scotland, the Channel Islands, or the Isle of Man, to undertake a course then you are considered to be ordinarily resident wherever you moved from, and not in Northern Ireland. If this applies to you, you will not qualify for 'home' fees under this category but you might qualify for the middle rate capped fee if you meet the conditions in (a), (c) and (d); or
if you are continuing a course that you started in an academic year before 2012/13, you must have been ordinarily resident in the UK on the first day of the first academic year of the course;

and

(c) you must also have been ordinarily resident in the UK and Islands for the full three year period before the first day of the first academic year of the course. For example, if your course begins in October 2017, you must have been ordinarily resident in the UK and Islands from 1 September 2014 to 31 August 2017; and

(d) the main purpose for your residence in the UK and islands must not have been to receive full-time education during any part of that three-year period.

Note: It is not necessary to have had settled immigration status in the UK for three years.

British Overseas Territories Citizens (BOTCs)

If you are a British Overseas Territories Citizen (BOTC), then you may also be a British Citizen (by virtue of the British Overseas Territories Act 2002). If you are such a British citizen, but you have not been ordinarily resident in the UK and Islands for the three years preceding the first day of the first academic year of the course, check Category 3. Category 3 requires three years’ ordinary residence in a wider residence area which includes the British Overseas Territories.

Students from the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man

If you moved to the UK for your course of study (or a course of study you finished immediately before it), you will be treated as being ordinarily resident in the Islands and as not ordinarily resident in the UK. You will therefore be unable to meet (b) above.

If you are in receipt of an award from your Island authority for higher education, you may be treated differently (that is, not as a 'home' or 'overseas' fee payer). This is because of an agreement between the Island authorities and UK higher education institutions.

2. 'Settled' in the UK and have exercised a 'right of residence'

3. EU nationals and family

(a) on the first day of an academic year of your course:

1. you must:

be a non-UK EU national; or
be the relevant family member of non-UK EU national, where that non-UK EU national is in the UK as a self-sufficient person, a worker, or a student; and
be ordinarily resident in Northern Ireland. However, if you are ordinarily resident in Northern Ireland because you moved from England, Wales, Scotland, the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man, to undertake a course then you are considered to be ordinarily resident wherever you moved from, and not in Northern Ireland, and would fail this requirement. If this applies to you, you will not qualify for 'home' fees under this category but you might qualify for the middle rate capped fee if you meet the conditions in (b) and (c); or

2. if continuing a course that you started in an academic year before 2012/13, you must:

be an EU national;or
be the relevant family member of non-UK EU national, where that non-UK EU national is in the UK as a self-sufficient person, a worker, or a student; or
be the relevant family member of a UK national;

and

(b) you must have been ordinarily resident in the EEA and/or Switzerland and/or the overseas territories for the three years before the first day of the first academic year of the course; and

(c) the main purpose of your residence in the EEA/Switzerland (or the overseas territories if applicable) must not have been to receive full-time education during any part of the three-year period.

Note: If you become, or a relevant family member becomes, an EU national after the start of your course, you can become entitled to 'home' fees from the start of the following academic year as long as:

you have satisfied the residence conditions in (b) and (c), above, on the first day of the first academic year of your course; and
[for the family member of an EU national] the EU national meets the requirements in (a), above, on the first day of whichever subsequent academic year the reassessment is being made for.

For the purposes of the residence conditions, any country that joins the EU is considered always to have been part of the EEA.

British Overseas Territories Citizens (BOTCs)

Certain British Overseas Territory Citizens (BOTCs) may also have British Citizenship (by virtue of the British Overseas Territories Act 2002). If you are a British Citizen, you are also an EU national. As an EU national, you will be eligible under this category provided that you meet the residence requirements at (b) and (c) above.

Special Provision: For people studying on courses which start on or after 1 September 2013

You do not have to meet the Category 3 (b) or (c) criteria (above) if your course starts/started on/after 1 September 2013 and:

you are the relevant family member of a non-UK EU national, and that non-UK EU national is in the UK as a self sufficient person or as a student; and
your relevant family member has been ordinarily resident in the EEA and/or Switzerland and/or the overseas territories for the three years before the first day of the first academic year of the course that you are studying.

4. ‘EU Nationals in the UK’

(a) you are a non-UK EU national on the first day of the first academic year of the course. If you are a national of a country that joins the EU after the start of your course you will be treated as meeting this requirement in the next academic year; and

(b)

you were ordinarily resident in Northern Ireland on the first day of the first academic year of the course. However, if you were ordinarily resident in Northern Ireland on that day because you moved from England, Wales, Scotland, or the Islands, to start a course then you are considered as ordinarily resident in the part of the UK that you came to Northern Ireland from, not Northern Ireland. If this applies to you, you will not qualify for 'home' fees under this category but you might qualify for the middle rate capped fee if you meet the conditions in (a), (c) and (d); or
if you are continuing a course that you started in an academic year before 2012/13, you were ordinarily resident in the UK on the first day of the first academic year of the course;

and

(c) you were ordinarily resident in the UK and Islands for the three-year period before the first day of the first academic year of the course; and

(d) if during any part of the three year period, the main purpose for your residence was to receive full-time education, you must have been ordinarily resident in the EEA and/or Switzerland and/or the overseas territories immediately prior to the three-year period of ordinary residence in the UK and Islands.

(a) y
ou are an non-UK EU national on the first day of the first academic year of the course. If you are a national of a country that joins the EU after the start of your course you will be treated as meeting this requirement in the next academic year; and
(b)
1. you were ordinarily resident in Northern Ireland on the first day of the first academic year of the course. However, if you were ordinarily resident in Northern Ireland on that day because you moved from England, Wales, Scotland, or the Islands, to start a course then you are considered as ordinarily resident in the part of the UK that you came to Northern Ireland from, not Northern Ireland. If this applies to you, you will not qualify for 'home' fees under this category but you might qualify for the middle rate capped fee if you meet the conditions in (a), (c) and (d); or
2. if you are continuing a course that you started in an academic year before 2012/13, you wereordinarily resident in the UK on the first day of the first academic year of the course;

and

(c) you were ordinarily resident in the UK and Islands for the three-year period before the first day of the first academic year of the course; and
(d) if during any part of the three year period, the main purpose for your residence was to receive full-time education, you must have been ordinarily resident in the EEA and/or Switzerland and/or the overseas territories immediately prior to the three-year period of ordinary residence in the UK and Islands.

5. Those with the ‘right of permanent residence’ in the UK

6. EEA/Swiss workers and family

7. Child of a Swiss National

8. Child of a Turkish worker

9. Refugees and family

10. ‘Person with leave to remain’ and family

Courses at further education (FE) institutions

Last modified: 31 August 2016

This information explains the conditions you need to meet to be entitled to pay tuition fees at the 'home' rate if you are studying any course at a FE institution in Northern Ireland. This includes courses of higher education (HE) as well as courses of further education (FE). This information is based on circulars published by Northern Ireland's Department for Employment and Learning (DELNI), which are, in turn, underpinned by regulations. Combining the circulars with the legislation results in a number of categories of student who are eligible for 'home' fees.

1. Those who are 'settled' in the UK and meet the main residence requirements

2. EU nationals, and family

3. EEA/Swiss workers, and family

4. Child of a Swiss National

5. Child of a Turkish worker

6. Refugees, and family

7. ‘Person with leave to enter or remain’, and their family

8. Asylum seekers and Syrian (VPRS) refugees, and family

Definitions: for fee status assessment

Last modified: 12 July 2017

This section has explanations about words and terms which occur in our information, above. These explanations should not be read in isolation but, instead, combined with the appropriate fee status category.

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Northern Ireland: fee status

Higher education (HE) courses at HE institutions

1. 'Settled' in the UK

British Overseas Territories Citizens (BOTCs)

Students from the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man

2. 'Settled' in the UK and have exercised a 'right of residence'

3. EU nationals and family

British Overseas Territories Citizens (BOTCs)

Special Provision: For people studying on courses which start on or after 1 September 2013

4. ‘EU Nationals in the UK’

5. Those with the ‘right of permanent residence’ in the UK

6. EEA/Swiss workers and family

7. Child of a Swiss National

8. Child of a Turkish worker

9. Refugees and family

Becoming eligible

Refugee Status: where someone gains British citizenship

10. ‘Person with leave to remain’ and family

Becoming eligible

Courses at further education (FE) institutions

1. Those who are 'settled' in the UK and meet the main residence requirements

2. EU nationals, and family

3. EEA/Swiss workers, and family

4. Child of a Swiss National

5. Child of a Turkish worker

6. Refugees, and family

7. ‘Person with leave to enter or remain’, and their family

8. Asylum seekers and Syrian (VPRS) refugees, and family

Definitions: for fee status assessment