The 2026/27 income threshold table
Reckonable income must be under the figure shown, not equal to it. The three columns are the number of dependent children in the household, counting the applicant. The last column is the amount every threshold in that row rises for each additional family member (other than the applicant) in full-time further or higher education at the same time.
| Award | Fewer than 4 children | 4 to 7 children | 8 or more | Per extra student |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Special rate of maintenance | €28,600 | €31,350 | €33,980 | +€4,950 |
| Band 1: full maintenance | €47,010 | €51,520 | €55,850 | +€4,950 |
| Band 2: part maintenance | €48,270 | €52,900 | €57,345 | +€4,785 |
| Band 3: part maintenance | €51,040 | €55,940 | €60,635 | +€4,785 |
| Band 4: part maintenance | €58,470 | €64,080 | €69,465 | +€4,785 |
| 100% student contribution, no maintenance | €64,315 | €70,490 | €76,410 | +€4,950 |
| 50% student contribution | €71,300 | €78,145 | €84,710 | +€4,950 |
| €500 off the student contribution | €120,000 | €131,520 | €142,570 | +€4,950 |
The special rate has one extra condition: on 31 December 2025 the household income must have included an eligible long-term Department of Social Protection payment (or an equivalent from another EU state). Without that payment, a household on €25,000 gets Band 1, not the special rate. The same table applies to PLC, undergraduate and postgraduate applicants; only the fee element differs. What each band actually pays is on the rates page.
How the increments work
Two adjustments can move a family up the table. First, the column: a household with 4 to 7 dependent children uses the middle column, 8 or more uses the right-hand column. Second, the increment: for each other family member in full-time further or higher education (a sibling in college, or for an independent student, a spouse or partner), add €4,950 to the special rate, Band 1 and fee-tier thresholds, and €4,785 to Bands 2, 3 and 4.
So a family with fewer than 4 children and one sibling already in college has a Band 1 limit of €47,010 + €4,950 = €51,960, and a Band 4 limit of €58,470 + €4,785 = €63,255. The other student’s course must last at least one year.
What counts as reckonable income
SUSI starts from gross income from all sources, inside or outside the State, for the reference year 1 January to 31 December 2025. Gross means before tax, and it includes income that is tax-free or exempt. Whose income depends on your applicant class: a dependent student is assessed on their own income plus their parents’ or guardians’; an independent student on their own plus a spouse, civil partner or cohabitant. Included:
- Employment income, including benefit-in-kind and directorships.
- Social welfare payments, including the State pension.
- Payments from other government departments or state agencies (ACRES in respect of 2025 only).
- Self-employment and farming income.
- Rental income and other income from land and property.
- Pensions, and income from savings, deposits and investments.
- Maintenance payments received.
- Retirement and redundancy lump sums (spread over the years of service).
- Income from disposing of assets or rights, and gifts and inheritances.
What is not counted
A long list of payments is excluded outright. The ones that matter to most families: Child Benefit, Working Family Payment, Carer’s Allowance, Domiciliary Care Allowance, Fuel Allowance, Household Benefits Package, Housing Assistance Payment, Rent Supplement, Back to Work Family Dividend, the Christmas Bonus and cost-of-living payments, Foster Care Allowance and personal injury compensation. New for 2026/27: Constant Attendance Allowance and Disablement Benefit are also disregarded. Where the applicant receives them, Disability Allowance, Blind Pension and means-tested One Parent Family Payment are excluded too, as are the Student Grant itself, the Student Assistance Fund and the first €5,000 of most scholarships. The full list is on susi.ie.
What is deducted
After adding up gross income, SUSI takes off a fixed set of deductions. These are the ones that most often move a family under a threshold:
- Holiday earnings, up to €8,830. A full-time student’s own earnings from work during the Christmas, Easter and summer holidays of 2025. Declare them on the form; SUSI asks for proof only if they improve your rate.
- Pension contributions paid in 2025, within the age-related limits Revenue allows.
- Non-recurring overtime earned in 2025. Regular, rostered overtime stays in.
- Employment expenses approved by Revenue (flat-rate expenses for your trade, for example).
- Maintenance paid to a separated spouse under a legally enforceable arrangement.
- Rent a Room income up to €14,000, where it was declared to Revenue.
- Vouched placement expenses for student nurses and midwives.
Note what is not on that list: mortgage payments, childcare, rent, loan repayments and the cost of college itself. Outgoings do not reduce reckonable income.
Three worked examples
Each result below is produced by the same code that runs the calculator, using the 2026/27 table above.
Example 1: two children, one income, 45km from college
Parents earn €52,000 gross. The father paid €4,000 into a pension and had €3,500 of one-off overtime, both deducted. Reckonable income: €44,500.
Result: Band 1, full maintenance. Threshold applied: €47,010. Maintenance €4,722 a year (about €524.67 a month over nine instalments), plus student contribution fully covered (€2,500).
Example 2: five children, a sibling already in college, 12km away
Household reckonable income €58,000. The family is in the 4 to 7 children column and one other child is in full-time college, so every threshold rises by one increment.
Result: Band 3, part maintenance. Threshold applied: €60,725. Maintenance €975 a year (about €108.33 a month over nine instalments), plus student contribution fully covered (€2,500).
Example 3: three children, both parents working, 60km away
Reckonable income €68,500 after a €2,000 pension deduction. Too high for any maintenance band, but under the €71,300 half-contribution line.
Result: No maintenance. Threshold applied: €71,300. Half the student contribution covered (€1,250).
Example 2 shows why the increment matters. Without the sibling in college, €58,000 in the 4 to 7 children column would be Band 4 (limit €64,080), paying €612 a year. With one more student the Band 3 limit becomes €55,940 + €4,785 = €60,725, so the family moves up a band and the adjacent maintenance rises to €975. Try your own figures in the student grant calculator: it handles the columns and increments for you.
Frequently asked questions
What is the SUSI income threshold for 2026/27?
For a household with fewer than 4 dependent children: full maintenance (Band 1) needs reckonable income under €47,010, part maintenance runs up to €58,470, the full student contribution is paid under €64,315, half under €71,300, and €500 off is available under €120,000. The special rate needs income under €28,600 plus a long-term social welfare payment. Every limit is higher for families with 4 or more children and for each extra family member in college.
Is the threshold gross or net income?
Gross. SUSI starts from gross income from all sources for 2025, before tax, and including income that is tax-free or exempt. It then applies a fixed set of deductions (holiday earnings, pension contributions within Revenue limits, non-recurring overtime and a few others) to reach reckonable income. Net take-home pay is not the figure.
Does Child Benefit count as income?
No. Child Benefit, Working Family Payment, Carer’s Allowance, Domiciliary Care Allowance, Fuel Allowance, HAP, Rent Supplement and the Student Grant itself are all excluded from reckonable income. Most other social welfare payments, including the State pension, are included.
How much can a student earn without affecting the SUSI grant?
Up to €8,830 of a full-time student’s own earnings outside term time (Christmas, Easter and summer holidays) is deducted for 2026/27, up from €8,424. Earnings during term count in full unless the college confirms its term dates in writing.
Sources: the 2026/27 undergraduate threshold table and the reckonable income page on susi.ie, the income limits and holiday earnings figure on citizensinformation.ie, and the deductions in article 22(5) of the Student Grant Scheme 2026. Figures checked on 5 September 2026.