Post here if you need assistance filling out the grant form!

Annasopra · 25-07-2011 3:54pm

timeforachange wrote: »

I have a bit of a problem with my grant application that I'm really hoping someone here might be able to help me with.

Basically I was working until mid Oct 2010, when I started a new job. However this new job is a bit complicated and although I don't really class myself as being self employed because I don't have a business or anything, it is in fact technically self employment. This means that I have to organise my own taxes etc.
Now I earned about €3600 in 2010 through this new self employed job.

Because I never really realised I was self employed and because I really have very limited knowledge on taxes etc. I just kept putting it out of my head because somebody had told me that a tax year runs from Oct-Oct. So I am only getting around to registering myself to be able to pay my taxes now.

This is all above board, however my problem now is that I called my County council to enquire about how to prove my income for 2010 when there is about €3600 that I earned but have no payslips etc. for so no official proof. The lady told me to just get a P21 and send that in and when I explained to her that because I haven't organised my taxes for the last few months of 2010 those earnings wouldnt be on my P21, she told me not to worry about it that all they are concerned with is the earnings on my P21.

So as far as I can see all I can do is send in my P21 and not mention the last few months of 2010's self employment, as this is what she told me to do.

My problem is that if I do this then I'm thinking that the €3600 will end up being counted in my grant when I go to reapply next year for the second year of the course. And I have just worked out my income for 2011 and if I was to include those two and a half months of 2010 in my 2011's income then I would be very close to the cut off point for my grant. I'm just very worried that maybe if the cut off point was changed next year in the budget etc. I might miss out on my grant next year because of it.

However, this year I am well within the boundary and have no problem at all declaring this €3600 euro, only for the fact that I have nothing official to prove it!

This whole thing is wrecking my head so I'm really sorry if this post is hard to understand,as to be honest I'm finding the whole thing a little hard to understand myself but I'd be really appreciative to anyone who can try understand what I'm on about and help me with this!

In short I guess I'm saying that theres €3600 that I earned at the end of 2010 that I cannot officiall prove. The person in Co. Co. told me to leave it out. But I'm worried that when I go to apply next year for the grant for the second year of my course that this €3600 will then be counted and I'm worried this will push me over the boundaries for next years grant!

Thanks to anyone who has struggled through this post with me!!

No - I think that once you have submitted the accounts in October for 2010 you can ask for an adjusted p21 for 2010 to reflect the 3600 so that it doesn't get reflected in 2011 income - You will need to check with the revenue commissioners if they can adjust your p21s

timeforachange · 25-07-2011 4:09pm

Thanks for that Mango! Really appreciate the quick reply and I'm going to look into that now!

I also just found a form here that I have that might help. Its basically a copy of an official form from the department of education and the person that I work for has filled it in listing the amount of hours that I worked in 2010. I know this isn't any of the official form that the co. co. list as being required to prove self employed income but it is an official form from The department of education and I also have a seperate letter from the deparment of education that states my hourly rate. So does anyone else think this might be enough to send in as proof for those couple of months?

Thanks again

aaahhh · 26-07-2011 12:42pm

Hi
i was wondering about section G8, what information do i need to give? the amount i have in the bank or the amount of interest that i got from the bank?
or is it something different all together?

Thanks

Annasopra · 26-07-2011 4:40pm

aaahhh wrote: »

Hi
i was wondering about section G8, what information do i need to give? the amount i have in the bank or the amount of interest that i got from the bank?
or is it something different all together?

Thanks

As per the guidance notes

http://www.studentfinance.ie/downloads/Guidance%20Notes.pdf

F8. Income from savings, deposit accounts and investments
If you, your parent(s), legal guardian, spouse, civil partner or cohabitant, as applicable, have
money or investments in a financial institution or elsewhere, enter the gross amount of all
interest or income earned from savings, deposit accounts, personal loans made by you and
investments (stocks, shares, bonds, securities and dividends) in 2010.
Investments include savings certificates, life assurance bonds and other financial instruments
where the interest or profit builds up and is paid out as a lump sum at the end of the investment
period. If you hold this kind of investment, you must include a proportion of the final interest or
profit in your reckonable income. The proportion to be included is calculated by dividing the
total interest or profit at the end of the investment period by the number of years over which it
will have accumulated.
For example, €5,000 invested in 2009, which will reach €7,500 gross after 5 years, would have
an annual income of €500 (that is, €2,500 divided by 5) for reckonable income purposes for
2010. The annual interest should be time-apportioned for the year in which the investment is
made and the year in which it is realised where these periods are less than a full year. You
should include gross interest before Irish tax is deducted.
For distributions from Irish companies, you should include the amount received and the Irish tax
deducted.
For foreign interest and dividends, you should include the euro equivalent of the gross amount
earned before deduction of foreign tax, if any.
Documentary evidence for F8
You must send us the following documents as evidence:
Statements of the interest/dividends paid from the financial institution or other provider, for
example, bank, building society, post office or credit union, and so on, covering the period 1
January 2010 to 31 December 2010;
P21 PAYE Balancing Statement or Notice of Assessment for 2010.

bettyboop1 · 27-07-2011 1:25pm

hello all, just wondering can anybody help me. i am helping my parents fill in the student grant form for my little sister but we have a huge problem. my father is self employed and the form asks for a copy of accounts from 2010. however my dad does not have to submit his accounts for 2010 until october this year so we do not have a copy of them. he has had a dramatic reduce in his income since 2009 and does not even receive a wage from the company, is just barely able to pay bills etc...he cannot afford to get his accounts done right now and even if he did they would not be ready for at least one month, which will miss the grant deadline. can anybody shed some light on what to do in this specific instance. he is also unable to get his p21 etc due to this. any help is greatly appreciated, many thanks in advance.

PlayGirl · 28-07-2011 1:38pm

Section F - where do I find my total gross income in 2010?

Annasopra · 28-07-2011 1:52pm

PlayGirl wrote: »

Section F - where do I find my total gross income in 2010?

P60, P21, Social welfare statements

Depends on what you were earning

Tesco Massacre · 28-07-2011 5:31pm

Ok, quick(ish) question:

I'm applying as a postgrad for the student grant. It says in the application that if I was previously in receipt of a student grant I should re-apply to grant awarding authority that processed my application. My last grant came from Kildare VEC, but my address is now in Cork...will this have any bearing on the adjacent/non-adjacent rates, i.e. will I still be classed as being from Kildare?

Thanks!

Annasopra · 28-07-2011 5:43pm

Tesco Massacre wrote: »

Ok, quick(ish) question:

I'm applying as a postgrad for the student grant. It says in the application that if I was previously in receipt of a student grant I should re-apply to grant awarding authority that processed my application. My last grant came from Kildare VEC, but my address is now in Cork...will this have any bearing on the adjacent/non-adjacent rates, i.e. will I still be classed as being from Kildare?

Thanks!

How long is it since your undergrad?

Tesco Massacre · 28-07-2011 5:54pm

mango salsa wrote: »

How long is it since your undergrad?

I did my final exams in 2008/2009.

Annasopra · 28-07-2011 6:01pm

Tesco Massacre wrote: »

I did my final exams in 2008/2009.

Presumably your parents live in Kildare and you live in Cork?

I think that based on the 3 year rule you may have to apply as though you are dependent on your parents.

The 3 year rule means you cannot change from being a dependent student to being an independent student for a period of 3 years (see below) but you can apply as dependent on your parents

Classes of applicant
12. (1) For the purposes of this Scheme there shall be two classes of applicant
as follows—
(a) independent student; and
(b) dependent student.

(2) An applicant’s class is defined at their first point of entry to an approved
post leaving certificate course or an approved higher education course or at
their point of re-entry to such an approved course and will continue to apply
for the duration of their studies.
(3) In this scheme an “independent student” means a mature student who did
not ordinarily reside with his or her parents, or either of them, from 1 October
of the year before the first point of entry to an approved post leaving certificate
course or an approved higher education course or re-entry to an approved
course.
(4) “Mature student” means a student who on 1 January—
(a) in the year of entry for the first time to an approved post leaving
certificate course;
(b) in the year of entry for the first time to an approved higher education
course (other than a course known for the time being as a post leaving
certificate course); or
(c) in the year of re-entry to an approved course,
is at least 23 years old.
(5) “Re-entry”, for the purposes of this Scheme, means a mature student
entering an approved course following a break in studies of at least three years, having previously attended an approved course.

Tesco Massacre · 28-07-2011 6:07pm

Ah, ok. It's all a bit convoluted, isn't it?

But thanks for your help. You're a champion!

Ebbs · 28-07-2011 6:55pm

Mine is up for reassement, this year for the second semester we have the option to study abroad or work placement/intern. As of now we have no idea as to what we are doing and probably wont know for the first 2+ months of college.

How do I fill in the two questions asking for the specific details on it when we dont know? If it is an internship or going away obviously an increased grant would help.

Any tips or words of advise?

timeforachange · 28-07-2011 7:54pm

Just want to clear something up that just popped into my head.

I got the grant for my undergrad as a dependant student. I'm now applying for my postgraduate, still dependant but now I'm over 23 so they categorise me as a dependant mature student.

Up until now I believed I'd get my grant because I know the 3 year rule would not apply to me because I'm still applying as being dependant on my parents but now it's just hit me that maybe I might have a problem because I'm now a mature dependant ?!

In a bit of a panic now so any help would be great!

Annasopra · 29-07-2011 11:13am

timeforachange wrote: »

Just want to clear something up that just popped into my head.

I got the grant for my undergrad as a dependant student. I'm now applying for my postgraduate, still dependant but now I'm over 23 so they categorise me as a dependant mature student.

Up until now I believed I'd get my grant because I know the 3 year rule would not apply to me because I'm still applying as being dependant on my parents but now it's just hit me that maybe I might have a problem because I'm now a mature dependant ?!

In a bit of a panic now so any help would be great!

Dependent student and mature dependent student are the exact same thing

fitz1011 · 31-07-2011 4:10pm

If one parent is dead and the other lives in england who do get to fill in the income part and do i include money that has been left to me????

Perplexed22 · 31-07-2011 5:31pm

fitz1011 wrote: »

If one parent is dead and the other lives in england who do get to fill in the income part and do i include money that has been left to me????

With regard to your inheritance - you would only include the full amount if it was received in 2010. If it was earlier than that you should submit certificates of interest if you have invested it. If it is in the form of property, you should submit accounts if there was any income from the property in 2010.

If your other parent is in England you can fill in the form on their behalf. You will need their English P60 for 2010 and a balancing statement for them from HMRC. You should send them the declaration page of the form and ask them to sign it and send it back to you.

cactus10 · 02-08-2011 12:55pm

Im just about ready to post mine off to the VEC; have my original birth cert and other docs in it; they return all of these, dont they? Do you need to insert a stamped/addressed envelope with the form?

Annasopra · 02-08-2011 2:13pm

cactus10 wrote: »

Im just about ready to post mine off to the VEC; have my original birth cert and other docs in it; they return all of these, dont they? Do you need to insert a stamped/addressed envelope with the form?

No you don't - but send them by registered post and ask them to do the same

nern · 02-08-2011 2:28pm

Does the 3 year rule apply if you never received a grant previously?

Annasopra · 02-08-2011 2:50pm

nern wrote: »

Does the 3 year rule apply if you never received a grant previously?

Yes

Lee1993 · 02-08-2011 7:11pm

I've filled out my student grant form and have all the documents I need. I had the address. But I've lost it. Do you know the postal address for the form? Thanks

Annasopra · 02-08-2011 7:28pm

Lee1993 wrote: »

I've filled out my student grant form and have all the documents I need. I had the address. But I've lost it. Do you know the postal address for the form? Thanks

Heg section
x county council/VEC

x being whichever county you live in

AnnaDUN · 02-08-2011 10:23pm

Kinda log but here goes...

In section B2, documentary evidence of nationality includes a "national identity card". Would a garda age card suffice for this? If so, would i have to enclose the actual card or could i use a photocopy instead, and would this photocopy have to be certified? I also have a foreign birth registration certificate and certified copy of passport but would prefer to include as much documentation as possible.

In section B2, evidence of sitting the leaving cert is required. If the leaving cert results are used, is it necessary to use the original copy or would a photocopy be acceptable?

Also, what are the specifications, if any, for the letter from the principal of the school which i attended? Must it be written on paper with the school letter head, and if the principal of my school is unavailable, would the letter still be valid if signed by another member of staff e.g. the school secretary?

Finally, in section B2, utility bills and social welfare statements are named as documentary evidence. If these are in the name of my parents but clearly stating what can i prove through bank and garda correspondance addressed to me specifically is my home address, can they be used as documentary evidence that i resided in ireland for three of the last five years, or must the utility bills/social welfare statements be specifically addressed to me?

Also, must these bills or statements span three years or would one suffice?

craggles · 03-08-2011 6:34pm

I'm living at home and the household income is not above the threshold so I think I might be able to get a (probably small) grant but I'm unsure how to check this.

I'm doing a PhD as a demonstratorship, my fees are covered and I get 11k a year. How do I find out if I'm eligible for anything or not?

jubella · 03-08-2011 7:46pm

Help! I can't find my p45 or p60 anywhere. I need them for my grant form. Is it possible to get replacements for these?? Can't believe I lost them

Annasopra · 03-08-2011 8:47pm

craggles wrote: »

I'm living at home and the household income is not above the threshold so I think I might be able to get a (probably small) grant but I'm unsure how to check this.

I'm doing a PhD as a demonstratorship, my fees are covered and I get 11k a year. How do I find out if I'm eligible for anything or not?

I think you have to actually apply before anyone can say you are eligible or not

Lee1993 · 04-08-2011 12:46pm

mango salsa wrote: »

Heg section
x county council/VEC

x being whichever county you live in

So, I live in Dublin 17. Is this the right address then?

Heg section
Dublin City council/VEC

Matthew_drog · 05-08-2011 1:51pm

I live 43 km away from the college and the total earnings of my family are 130 euro over the limit to get the full grant... I included my earnings, my mams earnings and my dad's dole, would you reckon there is a chance of getting the full grant?

Annasopra · 05-08-2011 2:20pm

Lee1993 wrote: »

So, I live in Dublin 17. Is this the right address then?

Heg section
Dublin City council/VEC

I don't know if Dublin 17 is city of Dublin VEC - Ring and ask them

http://www.cdvec.ie/en/index.cfm/do/ContactDetails

http://www.codubvec.ie/en/index.cfm/do/contactus

Post here if you need assistance filling out the grant form!

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