Trinity College Dublin has described the refusal of visas for Palestinian students who had been awarded scholarships to study in Ireland as “deeply concerning”, as political parties and university leaders call for the decisions to be urgently reviewed.

A protest took place on Wednesday, August 19, outside the Department of Justice offices at St Stephen’s Green in Dublin, following the refusal of entry permission for Palestinian students due to begin university courses next month.

More than half of a group of 59 Palestinians who secured scholarships were refused permission to enter Ireland, affecting students due to study at Trinity College Dublin, University College Dublin (UCD), the University of Limerick (UL) and the National College of Art and Design (NCAD).

 

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At least 31 of the 59 Palestinian students who applied for visas after receiving fully or partially funded scholarships from Irish third-level institutions this year were refused permission to enter the country, according to figures released last week by the Universities of Sanctuary initiative. The initiative works to develop practices for welcoming asylum seekers and refugees into third-level institutions, and the scholarships are intended to cover costs including tuition, accommodation and living expenses.

Speaking to RTÉ, Labour Party leader Ivana Bacik described the situation as shocking and said the reasons given for the visa refusals had been “far too dismissive of the conditions and circumstances” in which the students find themselves. The Labour Party and Social Democrats have called on Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan to urgently review the visa decisions.

Senior leadership at Trinity College Dublin have also urged staff and students to petition Government Ministers to undertake “an urgent review” of immigration cases involving Palestinians who have secured scholarships but been denied visas.

In an email sent to the university’s more than 25,000 staff and students, senior Trinity management described the refusals as “deeply concerning”. They explained that dozens of students from Gaza and the West Bank have had their applications denied in recent days, despite receiving funding from Irish academic institutions to enable them to study in the country.

The Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration said each visa application is assessed on its own merits, regardless of nationality. It said Palestinian nationals must hold a valid Irish visa before seeking to enter the State and that 41 student visas had been granted to Palestinian nationals so far in 2026.

If you would like to support the approval of visas for students from Gaza who have been granted scholarships to Irish universities, you can do so by signing the petition here.