Students in 'distress' following language college closures

Two English language colleges in Cork closed their doors last month, leaving dozens of people on student visas fearing for their immigration status.

Erin College and ICOT College both ceased operations after being removed from the Interim List of Eligible Programmes (ILEP) list, which details which language schools are eligible to sell courses to international students on student visas.

Erin College was removed from the ILEP list in August for failing to refund students who had paid for classes at the school, but who had been refused a visa and so were unable to enter the country. ICOT College has proceedings ongoing in the High Court over its removal from the ILEP list.

On 25 September, Erin College emailed students and staff to say that the school would be ceasing operations immediately.

On 30 September, staff were informed via email that the college had started the insolvency process with a "specialised firm".

The abrupt closing of the colleges has left students who rely on them for their immigration status in a "distressing" situation. Luana Lima, a student who travelled to Ireland from Brazil in April 2026, said that she feels extremely stressed by the situation.

"One day, the school is on the official list, the next day, it is removed from the list and closes its doors," she said.

Lima had just completed her first year at Erin College, and was planning to move to ICOT to complete her second, before that college also closed.

She does not know if the classes that she has missed will be rescheduled, if they will be credited, or if they will be reimbursed. She said there has been little to no contact from the schools with information.

Her final exams in Erin College were also cancelled, and she said that she has been advised that she will have to travel to Dublin if she wants to sit them.

"This potentially means paying twice for the same examination, in addition to transportation, food, and potentially accommodation costs. We feel particularly vulnerable because we need to maintain the correct documentation in order to proceed with a possible visa renewal," she said.

The lack of notice given by the school was also cited by other students.

María Obanda, who arrived in April from Costa Rica said that the lack of notice has left them unclear what to do financially.

The sudden closures have also left staff in an uncertain position. Mariah Cronin, a teacher in Erin College originally from Boston, said that teachers received word that the school would be closing from their students, who were contacted first, rather than from the school.

She said that staff were informed approximately 30 minutes after students, and when she and other teachers went to see the academic director later that day, they were unaware that the school had closed.

All of the staff accounts at the school were immediately deactivated, leaving them unable to access their documents.

"We couldn't see our contracts, we have a lot of material that we've made that's now inaccessible. Some people have been there for years, they have years of lesson plans that they just can't access anymore, and there's no communication whatsoever from anyone," she said.

Lima said that the situation has left many fearing for their status in the country.

"There are students who were finishing their courses and had already made plans to return home or travel to other countries during their holidays. How are these students expected to return to Ireland without the documentation that should have been provided by their school?

"We followed the process, paid for our courses in good faith. Now we are left dealing with the consequences of a situation that is completely outside of our control, while still being expected to meet immigration deadlines and provide the correct documentation," she said.