Only 1 English school in Cork is granted new status
Only one language school in Cork has been granted the new TrustEd Ireland mark by Quality and Qualifications Ireland (QQI), the state body with responsibility for academic standards in Ireland.
Patrick's English Academy, located on South Terrace, is the only school in Cork which has so far been granted the TrustEd mark, meaning that it will continue to be able to offer language courses to non-EU/EEA nationals following the expiration of the Interim List of Eligible Programmes (ILEP) at the end of the year.
It is one of only five language schools nationally which have been granted the accreditation, alongside three in Dublin, and one in Galway.
There are currently ten language schools active in Cork - including Patrick's English College - offering a combined 153 English language courses for a variety of levels of proficiency.
The figures were compiled by LanguageBooking.com, which acts as an intermediary for students to book English language courses in Ireland.
ILEP is set to expire at the end of this year, once QQI makes its final decisions concerning the second round of applications for TrustEd status, which ran from October 2025 to March 2026.
After this date, any school which has not received the TrustEd mark will be unable to offer language courses to non-EU/EEA students who require an accredited course for their visa application.
A spokesperson for QQI said: "QQI is progressing TrustEd Ireland applications currently in the system, with the aim of processing these by the end of 2026. Further announcements on newly authorised providers will be made as the programme authorisation process is complete".
However, they said that they cannot name specific schools which are waiting for a decision, and will only release names once the full assessment process has been completed.
Cork closures
Two schools in Cork have already closed after losing their ILEP status.
Erin College and ICOT ceased trading in September and October respectively, after each lost its ILEP status for failing to refund students whose visa applications were rejected.
The school sought a judicial review of the process, but withdrew this on 16 October.
In court filings seen by the Cork Independent, Fariba Taher Mahi, Company Director of Shanti Niketon Limited, which traded as ICOT College, said that the increased refusals of visa applications in 2025 had negatively impacted the company's ability to repay students.
He said that between 1 June and 31 December 2025, there were 271 refusals out of a total of 521 applications, or 52.98%. A number of applications made in 2025 were outstanding on 1 January 2026.
Mahi said that there had also been an increase in refusals by 21% between 2024 and 2025, from 247 to 298, or 51 refusals.