Central Applications Office

TERMS & CONDITIONS:
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GENERAL

You should be very clearly aware that, in submitting an online application, you accept all the directions and conditions set out in it and in the 2018 CAO Handbook. This Handbook sets out clearly the procedures, dates and other important issues, of which you must be aware in order to achieve your aim of securing a place on an appropriate third level course of study.

The 2018 CAO Handbook (which is available online) gives information on application and admission procedures only. Application should not be made for any course without first consulting the information literature of the institution offering that course.  Non-standard applicants (i.e., mature applicants and those having qualifications other than Irish Leaving Certificate or 2002-2018 QQI FET/FETAC awards) must contact HEIs, before applying, for information on conditions etc.

Only the official HEI material will give you the essential information about the content of the courses, entry requirements, duration, career prospects, etc.

Certain categories of applicant are required to apply direct to some HEIs and rather than through CAO. Details are provided in the 2018 CAO Handbook. For instance, applicants who are now, or who have been in the past, resident outside the EU may be required to apply direct to some HEIs. It is important that such applicants read the appropriate section on page 21 of the 2018 CAO Handbook.

Certain courses are Restricted-Application Courses. They have early assessment procedures - usually around March or April - and, therefore, must be mentioned in an application in time for HEIs to arrange these procedures. Restricted-Application Courses which are included in Late Applications are invalid choices and will not be considered.

Most part-time courses and some evening courses are not offered through the CAO Application System and direct application must be made for them.

Although you are not obliged to do so, if you have a disability or specific learning difficulty you are encouraged to indicate this on the Application Form and supply details in the Supplementary Information Form which forms part of the CAO online application form. CAO will then supply these details to the HEIs. The purpose of this procedure is to allow HEIs to consider any specific support needs you may have in a higher education institution

Some HEIs may also take account of such disabilities or specific learning difficulties in considering the provision of supplementary admission procedures.

You may be assured that the disclosure of a disability or specific learning difficulty is designed solely to enable HEIs to support access to higher education by students with a disability or specific learning difficulty. Disclosure will not adversely affect your application or your legal rights in any way.

The HEIs participating in the CAO System reserve the right not to consider applications and to cancel any offers of places in cases where requested information has not been provided or where falsified or misleading information has been supplied.

Applications will be assessed on the basis of the information and documents supplied to CAO during the CAO application year. Neither CAO nor the HEIs will accept any responsibility for any loss or hardship arising from failure to supply correct and complete information at the appropriate time.

In any one year, you may not present more than one application (either online or paper). To rectify the submission of more than one application, a payment of an extra fee of €10 will be imposed.

It is the applicant`s own responsibility to ensure that the application is submitted accurately and on time. All documents submitted must be clearly marked with the applicant's name and CAO Application Number.

Applicants should avoid submitting an application close to a Closing Date. The Closing Date cannot be extended.

If you have any doubt about anything in the 2018 CAO Handbook or other CAO documentation, please contact us for clarification or confirmation.

The Irish language version of this website is a translation of the original English language site and the English language version takes precedence.

JAVASCRIPT AND COOKIES REQUIRED

Javascript & cookies must also be enabled on your browser to use the online facilities.


CREDIT CARD TRANSACTIONS

Only applicants who apply online may make payment by credit or debit card (Visa or MasterCard).

By submitting your card details and clicking 'Proceed with Application' you are requesting CAO to provide the application service to you and you are agreeing to pay the application fee for this service. Once payment is accepted and CAO provides you with an application number and application account you are deemed to have received the application service. The application fee payment for the application service is non-refundable.

PERMISSION OF CARDHOLDER

Applicants using another person's credit card to pay the application fee must have the express permission of the cardholder to do so.


USE OF A FEE PAYMENT FORM TO PAY THE ONLINE APPLICATION FEE

If you are living in the Republic of Ireland and you do not wish to pay the application fee using a Credit/Debit card, you may use the Application Fee Payment Form to pay the application fee through a bank. You may request an Application Fee Payment Form by contacting CAO. The bank will retain Part Three of the Payment Form and return Parts One and Two to you. Ensure that the correct fee is paid and that the bank places its stamp on Parts One and Two.  Keep Parts One and Two safely for your records. Do not send any part of the form to CAO.


DO NOT WAIT UNTIL CLOSE TO A CLOSING DATE TO SUBMIT AN APPLICATION.

Normally, applicants will have no difficulty in submitting an online application to CAO.  However, in case of technical difficulties arising from any cause, applicants should avoid submitting an application close to a Closing Date. CAO cannot accept any responsibility for loss or hardship arising from the failure of an application to arrive in CAO before the Closing Date. The Closing Date cannot be extended.


ASSISTANCE

Enquiries may be made by telephone or via internet by clicking the "Contact Us" button on the menu of the CAO web-site and filling out the e-mail form.


EVIDENCE OF ONLINE APPLICATION

Evidence of the payment of the application fee does not constitute evidence of application.

The only acceptable evidence of account submission or account changes/updates is a print-out or e-mail containing a valid RVC (receipt validation code).

CONSENT
By submitting an application to CAO, you give consent to your data being made available to all the HEIs to which you have applied. In addition, you consent to the use of application data to obtain and verify examination data from the State Examinations Commission, QQI FET/FETAC and examination authorities in Britain and Northern Ireland, as required.

Copyright © 2017 Central Applications Office. All rights reserved; no part of this website may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior permission from the Central Applications Office. The information on this Website is intended to act as a guide to persons seeking admission to undergratuate courses at third level institutions in Ireland and shall not be deemed to constitute a contract between the CAO or any third party. Whilst every reasonable effort has been made to ensure that the information on the Official Information pages is correct at the time of compilation, Central Applications Office, Galway (CAO) is not bound by any error in, or omission from, the material published. The CAO reserves the right to amend, change or delete any information included at any time and it shall not be bound by any errors or omissions and cannot accept liability in respect thereof. Applicants should reference both the 2018 CAO Handbook and the institution prospectus.
2018 CAO Application Form
