Flywire Helping Irish Schools Comply With New Regulations Around International Students

Flywire, a provider of cross-border payments and receivables solutions for businesses, schools and healthcare providers announced news on Tuesday (Aug. 28) that it is helping schools in Ireland comply with a recent government regulation regarding tuition payments made from outside Ireland.

In a press release, Flywire said it is currently working with a number of education institutions in the country that attract international students for study abroad opportunities, including The Centre of English Studies, The English Studio Dublin, Apollo Language Centre and many other higher education, vocational and language schools.

In Ireland, Flywire said it has tailored its platform specifically to meet the escrow-type account requirements for international students who require a visa to study abroad in Ireland. Irish schools that enroll such students are required to set aside funds paid on behalf of each student until the student’s visa application is approved or rejected, noted the company. With a new “delayed payment account” service, it is taking that burden off the schools, said the company.

Irish schools can now have Flywire hold cross-border tuition payments until the Irish Naturalization and Immigration Service (INIS) decides on each application. Once the decision is made by the INIS, the funds will be transferred to the school or funds will be repaid to the payer if a visa is denied. The new service is available immediately, the company said.

“Our new delayed payment account capability highlights Flywire’s commitment to meeting the evolving needs of the Irish education market,” Mike Massaro, CEO at Flywire, said in the press release. “The ability to tailor our platform to the unique needs of each market is core to the value we offer and, in our view, essential to addressing our clients’ cross-border payment requirements.”

Flywire serves Irish schools recruiting international students, as well as those students traveling to Ireland to study — such as The Centre of English Studies, The English Studio Dublin and the Apollo Language Centre. Citing Enterprise Ireland, Flywire said the country has seen a 25 percent increase in the number of international students since 2012, which is worth more than €1 billion to the Irish economy.