School Transport

Applications for school transport for the 2026/27school year

Bus Éireann’s on-line application portal is now open

How to apply

You can apply on-line to Bus Éireann at www.buseireann.ie/schooltransport or click here Bus Éireann Portal.

The closing date for payments or entering medical card details is Friday, 8 May 2026.

Who needs to apply

• Students who have never applied for school transport.
• Students starting junior infants or first year for the first time in the 2026/27school year.
• Students changing home address or moving school in the 2026/27 school year.
• All students who have arrived in Ireland from Ukraine, residing in accommodation centres, modular homes, with host families and independently and all students residing in IPAS/EROC centres.

If you apply after the closing date, your application will be late and you may not get a ticket

Payment facility for 2026/27

You must submit payment or medical card details if you are:

• A new applicant
• A pupil who has used school transport before and needs a seat for the 2026/27 school year

The closing date for payments or entering medical card details is Friday, 8 May 2026.

If you make a payment or enter medical card details after this date, it will be late, and you may not get a ticket and will not be considered for a Remote Area Grant.

School transport ticket charges

The annual charges for School Transport services for the 2026/27 school year are:

Medical card holders

Children who are eligible for school transport and have a valid medical card (GMS Scheme) do not have to pay the annual fee. However, the medical card details must be submitted to the Bus Éireann Portal by 8 May 2026.

If you submit medical card details after this date it will be late and you may not get a ticket.

Temporary Portal Closure

The Bus Éireann family portal will close temporarily, from 8 May 2026 until 1 July 2026. This will give Bus Éireann time to plan for the new school year.

Bus Éireann contact details

Bus Éireann runs the School Transport Scheme for the Department of Education and Youth. They have a dedicated customer care call centre to help families with school transport questions.

If you have any questions, you can call the centre at LoCall 0818 919 910. The phone lines are open from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm, Monday to Friday.

You can also submit your questions to Bus Éireann online.

School Transport Section contact details

If you wish to contact School Transport Section you can submit your query on the online Customer Contact Form

Eligibility criteria

The eligibility criteria for School Transport for the 2026/27 school year are as follows:

Children are eligible for school transport if they meet the following criteria:

• Primary Level: They live at least 3.2 km from their nearest national school, as determined by the Department/Bus Éireann, considering the school’s ethos and language.
• Post-Primary Level: They live at least 4.8 km from their nearest post-primary school or education centre, as determined by the Department/Bus Éireann, considering the school’s ethos and language.

Eligible children who complete the application and payment process on time will get a seat on a school bus service, if a service is available.

Children who are not eligible for school transport but complete the application and payment process on time will be considered for any spare seats available after eligible children have been accommodated. These spare seats are called concessionary seats.

There may be more demand than availability for concessionary seats. In such cases, Bus Éireann will use an agreed selection process to allocate tickets for the spare seats.

Temporary alleviation measures will continue for the 2026/27 school year. This means that, if there are available services and enough capacity, transport will be provided for concessionary pupils who are eligible for transport to their nearest school but are attending their second nearest school or post-primary centre. This is only if they apply and pay on time.

For the 2026/2027 school year, all students from Ukraine and all students residing in IPAS/EROC centres will need to apply and pay on Bus Éireann’s school transport family portal by the deadline date of 8 May 2026.

You can access Bus Éireann’s Family Portal by following this link https://www.buseireann.ie/schooltransport

If you have already applied on the Bus Éireann Family Portal, you will not have to reapply unless you will be attending a new school in 2026/27 or you have moved address. You will however have to log on to make a payment or enter medical card details.

Eligibility criteria

In order to qualify for school transport, your child must be

• Primary Level: Living at least 3.2 km from their nearest primary school, as determined by the Department/Bus Éireann, considering the school’s ethos and language.
• Post-Primary Level: Living at least 4.8 km from their nearest post-primary school or education centre, as determined by the Department/Bus Éireann, considering the school’s ethos and language.

You must apply and, where applicable, pay before the 8 May 2026.

The following applies if your child is attending their closest school and satisfies the distance criteria above (eligible):

• If your child holds a valid medical card (GMS Scheme), then they are exempt from paying the annual charge. However, their medical card details must be submitted on the Bus Éireann Family Portal payments section.
• If you complete the application and payment process on time for your child, they will get a seat on a school bus service, if a service is available. In cases where there is no existing service or where there is no capacity on an existing service, a Remote Area Grant (RAG) may be offered to you, to support with the cost of transport arrangements.

The following applies if your child is not attending their closest school (concessionary) or does not meet the distance criteria:

• If your child is not attending their closest school, by choice, or does not meet the distance criteria but completes the application and payment process on time, they will be considered for any spare seats available after eligible children have been accommodated. These spare seats are called concessionary seats. There may be more demand than availability for concessionary seats. In such cases, Bus Éireann will use a selection process to allocate tickets for the spare seats. You must pay the annual ticket charge; the medical card waiver does not apply.
• If your child is deemed concessionary but they are attending their closest school with capacity (closer schools are full), please contact your local REALT co-ordinator who can inform School Transport Section in the Department of Education and Youth that there is no capacity in closer schools. If your child holds a valid medical card, you will then be able to input this, and a refund of the annual charge will issue to you from Bus Eireann in due course.

Please note:

• If a valid medical card number OR a full payment is not submitted by the 8th May, your child will not be guaranteed school transport.
• There is no guarantee of seats on services for late applicants, and you will not be considered for the remote area grant if you apply after this date.

Below are the email addresses for the REALT Co-ordinators:

You must apply and, where applicable, pay before the 8 May 2026.

Points of contact in School Transport Section

If you require further information, please submit your query on our Customer Query Form. Alternatively, you can call 057-9325466 to speak to the School Transport team.