Trinity College Dublin has begun sending out invoices for the next academic year to students for more than €3,000.
One invoice, seen by RTÉ News, is for €3,209.75 regarding "college course fees for academic year 2025/26".
€3,000 is for "student contribution" and €209.75 for "student levies and charges".
The letter includes a demand to "pay in one instalment by September".
Social Democrats TD Jennifer Cummins criticised the invoices.
"I am truly shocked that for a decision that is supposedly not made yet, universities have billed students for 3,000. It's not good enough to put students and their families under this pressure when the promise was a reduction in fees," Ms Cummins said.
Referencing Government statements that the issue of college fees has yet to be decided, due to ongoing budget calculations, she said: "The idea that families need to rely on a refund in January is a joke. A thousand euro is not a small amount of money to have lying around.
"Students were promised better than this, and the minister needs to provide clarity and fulfill the Programme for Government by reducing these fees."
Trinity College said their billing process is the same this year as it was in prior years, both in terms of timing and amounts invoiced.
The university said all students are offered the option to pay via three instalments or in full on registration.
It pointed out that in previous years, the government announced a €1,000 reduction in the student contribution for eligible students, HEA eligible students, as part of the budget announcements in October.
This initiative effectively reduced the contribution for students from €3,000 to €2,000 and Trinity College refunded €1,000 to students who had already paid 100% or posted a credit to the student's account to be offset against the next instalment.
The academic year 2025/26 commences in September for all undergraduate students and fees are due on 1 September as part of registration, the university said.
Yesterday, the Opposition urged the Government to scrap a potential €1,000 student fees hike, saying rise is creating "barriers" to third level education and could force people not to go to college.
