Nurses' registration fee
Deputy McNamara asked that nurses’ annual registration fee be waived in recognition of their work during the year. The Tánaiste said it would be a nice gesture but noted the fee funds the NMBI and similar arguments could be made for other health professionals.
The annual registration fee for nurses falls due at this time of year. Earlier this year, the registration fee for nurses who were returning to Ireland was waived. Any fee charged has to be approved by the Minister. Given the year that is in it, does the Tánaiste believe this is appropriate? We are approaching Christmas, but regardless of what the Government recommends, nurses will have a very different Christmas than the rest of society. The least the Government can do is waive the registration fee of €100 this year. Does the Taoiseach agree?
Comment on this
The Tánaiste, although the Taoiseach sometimes refers to this matter also.
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I am very definitely the Tánaiste and am happy to confirm that for anyone who has not worked it out by now.
The fee is approximately €100. It is paid to the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland, NMBI, and covers the board's administrative costs. There have been calls from some people to waive the fee. I agree that it would be a really nice gesture and a further sign of appreciation to nurses for the work they have done in recent months, but it could not just stop there. What about junior doctors who pay their fees to the Irish Medical Council or paramedics who pay their fees to the Pre-Hospital Emergency Care Council, PHECC? There are many people who have to pay a fee to their professional body. We could not waive a fee for one group and ignore the others.