338. Deputy Sinéad Gibney asked the Minister for Culture, Communications and Sport when applicants for the basic income for the arts scheme will be informed regarding the outcome of their application. [67069/26]

I was delighted to accept applications for the successor scheme to the Basic Income for the Arts pilot with just over 10,000 applications received by the deadline. This is a major milestone for the arts in Ireland.

The deadline for application to the Basic Income for the Arts 2026 - 2029 was 5pm on Tuesday 12th May. With an allocation of €18.27 million for 2026, the Department is in a position to fund 2,000 artists.

Just over 10,000 applications were received. The Department has been assessing applications since May and throughout the summer and hope to be in a position to correspond with all applicants by the end of September 2026.