The number of students whose Leaving Certificate and Leaving Cert Applied results were permanently withheld this year because of cheating in examinations has more than doubled to 155.
The 155 compares to 71 results permanently withheld by the State Examinations Commission (SEC) at the same point in 2024.
On Monday a spokesman said the SEC had provisionally withheld two other results, on a without-prejudice basis, pending further communication with the schools and candidates.
He said the 2025 numbers “compare to 71 results permanently withheld and 43 results provisionally withheld at the same point in time in 2024”.
He said the final number of Leaving Cert results withheld in the 2024 examinations was 105.
“For context, a total of 65,444 candidates sat Leaving Certificate examinations in 2025, leading to the issue of 437,710 individual results in the Leaving Certificate Established programme and 4,507 integrated results statements in the Leaving Certificate Applied programme,” the spokesman said.
“The numbers of results withheld do fluctuate on an annual basis in the context of very small numbers overall.”
The spokesman said the SEC “would strongly caution any student that might be tempted to cheat in the State examinations that serious consequences can result”.
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He said: “Candidates are warned that they could lose marks for a component or all for the marks for a subject; they could lose the results of their entire examination; or they could be debarred from entering for any of the State examinations for a specified period.
“There may also be serious consequences, for any person who provides candidates with inappropriate assistance, under the Education Act, 1998.”
With the advent of artificial intelligence (AI) software such as ChatGPT, the SEC has provided guidance to school authorities about the use of such technology in the completion of coursework.
The SEC instructions make clear that any material generated by AI software will be treated in the same way as any other material that the candidate has not generated themselves.
Asked if the unauthorised use of AI played a part in any of the cheating by students, the SEC spokesman declined to comment on this.
“Due to the small numbers of candidates involved, for privacy reasons, the SEC does not provide any further detail about these cases, including the specifics of the incidents or details of the school or location or the gender of those involved,” he said.
On the penalties imposed for cheating, the spokesman said “the most common penalty applied is the withholding of the marks of a component or the full result in the subject in question”.
He also said: “Where a more serious breach of the regulations occurs such as copying in more than one subject, withholding of all results and/or debarring from repeating the examination may be applied.
“Withholding of results occurs as a consequence of a candidate attempting to gain advantage in the examination by means which contravene the regulations for the conduct of candidates during examinations as set out in the rules and programmes for secondary schools.
“The regulations apply equally to practical and project work as well as to the work presented in the written examination.
“In the interest of being fair to all candidates, the SEC must be satisfied that marks awarded have been gained fairly and will investigate any suggestion, suspicion or allegation of cheating or other impropriety in relation to the examinations.
“This is essential in order to uphold the integrity of the Irish state examinations system and to underpin equity and fairness within the system in order to enable all candidates to display their achievements on an equal footing.”