Parents of children with autism have expressed concern over a letter from the Department of Education informing them that home tuition grants will be withheld unless they employ trained primary school teachers as tutors for their children.
This means that some parents must now advertise the position and secure a new tutor before the school year begins next month.
The chief executive of Irish Autism Action, Kevin Whelan, said he was dismayed at the timing of the letter, which was causing some parents distress.
"The parents are being told in August of a big policy change that is to take effect in September. It is an awful lot to ask the parent of a child with autism to find a replacement teacher in that time.
"As any parent of a child with autism will tell you, transition and change is a major challenge If you're going to do something like this, you don't do it in August."
Fine Gael's spokesman on family affairs and equality, David Stanton, called on the Minister for Education to clarify any proposed changes to the home tuition scheme under which the department pays out 380 grants for pre-school children with autism, costing about €7 million annually.
"From the tone of the letter received, many parents are now worried that they will not be able to continue receiving home tuition from the current provider," Mr Stanton said.
"This has led to serious concerns from parents receiving these grants that they will no longer receive the grant and that the progress their children has made will be reversed."
He said many home tutors were highly-qualified professionals with many years' experience of the needs of children with autism, with whom they had often built up relationships. He urged the department to resolve the matter in a "more sympathetic and understanding manner".
In the letter, department officials have sought evidence that a proposed home tutor is a qualified primary school teacher.
Returning the original funding application form, it continues: "I note that the teacher you have nominated does not meet this requirement.
"You are obliged to source a qualified teacher, and you are requested to submit details of the teacher when you have completed this process."
Mr Whelan said while this may have been official policy, he was not aware of any parent having previously had their application form returned for this reason.
A department spokeswoman said "the expectation would always have been that parents or guardians would source fully-qualified teachers where possible".
In the event that finding a qualified teacher was not possible, evidence of steps taken towards that end would be required.