Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 8 May 2024
362. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Justice whether all international protection applicants are asked whether they have travelled to Ireland via the UK as part of the standard interview; the number of IPO applicants over the past 12 months who have confirmed they did so; and the total number of IPO applications over the past 12 months. [20282/24]
View answerAs part of the application process, applicants are asked details on their arrival in the State, the means of transport used to enter the State, and to list all of the European countries that they have travelled through (including the UK), as well as the amount of time spent in any of those countries.
This information is then used as part of the assessment of an applicant’s claim and explored during the substantive interview. This self-reported information, and its assessment, is an important part of the consideration of an international protection application, but varies considerably and is not verified. As such it is not collated on a statistical basis.
In the past 12 months (from May 2023 to April 2024) there were 16,834 applications for international protection.
