Vol. 467 No. 5
97 Mr. Gregory asked the Minister for Justice the procedures available to a political refugee (details supplied) resident in Ireland for the past two years to obtain a passport for travel purposes to Europe and also to obtain a work permit to work in Ireland. [13816/96]
The person referred to by the Deputy has made an application to my Department for refugee status under the terms of the 1951 United Nations Convention relating to the Status of Refugees (amended by the 1967 New York Protocol). The question whether he is in fact a political refugee remains to be determined. I expect that a decision on the application will be made in the near future; this decision will be conveyed to the Deputy and the applicant.
While their applications are pending, applicants for refugee status are not permitted to engage in employment. They are, however, issued with appropriate documentation to enable them to claim supplementary welfare allowance during that period. Once a determination has been made that a person is a refugee within the meaning of the convention, he or she will be entitled to seek employment without a work permit, and can be issued with a travel document which would facilitate world-wide travel.
