Aengus Ó Snodaigh
Question:59 Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if he will report on his plans to increase provision for family reunification in Irish immigration law. [32409/04]
View answerWednesday, 8 December 2004
Questions (60)
Written answers
The present position on the admission of non-national family members to Ireland to join family members already in the State is as follows.
A person granted refugee status in Ireland may apply for family reunification under section 18 of the Refugee Act 1996. Under section 18(3), such permission must, save in very exceptional cases, be granted to immediate family members of a refugee, that is, spouse, minor children and, if the refugee is an unmarried minor, his or her parents, upon verification by the Refugee Applications Commissioner of the authenticity of the relationship.
Applications for family reunification may also be made for dependent members of a refugee's family under section 18(4). Dependent member of the family means any grandparent, parent, brother, sister, child, grandchild, ward or guardian of the refugee who is dependent on the refugee or is suffering from a mental or physical disability to such an extent that it is not reasonable for him or her to maintain him- or herself fully. Such applications may be granted at my discretion.
A non-EEA national working in the State on an employment permit may apply for family reunification with spouse or minor child on condition that he or she has been working here for at least 12 months, or three months for certain skilled workers, and is likely to remain so for a similar period, that is, the work permit has been renewed. He or she must be in a position to support family members without recourse to public funds.
Ireland's policy in this area is broadly in line with that of the rest of the European Union and with practice internationally. However, as family reunification is a very important migratory issue, I will examine this type of immigration fully in the context of the development of the new immigration and residence Bill. However, I do not envisage any significant change in the current conditions regarding the length of time that the non-EEA national has been in the State and the ability to support dependent family members without recourse to public funds.