The organisation referred to by the Deputy has made a submission to my Department in response to the discussion document, Immigration and Residence in Ireland, which I published in April of this year. This submission was one of several concerning the rights of same sex couples in Irish immigration legislation and policy.
At present, when determining whether a foreign national should be admitted to the State to join another foreign national or, indeed, an Irish national, a number of questions arise. One fundamental consideration in most cases relates to the extent to which the couple will in the future be in a position to support themselves without recourse to public funds. That in turn requires an evaluation of the nature and extent of the relationship between the persons in question.
Where the persons in question are married, that evaluation is relatively straightforward from an administrative point of view. However, where the relationship is more informal its dynamics are more difficult to determine objectively, particularly where it is not underpinned by any formal legal contract.
At present, the Irish immigration system does not have any formal procedures for recognising same sex partnerships. However, my Department is currently preparing an immigration and residence Bill. The aforementioned discussion document, Immigration and Residence in Ireland, indicates the range of issues to be addressed and indicates how they are likely to be dealt with in future legislation and in future policy. Among the issues the document identifies as areas that will need to be considered are unmarried partners and same sex relationships.