Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 9 October 2007
96 Deputy Denis Naughten asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the steps he is taking to deal with the delay in processing immigration and residency applications; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22287/07]
View answerI take it that Deputy Naughten's question refers to the processing of immigration and residence applications in so far as permission to remain in the State is concerned. There is a broad mix of applications for permission to remain in the State that range from student conditions, work permit conditions, visitor conditions, dependant family members, marriage to an Irish national, EU treaty rights deriving from a spouse from another EU member state, and family reunification for family members of refugees to several other categories. Furthermore, the international nature of immigration, has meant that there is now a wider and more complex range of issues associated with applications for permission to remain in the State, all of which require detailed and careful consideration. Preserving the integrity of the State's immigration, security and social-economic systems, together with maximising customer responsiveness, are at the core of these considerations.
Immigration and residency applications are managed under a variety of administrative and statutory schemes, including several EU, UN and other international directives. These schemes are significant both in terms of the process itself and the number of applications received. Due to the high volume of applications received and the fact that each application has to be considered individually, it has been necessary to assign significant additional resources to the general immigration area in recent years.
The number of immigrants coming to the country over the past decade and wanting to stay here is a reflection of the strength and buoyancy of the Irish economy, and an acknowledgement of the contribution that immigrants have made, and want to continue to make, to Irish society. An indication of the scale of applications can be gathered from the fact that in 2004 a total of 2,235 applications were received from individuals seeking permission to remain or change their residence status.
By 2006, this figure had increased to 8,925 applications which represents a 400% increase in only two years. Likewise, applications under the EU directive on the free movement of persons increased from 355 applications in 2004 to 1,462 applications in 2006. This represents a 411% increase in two years. In addition, 17,920 applications for leave to remain under the Irish born child 2005 scheme were received of which 16,983 were granted. The renewal scheme commenced in February and 11,167 applications had been received by the end of August of which 9,701 were given renewal of leave to remain. Deputies will recall progression was a condition of this scheme.
Additional information not given on the floor of the House.
The level of work across the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service is kept under constant review and staff are redeployed regularly to meet these demands. In doing this, it is important to state that the service has finite staff resources and a delicate balance must be struck between the various services which must be supported and the requirement to meet public and customer expectations, including Government priorities at any given time.
In addition to dealing with the various types of immigration and residence applications, the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service operates four helplines for applicants for visas, citizenship, residency status and related immigration matters. These helplines have proved to be very worthwhile with large numbers of callers availing of them.
The Immigration Residence and Protection Bill 2007, published in April 2007, is being reviewed with a view to re-publication shortly. This Bill, when enacted, will streamline our immigration system to the benefit of applicant and practitioner alike. It will provide for more rapid processing in certain areas. The new legislation will pull together a wide body of immigration legislation and also for the first time will provide a legal status of long-term resident with rights equivalent to those of Irish citizens. In addition, the legislation will place the visa process on a statutory footing for the first time.
The Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service will implement new technology platforms, including new visa, fingerprinting and case management systems, replacing some 20 disparate systems. These new systems will deliver better customer service and enable speedier decision-making in respect of applications across the service. The introduction of such systems will provide an end-to-end view of a client in the immigration service and link into IT systems in other Departments. The systems will further strengthen the capability of the State to deal with fraudulent claimants by providing enhanced identity verification capability. Significant savings have been made to the Exchequer in recent years by such enhanced co-operation between the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service, the Garda National Immigration Bureau and the Departments of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and Social and Family Affairs.
I have given a snap-shot of the level of business conducted in the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service in so far as immigration and residence applications are concerned. I am sure the Deputy will agree that the statistics I referred to are significant and demonstrate the shifting pattern of inward migration dealt with by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service. I am confident that all the necessary steps are being taken by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service to manage the significant level of business it receives across the entire range of services within its remit. I am also satisfied that the resources available to the service are deployed to optimum benefit and that this is proactively kept under review having regard to work flows and service demands.
The Minister did not address the certificate of naturalisation or citizenship in his response. Will he explain the increase of 2,600 applications between 27 September and 4 October? This is an increase of 520 citizenship applications per day during this period and brings the total to 17,000. What is the reason for this and what steps will be taken to cater for the additional demand? The waiting list to deal with these applications is approximately two and a half years. I agree they must be dealt with in detail but surely it should not take this long.
No clear rules or guidelines are set down by the Department for this application process or for other immigration, residency and visa applications. As a result, many applications are returned or refused because of insufficient documentation. This delay facilitates illegal immigration. What specific steps will the Minister take to deal with it and when will we see immigration legislation?
Deputy Naughten raised several matters and I will take them in turn. I am delighted to deal with the question of citizenship which was not asked in his question. The question dealt with residency and immigration which do not of themselves guarantee Irish citizenship. Citizenship rests in my discretion as Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform. It is a privilege to be made a citizen of Ireland and a person accepted for citizenship must subscribe to a declaration of fidelity to the nation and loyalty to the State.
I am advised by the citizenship section of the Department that the number of applications for naturalisation yet to be processed to a conclusion is approximately 17,000 and we have had a large increase in these——
In five days.
The applications are processed in a manner which preserves the necessary checks and balances to ensure it is not undervalued and given only to persons who satisfy the necessary qualifying criteria. On average, the processing time is 30 months. This is primarily due to the significant increase in the volume of applications received in recent years. Generally, such applications are dealt with in chronological order as this method is deemed fairest to all applicants.
These applications eventually land on my desk and clear rules and guidelines exist, and I am anxious to establish and see to it that this is the case. I will examine the 1956 Act as amended and the discretion the Minister enjoys with regard to adults, children and spouses to consider whether it is more desirable to have a separate arrangement in respect of each.
I can furnish the Deputy with a table which shows the increase in the number of applications in the past two——
I have it.
A total of 46 staff work on this, 31 of whom work full-time.
Does the processing time of two and a half years lead to major frustration? It is madness. What steps will the Minister take specifically to deal with them in an appropriate time? It is at the Minister's discretion to whom they are given and I have no difficulty in this regard. However, they should be dealt with in a specific timeframe. Will the Minister explain the increase of 520 citizenship applications per day from 26 September to 4 October? Such a large increase in five working days seems amazing.
The Deputy referred to the danger of illegal immigration here. Many countries have a much longer residential period specified for the acquisition of nationality than this jurisdiction.
I was dealing with the other issues.
That is an important point because in no sense can it be suggested that the current manner in which the nationality laws are being administered is encouraging illegal immigration. In regard to the current position, there are 46 staff currently assigned to the citizenship section of my Department——
31 full-time staff.
——of whom 31 work full time and the remainder work various work-sharing patterns, which is a pattern in the modern public service.
There are no telephones.
The constant use of a 'phone to make inquiries in this matter simply delays the process further and at vast cost.
People have no alternative but to put down parliamentary questions.
No civilised State takes two-and-a-half years to process citizenship applications.
We are entitled as a State to process all citizenship applications.
If one ran a business that way one would go bankrupt.
It is a privilege not a right.
It is outrageous.
There are no alternatives to putting down parliamentary questions on the issue.
