I wish to inform the Deputy that no applications for permission to remain in the State under the pre-2003 arrangements for the parents of Irish citizen children are currently outstanding in my Department. I should add that renewal of permission to remain in the State for such persons is granted by the Garda National Immigration Bureau and accordingly, there is no requirement for such applicants to contact my Department unless their circumstances have changed since the granting of their most recent permission to remain.
With regard to family dependents of persons in the category above, I am advised by my officials that 117 applications were received and granted in 2009. Such applications were, in general, processed within one week of the appropriate supporting documentation being received in my Department and all such applicants were granted permission to remain in the State. The permission granted is on the basis that the applicant is part of a family unit where the parent(s) of that unit have been granted residency in the State, and applicants are required to provide evidence to that effect.
A further 199 applications for permission to remain in the State were received from persons whose circumstances necessitated that they contact my Department (primarily due to the break up of their marriages). All of these applications were granted and, in general, were processed within one week of receipt of appropriate documentation.
