The first person named entered the State on 12 November, 1997 with his mother. He availed of the permission granted to his mother based on him being a family dependent. She was granted temporary permission to remain in the State in 2000 under the arrangements then in place for the non-EEA parents of Irish born children. This permission to remain has been renewed on a regular basis and is currently valid to 9 January, 2014.
Given that he is now over sixteen years of age and entered the State with his mother, he is required to register his permission to remain. In this regard, he should attend his local Immigration Office with his mother, and submit his valid original passport and birth certificate for registration purposes. I should add that Stamp 2A is generally issued in cases of children aged between 16 and 18 who are studying with Stamp 4 being issued when such children become adults at age 18.
I am advised by the Citizenship Division of the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) that the application for a certificate of naturalisation was received from the second person referred to by the Deputy in August, 2011. The application is currently being processed with a view to establishing whether the applicant meets the statutory conditions for the granting of naturalisation and will be submitted to me for decision as expeditiously as possible.
The granting of Irish citizenship through naturalisation is a privilege and an honour which confers certain rights and entitlements not only within the State but also at European Union level and it is important that appropriate procedures are in place to preserve the integrity of the process.