Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 7 February 2013
142. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the residency requirements in order to qualify for naturalisation in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6560/13]
View answerI am advised by the Citizenship Division of the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) that an application for a certificate of naturalisation under the provisions of Section 15A of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended, was received from the person referred to by the Deputy in December, 2012.
Section 15A of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended, provides that the Minister may, in his absolute discretion, grant the application for a Certificate of Naturalisation to the non-national spouse or civil partner of an Irish citizen if satisfied that the applicant has, inter alia, had a period of one year's continuous residence in the State immediately before the date of the application; had, during the 4 years immediately preceding that period, a total residence in the island of Ireland amounting to 2 years; and intends in good faith to continue to reside in the island of Ireland after naturalisation. Periods of lawful residence for the purposes of study, periods of lawful residence as an asylum applicant and periods of unlawful residence are not reckonable for that purpose. The person concerned has been requested to submit additional documentation and her case will be reviewed upon its receipt. 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.
Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to INIS by e-mail using the Oireachtas Mail facility which has been specifically established for this purpose. This service enables up to date information on such cases to be obtained without the need to seek information by way of the Parliamentary Questions process. The Deputy may consider using the e-mail service except in cases where the response from INIS is, in the Deputy’s view, inadequate or too long awaited.
