I refer the Deputy to my previous answer to PQ No. 437 of 25 June, 2013. I am informed by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) that the person referred to by the Deputy as the guardian is not a refugee and is therefore not entitled to make a Family Reunification application on behalf of their nephew. I am further informed that nephews and nieces do not fall within the remit of the current family reunification legislation as Section 18(4)(b) of the Refugee Act does not include nephews or nieces as qualifying persons.
The Deputy may wish to note that 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.