Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 20 October 2020
512. Deputy Fergus O'Dowd asked the Minister for Justice if assistance will be provided to a person (details supplied) in relation to a delayed citizenship process; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31041/20]
View answerThe application for a certificate of naturalisation from the person referred to by the Deputy is in the final stages of processing and will be submitted to me for decision as expeditiously as possible. If the person has a query in respect of their application, they should contact the Citizenship Division at: citizenshipinfo@justice.ie.
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.
It is recognised that all applicants for citizenship would wish to have a decision on their application without delay. While most straightforward cases are now processed within twelve months, the nature of the naturalisation process is such that, for a broad range of reasons, some cases will take longer than others to process. In some instances, completing the necessary checks can take a considerable period of time.
The processing of citizenship applications has had a number of challenges over the past 12 months. A legal challenge taken in the High Court last year by an applicant who was refused a certificate of naturalisation due to his absences from the State during the last year continuous prior to the date of his application. The outcome of this ruling – which was subsequently successfully appealed to the Court of Appeal – resulted in significant delays to the processing of citizenship applications last year. This has been compounded by COVID-19 restrictions which has resulted in significant challenges to the delivery of normal services to date this year. A series of measures have been approved to address the citizenship caseload over the coming period.
Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to the Immigration Service of my Department 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 is, in the Deputy’s view, inadequate or too long awaited.
