Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 18 November 2020
154. Deputy Brian Leddin asked the Minister for Justice the number of registrations Henry Street Garda National Immigration Bureau office in Limerick city is processing each week; the wait time for appointments; the current backlog in registrations for the Limerick office; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [37226/20]
View answerMy Department registers persons residing in the Dublin area only. The Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) processes all applications outside of Dublin through the Garda Station network. However, in order to be of assistance to the Deputy, I have made enquiries with the Commissioner and have received the following update.
The Henry Street Immigration Office is processing circa 375 - 400 registrations per 7 day week and the wait time for appointments is approximately 6 - 7 weeks. The backlog in registrations is estimated to be between 700 to 800.
Every effort is being made to address the backlog of registrants and a number of measures have been introduced to reduce the waiting time. The capacity of the Henry Street Immigration Office to process applicants has recently been increased with the addition of a third customer hatch. The opening hours have been extended with the Immigration Office now open for appointments from 7.30am straight through to 10.30pm.
