Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 10 November 2021
193. Deputy Michael Creed asked the Minister for Justice the current position regarding an application for a stamp 1G visa by a person (details supplied) who has previously had a stamp 2 visa and has recently graduated and is seeking employment in the State under the third-level graduate programme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [54824/21]
View answerThe person referred to by the Deputy holds a Stamp 2 permission, which has been extended until 15 January 2022, under the final automatic extension of immigration permissions announced on 14 September 2021.
It is open to the person concerned to apply for a Stamp 1G permission from their local immigration office if they meet the criteria for doing so. A Stamp 1G indicates that a person has permission to look for employment in the State under the Third Level Graduate Programme.
A Stamp 1G is granted or renewed under the Third Level Graduate Programme where the graduate satisfies the immigration authorities that he or she has taken appropriate steps to access suitable graduate level employment, for example, attendance at job interviews, signing up with graduate employment agencies, etc.
The Third Level Graduate Programme provides that when an applicant has completed their studies in Ireland and gained an award at Level 8 on the National Framework of Qualifications (NFQ) or above, that person may qualify for a Stamp 1G for 12 months. Where an individual receives an award at Level 9 NFQ, they may qualify for a Stamp 1G for up to 24 months subject to the overall limit of 8 years on student conditions that applies.
Graduates at level 9 NFQ or above who qualify for a Stamp 1G permission will be granted the permission for 12 months initially. This can be renewed for a further period of twelve months, subject to the overall eight year limit on student conditions not being exceeded.
As the Deputy will be aware, registrations for people living outside of the Dublin area are processed by the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) through the Garda Station network. Information on the contact details for all registration offices outside of Dublin is available at: www.garda.ie/en/contact-us/station-directory.
Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to my Department by e-mail using the Oireachtas Mail facility at INISOireachtasMail@justice.ie, 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 Question process. The Deputy may consider using the e-mail service except in the cases where the response is, in the Deputy's view, inadequate or too long awaited.
