I propose to take Questions Nos. 444, 445 and 447 together.
Statelessness results from the complex interaction of many legal and other factors. There is no specific determination process for recognition of stateless persons in Ireland; claims of statelessness can arise at any point in the immigration and protection processes and the numbers involved are very low.
My Department deals with such cases without recourse to a determination of their statelessness status.
The determination of any such cases are not centralised in a single process or section of my Department's Immigration Service Delivery. As such, applications for immigration permission or naturalisation are determined through the procedures set out under the Immigration Acts, the International Protection Act 2015 or the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended.
The Domestic Residence and Permissions Unit of my Department has no record of any residence applications being received from Tusla in the past five years, in relation to children where the child was categorised as stateless.
In relation to applications for citizenship, I can confirm that there were 14 applications received where a claim of statelessness has been made, of which nine continue to be processed at this time. This refers to all applicants for citizenship, not just children.