Written Answers Nos. 514-531
527. Deputy Alan Dillon asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs when a person (details supplied) who applied to the foreign birth register will have their application processed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32764/22]
View answerDue to the complex nature of the Foreign Birth Registration (FBR) process, the large increase in applications received following the Brexit vote in the UK, and the pause in the Service due to necessary Covid-19 restrictions, applicants should allow over 2 years from the receipt of supporting documentation for processing of FBR applications at this time.
Due to Covid-19 restrictions, and the subsequent reassignment of FBR staff to assist in the provision of essential passport services, the Foreign Birth Registration Service was paused for nearly 15 months across the 2020-2021 period.
The processing of Foreign Birth Registration (FBR) resumed in November 2021. FBR staff have since processed 7,000 FBR applications while also continuing to provide support to Passport services due to the unprecedented levels of passport demand.
The FBR Service provides an emergency service for Foreign Birth Registration in cases of exceptional urgency, such as expectant parents, or stateless persons. Such applicants may continue to contact the Passport Service directly. For other applications, the FBR service operates a transparent general policy of processing applications in order of receipt.
Supporting documentation for the application to which the Deputy has referred was received on 14 February 2020, and is due to be processed in the near future. A member of the FBR team will be in contact with the applicant in this regard.
The Passport Service has been scaling up resources to deal with anticipated demand for passports and FBRs since June of last year. A major recruitment drive, in partnership with the Public Appointments Service, has been underway over the past several months. This has seen the Passport Service take on over 400 staff since June 2021.
The unprecedented level of staff currently working in the Passport Service will be maintained in the months ahead. This will allow for the reassignment of additional staff to the processing of FBR applications with the aim of significantly reducing turnaround times for these applications by the end of this year.
530. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he received correspondence from this Deputy relating to an issue (details supplied) sent on 30 May 2022; and if a response will issue; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32813/22]
View answerThe Deputy's correspondence has been received and will be responded to shortly. I will also outline here the current situation regarding the application in question.
The Department of Foreign Affairs issues a Letter of Freedom to Marry or, ‘Certificat de Coutume’, to facilitate Irish citizens who intend to get married abroad. This is not an Irish requirement but may be a requirement of the country where an applicant wishes to wed. The requirements governing marriage can differ in each country and all applicants are asked to check with the civil registration office in the country of marriage before application.
As there are legal requirements and implications in marriage, all applications undergo due diligence checks - which is why people are required to submit their applications and supporting documentation at least four months in advance of the intended date of marriage.
The application referred to by the Deputy was a late application and is still being processed. The applicant will be contacted by the Department’s Marriages Abroad Unit with a decision as soon as all necessary checks are complete.
