Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 7 November 2012
154. Deputy Joe McHugh asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the position regarding the visa waiver programme; the uptake of the programme to date; the tourism dividend from residents of countries to which the visa waiver programme pertains; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48994/12]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Irish Short-stay Visa Waiver Programme, which was devised by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service, INIS, of my Department, commenced on 1 July 2011 and was originally scheduled to run on a pilot basis until the end of October 2012. It allows tourists or business people who have lawfully entered the UK, including Northern Ireland, on a valid UK visa to travel on to Ireland without the requirement to obtain an Irish visa. The Government decided on 12 March 2012 to extend the programme for a further period of four years i.e. to end October 2016 in the light, particularly, of the positive response from tourism agencies and operators.
The programme applies to nationals of 17 countries (increasing from 16 on 1 November 2012 to include nationals of Bosnia and Herzegovina) mainly from Asia (including China and India), the former Soviet Union and the Gulf and Middle East regions all of which are regarded as key development markets for Irish business and tourism interests. The programme has been widely welcomed by the business and tourism sectors as an aid to developing important overseas markets.
Tourism Ireland, the organisation responsible for promoting the island of Ireland overseas as a leading holiday destination, has reported some significant success indicators for the programme:
- 36 new tour operator itineraries from China have been established since the start of the Programme.
- Existing Chinese tour operators have added almost 2,500 people to their tours between July 2011 and August 2012.
- Publicity about the Programme in China generated the equivalent of over €855,000 of advertising in the same period.
- 20 tour operators in India have reported new itineraries or additional passengers since the launch of the Programme.
- A number of tour operators in the Gulf region have added Ireland to their tourist itineraries for the first time.
It has not been possible to ascertain exactly how many people have made use of the Visa Waiver Programme as the only comprehensive way of doing so would be to check all persons arriving at ports of entry in Ireland. It was considered that the potential disruption to tourists, especially during peak summer months, outweighed the benefit to be got from having an exact count of usage of the Waiver. It is proposed, however, to conduct a focussed survey to provide information from which the use of the programme can be extrapolated. The methodology of such a survey will take into account the need to ensure as speedy a transit through immigration control for legitimate tourists and business visitors as possible.
My Department is constantly seeking ways in which the visa system can facilitate increased business and tourism from growing markets and, in this regard, meets regularly with tourism and business promotion agencies to discuss initiatives in this area.
