Written Answers Nos. 126 - 132
126. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the residency status in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; the procedure to be followed, if any, to update and regularise their position and that of their spouse and family; if they have an entitlement to consideration for naturalisation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51253/13]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe question of residency status or entitlement to consideration for naturalisation does not arise at this time in the case of the persons whose details were supplied. Should the option to apply for permission to remain in the State arise in the future the persons concerned will be advised accordingly.
127. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the residency status and eligibility for consideration for naturalisation in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Carlow; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51254/13]
Amharc ar fhreagraI am advised by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) of my Department that a valid application for a certificate of naturalisation has been received from the person referred to by the Deputy. The application is currently being processed with a view to establishing whether the applicant meets the statutory conditions for the granting of naturalisation and will be submitted to me for decision as expeditiously as possible.
The Deputy may wish to note that queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to INIS by e-mail using the Oireachtas Mail facility which has been established specifically 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 Questions process. The Deputy may consider using the e-mail service except in cases where the response from INIS is, in the Deputy’s view, inadequate or too long awaited.
128. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the residency status and eligibility for naturalisation in the case of persons (details supplied) in County Carlow; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51255/13]
Amharc ar fhreagraI am informed by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) of my Department, that the first named person was granted Long Term Residency on 4th January, 2011. This person registered their permission to remain in the State with the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) until 31st August, 2013. The second named person had permission to remain in the State on work permit conditions until 10th May, 2010. As the permission to remain for both persons has now expired, they are advised to contact their local Immigration Officer as soon as possible to regularise their status in the State.
Officials in the Citizenship Division of the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) inform me that there is no record of an application for a certificate of naturalisation from either of the persons referred to in the Deputy's question. Section 15 of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended, provides that the Minister may, in his absolute discretion, grant an application for a certificate of naturalisation provided certain statutory conditions are fulfilled. The conditions are that the applicant must:
- be of full age
- be of good character
- have had a period of one year's continuous residency in the State immediately before the date of application and, during the eight years immediately preceding that period, have had a total residence in the State amounting to four years
- intend in good faith to continue to reside in the State after naturalisation
- have, before a judge of the District Court in open court, in a citizenship ceremony or in such manner as the Minister, for special reasons, allows—
(i) made a declaration, in the prescribed manner, of fidelity to the nation and loyalty to the State, and
(ii) undertaken to faithfully observe the laws of the State and to respect its democratic values.
A foreign national who is married to, or is the Civil Partner of, an Irish citizen for at least three years may apply for naturalisation under section 15A of the Irish Naturalisation and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended, where they have been continuously resident in the island of Ireland for the year immediately prior to the date of their application and for two out of the four years prior to that year. The marriage or civil partnership must be subsisting and recognised under Irish law. Section 15A provides that the Minister may waive certain conditions for naturalisation if satisfied that the applicant would suffer serious consequences in respect of his or her bodily integrity or liberty if not granted Irish citizenship.
Section 16 of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended, provides that the Minister may, in his absolute discretion, waive some or all of the statutory conditions in certain circumstances i.e. where an applicant is of Irish descent or of Irish associations; where an applicant is a person who is a refugee within the meaning of the United Nations Convention relating to the Status of Refugees; or where an applicant is a Stateless person within the meaning of the United Nations Convention relating to the Status of Stateless persons.
It is open to any individual to lodge an application for citizenship if and when they are in a position to meet the statutory requirements as prescribed in the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956 as amended.
The Deputy may wish to note that queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to INIS by e-mail using the Oireachtas Mail facility which has been established specifically 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 Questions process. The Deputy may consider using the e-mail service except in cases where the response from INIS is, in the Deputy’s view, inadequate or too long awaited.
129. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the residency status and eligibility for consideration for naturalisation-family reunification in the case of a person (details supplied) in Dublin 15; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51256/13]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe person concerned is a sibling of an Irish born citizen child of non-EEA parents born in the State prior to 1 January, 2005. The person concerned was granted permission to remain in the State in 2007. This permission was subsequently renewed on several occasions and is currently valid until 29 August, 2014.
A valid application for a certificate of naturalisation has been received from the person concerned. As the Deputy will appreciate, the granting of Irish citizenship through naturalisation is a privilege and an honour which confers certain rights and entitlements not only within the State but also at European Union level and it is important that appropriate procedures are in place to preserve the integrity of the process. The application is now at an advanced stage of processing and they will be informed of my decision in due course.
Queries in relation to general immigration matters may be made directly to Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) of my Department by e-mail using the Oireachtas Mail facility 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 Questions process. The Deputy may consider using the e-mail service except in cases where the response from INIS is, in the Deputy's view, inadequate or too long awaited.
130. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if he will set out the reckonable period of residency in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare in view of their legal residency here in the period 2002 to date; if he will set out the current residency status; the requirements to update same; if they are eligible for consideration for naturalisation on the basis of their residency to date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51257/13]
Amharc ar fhreagraI am informed by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) of my Department that the person concerned is currently registered in the State under Stamp 4 conditions on the basis of his marriage to an Irish national. This permission is valid until 09 June, 2014 and is renewable directly with their local immigration officer shortly before its expiry date. An application for a certificate of naturalisation from the person referred to in the Deputy's Question was received in the Citizenship Division of INIS in August, 2010.
On examination of the application submitted it was determined that the person in question did not meet the statutory residency requirements as set out in the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended. The person concerned was informed of this in a letter issued to him on 24 September, 2010.
It is open to any individual to lodge an application for citizenship if and when they are in a position to meet the prescribed statutory requirements. The on-line Naturalisation Residency Calculator can be used as a guide to whether an individual satisfies the naturalisation residency conditions and, if not, give an indication of how long they should wait before making an application.
Queries in relation to general immigration matters may be made directly to INIS by e-mail using the Oireachtas Mail facility 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 Questions process. The Deputy may consider using the e-mail service except in cases where the response from INIS is, in the Deputy's view, inadequate or too long awaited.
131. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the residency status and eligibility for consideration for naturalisation in the case of a person (details supplied) in Dublin 24, whose spouse is an Irish citizen; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51258/13]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe person concerned was the subject of a Deportation Order, made on 19th February, 2009, following a comprehensive examination of his asylum and subsidiary protection claims and the detailed examination of the representations he submitted for consideration under Section 3(6) of the Immigration Act 1999 (as amended). Further representations were received from the person concerned earlier this year requesting that his Deportation Order be revoked, in accordance with the provisions of Section 3(11) of the Immigration Act, 1999 (as amended). Following consideration of the information submitted, the Deportation Order was formally revoked on 6th September, 2013.
The person concerned has sought a right of residency in the State, accompanied by a right to work, based on the principles of the European Court of Justice Judgment in the Zambrano case. This application is under consideration at present. Once a decision has been made in this application, this decision, and the consequences of the decision, will be conveyed in writing to the person concerned. The Deputy should note that as the person concerned has no current right of residency in the State, he would not be in a position to meet the lawful residency criteria applicable to persons applying to my Department for a Certificate of Naturalisation.
Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to the INIS of my Department by e-mail using the Oireachtas Mail facility 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 Questions process. The Deputy may consider using the e-mail service except in cases where the response from the INIS is, in the Deputy’s view, inadequate or too long awaited.
132. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Justice and Equality his plans to make changes to the law in respect of information seized as a by-product of the seizure of a computer; if data protection responsibility continues to be positioned with the data collector but the computer has been seized and, therefore, not under their control; the way they can give effect to that responsibility; in the event of the computer being sold, the efforts that are made to wipe the data; if third party data are retained on the computer, the way the data collector is protected; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51264/13]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs I indicated in my reply to Question No. 162 of 21 November, the Data Protection Acts 1988 and 2003 apply to the Revenue Sheriff. This means, inter alia, that appropriate security measures must be taken against unauthorised access to, or unauthorised alteration, disclosure or destruction of personal data coming into his or her possession. Such personal data may not be retained for longer than is necessary for any specific and legitimate purpose for which they were collected or processed. Where computer equipment containing personal data has been seized by the Revenue Sheriff, such personal data should be returned under secure conditions to the person from whom the equipment was seized unless there is a legitimate reason for non-return of the data. On return of the personal data, relevant provisions of the Data Protection Acts will apply to the data.
In January 2012, the European Commission published proposals for a General Data Protection Regulation to update the current data protection framework. The negotiations on the proposed Regulation are ongoing at EU level. In the circumstances, I have no plans to amend the law at this time.
