Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 21 June 2022
309. Deputy Jennifer Carroll MacNeill asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the status of a foreign birth registration application (details supplied); the timeline for when the application will be completed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31929/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraDue to the complex nature of the 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, ##applicant's should allow approximately 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.
With regard to the application to which the Deputy has referred, this application has been processed and the applicant has now been entered onto the Foreign Birth Register.
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 taken 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 y ear.
