Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 18 April 2024
249. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Justice the number of asylum seekers who have entered the country for the past five years and each month this year without a passport or travel documents; and the number of them who have been charged for breaking the law. [17163/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Border Management Unit (BMU) of my Department is responsible for front-line Immigration at Dublin Airport only, as such the below figures reflect the position at Dublin Airport. Other airports and other ports of entry are the responsibility of the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) and data as requested is not collated in this manner for other ports of entry.
The BMU and the GNIB are working closely with airlines on a range of measures to ensure that passengers have the appropriate travel documentation when boarding. Immigration officials are available 24/7 to assist airlines with queries in relation to immigration matters.
In addition to providing advice to airlines on specific queries, training is provided to airline ground staff on current travel documentation requirements to help them reduce the number of passengers boarding flights without correct documentation.
The Department of Justice has recorded a 34% reduction in 2023 in the number of persons arriving in the State without the correct documentation. Q1 in 2024 has seen a further reduction in the numbers arriving without documentation. This is based on the work that the Department’s Border Management Unit is doing with GNIB.
I can further advise the Deputy that my officials have begun a review of the Carrier Liability provisions.
Data of undocumented arrivals for 2022 and 2023 has been detailed in the table below.
|
Year |
Undocumented Arrivals |
|
2022 |
4,968 |
|
2023 |
3,287 |
The table below details undocumented arrivals per month since January 2024.
|
Month |
Undocumented Arrivals |
|
Jan-24 |
205 |
|
Feb-24 |
225 |
|
Mar-24 |
188 |
*All data provided is correct at time of issue and may be subject to data cleansing.
Data has been collected in this format since October 2021, hence the equivalent data for previous years is not available.
The majority of those who present without appropriate documentation and are refused leave to land seek to enter the international protection process. It is also the case that some people with valid travel documents seek to enter the international protection process.
It is a offence under Section 11 of the Immigration Act 2004, for a non national to arrive in the state not in possession of a valid passport or equivalent document. As the Deputy will be aware, the prosecution of offences in these instances are a matter for An Garda Síochána and the Director of Public Prosecutions, who are independent in the exercise of their functions in this regard; as Minister I have no role in such prosecutions. Information in relation to the number of relevant prosecutions has been sought from An Garda Síochána.
