Mr. Richard King:

I will cover the issue of Irish emigrants returning home with non-EEA family members, which we have seen much of over the past number of years. The majority of people we have surveyed state the reason they returned to Ireland was to be closer to family and support networks rather than other factors such as career or quality of life. Many had left Ireland after college in their 20s and 30s, met partners, started families, and now wish to return to Ireland to be close to their family and possibly raise their children in Ireland. Naturally, many of them are Irish citizens with non-EEA spouses, partners and dependants. These people will be required to apply for residency permission to live and work in Ireland, a process we have noted is difficult and, to some extent, a deterrent for some people wishing to return.

As an overview, people from visa-required countries such as India must undergo a visa process which takes approximately six months, whereas people from non-visa-required countries such as Australia can enter immediately. Spouses and civil partners can usually register immediately on arrival and are granted permission to live and work or be self-employed. We note that issues arise mainly for de factopartners as they must make an application to the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service, INIS, on arrival, which takes at least six months. The big issue is that during this period they cannot work. This causes significant problems, especially for people who are reliant on the income of both partners or on the income of the non-EU family member, and is increasingly stated as a barrier to returning. In some cases, people have informed us they will not return at all until the barrier is removed.

Two comments from people who contacted us directly give a sense of the issue. One person hoping to return from New Zealand said she was not going to take the risk and would just wait until there is a pre-clearance system. A pregnant woman who planned to return from Australia, hoping to come home to give birth, said she and her partner did not have the savings to allow neither of them work for six months. They are simple, practical concerns that cause real worry which, in some cases, are a strong impediment to returning to Ireland.

The solutions, however, are quite simple. In the immediate term, a system of interim registration permission should be set up to allow people to work. They would make their application on their return and while they might have to wait six months, during that time they would be given permission to work. This system already exists for partners of EU citizens moving to Ireland. It is an unusual situation, therefore, because a partner of an Irish citizen cannot access something that a partner of an EU citizen can. Furthermore, the INIS needs to develop something specific to provide clear pathways for returning emigrants, such as information on application processes, because there is a great deal of misinformation and misunderstanding. We appreciate, however, that it is not simple to develop a complex pre-clearance system and it could take a number of years, but in the long run people would be extremely happy with it. Even if the pre-clearance process took some time, it would allow returning emigrants adequately prepare and have some security on their return.

In conclusion, Crosscare's recommendations on both issues seek to provide security for emigrants to resettle in Ireland without significant financial or emotional risk. This will help to ensure that Irish emigrants are not deterred from returning to Ireland if they wish to do so, allow them benefit from a life close to family and friends and, where relevant, raise their children in Ireland. These recommendations are also included in the document circulated to members.

I thank the committee for its interest in matters affecting returning emigrants. We ask that the members consider the issues raised and support the recommendations to ensure that returning emigrants are not placed at a disadvantage solely due to the fact they have lived abroad.