Dinny McGinley (Donegal South West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for raising this issue. I understand that the death of a loved one abroad is particularly difficult for families involved. This issue, along with a number of other proposed amendments to the Civil Registration Act 2004, is currently being closely considered in the Department of Social Protection. In this regard it is hoped that legislation will be introduced in 2013.

Under the provisions and procedures governing the registration of deaths in Ireland, which are contained in Part 5 of the Civil Registration Act 2004, where a death occurs in the State it is the duty of a qualified informant, normally a relative of the deceased, to attend at a registrar's office and register the death on foot of a certificate of cause of death supplied by a registered medical practitioner. Where a death is referred to a coroner, it is registered by a registrar on foot of a coroner's certificate.

In general, only deaths which occur within the State can be registered. However, section 39 of the Act provides for the following exceptions: the death of an Irish citizen on board a foreign ship or a foreign aircraft travelling to or from a port, or an airport, as the case may be, in the State; the death of a person on board an Irish aircraft or an Irish ship; and the death of a member of the Garda Síochána or the Permanent Defence Force or of the spouse or specified members of the family of such a member outside the State while the member is serving outside the State as such member.

Section 38 of the Act makes provision for the registration of a death of an Irish citizen domiciled in the State in certain specific circumstances. Where the death of an Irish citizen domiciled in the State occurs abroad, the death may be registered here if there was not at the time of the death a system of registration of deaths in the place where the death occurred, or such a system that applied to such a death, or it is not possible to obtain copies of or extracts from civil records of the death, namely, a death certificate. In other words, if the death could not be registered or if a death certificate could not be obtained, the death can be registered here. Although the number of such cases is extremely small it is considered reasonable to make provision for them. The reasoning behind these provisions is simply to ensure that where deaths cannot be registered abroad, they can be registered here and that in all cases the relatives of the deceased have available to them a certificate of the death for personal, legal and administrative purposes.

Usually, when an Irish citizen dies abroad, the death is registered by the civil authorities in the place where the death occurred and a certified copy of the death registration is obtainable. This certificate, translated if necessary, is normally sufficient for all legal and administrative purposes here and for these reasons alone there is no necessity for the death to be registered in the State. Any broadening of the current provisions will require careful consideration. It will be appreciated that the number of people who live and die in other countries and who have or are entitled to Irish citizenship is very large. This would have implications for the registration process and for the vital statistics relating to deaths which are derived from registered events.

The number of Irish citizens who are domiciled in Ireland and who die abroad is relatively small in the context of total deaths occurring here in any given year. However, I am acutely conscious that each figure represents a tragedy and because the deaths take place away from home it is an additional heartache for the family. As I have said already, a death certificate is readily available in the overwhelming majority of these cases. However, I do appreciate that many families of the deceased strongly believe that registration here of the death, would give recognition of the death in the person's country, which would also assist during a period of considerable grief. I am aware that the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Education and Social Protection has recommended amendment of the current legislation to enable deaths of Irish citizens who have died abroad to be registered here.

As stated, any broadening of the current provisions requires careful consideration given the number of people who live and die in other countries and who have or are entitled to Irish citizenship. I again thank the Senator for raising this issue. The Minister hopes to bring forward legislation in this regard in 2013.