David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

They are all welcome.

On behalf of the Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Flanagan, who sends his apologies, I thank the Senator for raising this matter. I welcome the opportunity to address the position on the spouses and partners of returning Irish emigrants and their access to the labour market. Broadly speaking, spouses and civil partners and de facto partners of Irish nationals have broad access to the Irish labour market. For persons in a marriage or civil partnership, entry to the State and immediate registration with the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service, INIS, and the Garda National Immigration Bureau is possible and these people are granted a stamp 4 immigration permission. Stamp 4 permission holders can work without the need for an employment permit, or indeed can set up their own business. Feedback from the NGO sector has indicated that this is quick and clear to navigate and is inexpensive.

For non-visa required persons, the non-EEA spouse or civil partner can be issued with an entry permission on arrival in the State and will generally have a short period of a few weeks to wait for the stamp 4 permission. It is worth noting Ireland's policy to allow de facto partners to apply for residency permission, recognising the changing nature of relationships and family make-up. The decision of INIS to facilitate such applications is progressive and sets it apart from many other jurisdictions. Currently, a non-EEA de facto partner of an Irish emigrant must make a written application to INIS for assessment, which is subject to a processing time of approximately six months, as the Senator has said. When a positive decision is made, the non-EEA person is entitled to a stamp 4 immigration permission that will allow him or her to work in Ireland without need for an employment permit.

My officials are aware of the Indecon report on returning emigrants,its recommendations, and the challenges faced by this group of people as they return to Ireland, which have been articulated well by Senator Lawless. The Department and officials in the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service have ongoing engagement with stakeholders and are working on proposals that will streamline the process for spouses, civil partners and de facto partners of returning Irish emigrants. The aim of these proposals will be to deliver significant customer improvement gains in terms of the time taken to assess applications and in providing greater clarity to applicants at an early stage before travel commitments are made. It is hoped to deliver this under the INIS service improvement plan 2018-20, and this will assist in streamlining the various schemes that permit non-EEA nationals enter and reside in the State.

I have taken note of the other points the Senator has made and will bring them to the attention of the Minister and the officials in the Department.