Maria Byrne (Fine Gael)
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I welcome the Minister of State at the Department of Justice and Equality, Deputy Stanton, to the House. I seek an extension of the current regulation around stamp 2 and stamp 4. I know someone who came to Ireland as a student in 2003 on the stamp 2 programme. The person went to college to follow courses in hotel management and business studies and has studied various other courses since. The person has been working on stamp 2 for the last number of years and applied for a visa to remain in the State. A programme for people like this was introduced in 2018 but it was from 2005 onwards and, having come to the State in 2003, the person did not qualify. The person's skills are not on the critical skills visa permit list and so the person is not eligible under that scheme either. While the relevant stamp 2 permission was extended in March 2018 for 18 months, the person has been in Ireland for 15 years and contributed to society, including through taxes. The person to whom I refer is very involved in voluntary organisations and has contributed to the community. Notwithstanding the charitable deeds performed, the person is being told that once the 18 months are up, there will be a requirement to leave Ireland. I ask for a review of the case or an extension of the programme for stamp 2 holders back to 2003. A few people are affected and they have played their part in Ireland.We have accepted their taxes for more than 15 years. They paid to come here to be educated here. They have worked their way through it, yet we are telling them that in six months they will have to leave Ireland. It is very worrying for them because they have established themselves here as a member of society and played a fine role in their commitment, not only to the people they work with but also to the community. A review or an extension of the programme back as far as 2003 would be greatly welcomed.

David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Senator for raising this matter. The Minister, Deputy Flanagan, who is appearing before a committee this morning, sends his apologies. I welcome the opportunity to address the position regarding the recent special scheme for non-EEA national students.

In October 2018, a new scheme to allow certain non-EEA nationals to apply for permission to remain in the State was launched, as the Senator has outlined. The scheme was open to non-EEA nationals resident in the State who held a valid student permission between 1 January 2005 and 31 December 2010, and who had not, in the intervening period, acquired an alternative immigration permission, to apply for permission to remain in the State.

The scheme addressed a significant cohort of people who had been in the State for a number of years and who form part of the undocumented persons in the State, having moved from a position of having permission to be in the State some years ago to having fallen out of permission. The scheme provides that permission will be granted for an initial probationary period of two years. This permission allows successful applicants to remain in the State including the right to reside and work in the State and will be subject to renewal after two years.

The Senator may not be aware that this is not the first such immigration scheme introduced by the Minister in respect of students. The Irish National Immigration Service, INIS, previously introduced a student scheme in 2012, available to persons who had been continuously resident in the State before 2005. It was called the 2004 student probationary extension scheme. Thus this group were specifically considered and dealt with under that scheme. INIS introduced that student scheme to assist in the transition to a new immigration policy regime for full-time students which commenced in January 2011.

As a final measure in assisting the transition to the new regime, the 2012 student probationary extension scheme was made available to non-EEA students who first registered their residence in Ireland as students on or before 31 December 2004 and who had commenced their studies in Ireland by that date. These arrangements allowed eligible students to reside in Ireland for a further period of two years on specified conditions. Some 2,700 individuals qualified under this scheme and were granted permission. In addition, at the conclusion of the two-year probationary period those students were eligible to apply for a more permanent status on condition that certain obligations were fulfilled.

Accordingly, students who came to Ireland prior to 2005, have already had a scheme and pathway made available to them. Consequently, it would not be appropriate for the Minister to duplicate the most recent scheme of 2018 for a group already given the opportunity to regularise their status in 2012.

I might add that other options are available to persons who seek to regularise their situation in the State, particularly in cases where the person fell out of permission through no fault of his or her own.

Maria Byrne (Fine Gael)
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I was not aware of the prior scheme. Obviously the person about whom I am speaking was probably not aware of it at the time and missed the application date. There are other options and I will certainly explore those. Is there any way for this case to be reviewed or considered? This person has contributed financially by paying tax and in the community. This is a very fine and upstanding person who has contributed much. Is there any way for their case to be reviewed if they did not apply in time when the scheme was opened in 2011?

David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael)
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There are a number of ways in which people can regularise their status. I will arrange for those methods to be transmitted to the Senator so that she can ascertain if there is a way for this person to receive status.

I repeat that students who came to Ireland prior to 2005 have already had access to a scheme to regularise their immigration status. That has been done. I understand that somebody might not have known about it and missed out. The most recent scheme for non-EEA students was devised to address a cohort of long-term residents who arrived in the State between January 2005 and December 2010 and who, after initially holding a valid student permission, fell out of residence permission. We are doing this on a case-by-case basis.

These timed-out students who arrived in the State as students prior to 2005 were previously provided with an opportunity to regularise themselves under the 2004 student probation extension which commenced in August 2012. This scheme allowed those non-EEA nationals, who registered their student permission or commenced studies in the State on or before 31 December 2004 and who had maintained their residence permission as a student since initial registration in the State, to make an application to INIS for a further residence permission. Those who met the qualifying criteria were granted a two-year residence permission. Their status continues to be that of a student. However, during this two-year period they were allowed full access to the labour market. At the conclusion of the two-year probationary period, students were informed they would be eligible to apply for a more permanent status on condition that certain obligations to be fulfilled.

It would not be appropriate for the Minister to duplicate the most recent scheme for a group already given the opportunity to regularise their status in 2012. I will arrange for the details to be sent to the Senator. Following that, if she wants to communicate with the Minister's office, there may be ways of doing things. Not knowing the situation in this case, I cannot comment further.