Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Question 136: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the position regarding a visa application for the spouse of a person (details supplied) in County Mayo; if the application has been refused; and if so, the reasons therefor. [5449/05]

Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)
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The visa application referred to by the Deputy was to enable the spouse of a non-EEA national employed under the employment permit scheme to reside with her in the State. A worker employed under the employment permit scheme may be joined by their spouse and minor children after the worker has been in the State for one year and has been offered a contract for a further year. The worker must also be able to fully support the family members in question without the need to have recourse to public funds.

When assessing applications of this type, the visa officer will consider, among other factors, whether the salary of the worker comes within the ambit of qualifying for payment from public funds. In this regard, the criteria set by the Department of Social and Family Affairs for eligibility for family income supplement payment, FIS, are used as a guideline. The criteria, which may change from time to time, are available on that Department's website, www.welfare.ie/publications/sw22.html. If the worker's income, as evidenced by his or her payslips or P60, qualifies for FIS payments, the application for a visa is generally refused. In this case, the income, as evidenced by the payslips supplied, was significantly less than the relevant benchmark amount.