Dan Boyle (Cork South Central, Green Party)
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Question 1165: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the number of people who are awaiting a decision on leave to remain here as per 31 December 2005. [1770/06]

Dan Boyle (Cork South Central, Green Party)
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Question 1166: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the number of people who have sought leave to remain here, at his behest, since 1 June 2002. [1771/06]

Dan Boyle (Cork South Central, Green Party)
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Question 1167: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the number of people who have been refused leave to remain here, at his behest, since 1 June 2002. [1772/06]

Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)
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I propose to answer Questions Nos. 1165 to 1167, inclusive, together.

I presume that the Deputy is referring to applications for leave to remain in the State made pursuant to section 3(6) of the Immigration Act 1999, as amended. An application for leave to remain in the State in these circumstances arises where a non-national is served with a notice of intent to deport under section 3(3)(a) of the Immigration Act 1999. A person served with such a notice of intent to deport is afforded three options: to leave the State voluntarily; to consent to the making of a deportation order; or to make representations in writing within 15 working days setting out reasons a deportation order should not be made and temporary leave to remain in the State be granted instead. Leave to remain, outside that granted on the grounds of parentage of an Irish born child or marriage to an Irish or EU national, is considered in the context of deciding whether to deport a non-national.

In determining whether to make a deportation order or grant temporary leave to remain in the State, I must have regard to the 11 factors set out in section 3(6) of the Immigration Act 1999, as amended, and section 5, prohibition of refoulement, of the Refugee Act 1996, as amended. Temporary leave to remain is considered in every case, regardless of whether representations are made by, or on behalf of, the persons concerned. Statistics are not maintained in a way which distinguishes between those who have made an application for leave to remain and those who have not. Moreover, it must be borne in mind that many of those who failed the asylum process, and who did not opt to return voluntarily or consent to deportation, nonetheless left the State before a decision to deport or grant leave to remain was made.

The figures in the following table refer to persons who received notification of intention to deport under section 3(b)(ii) of the Immigration Act 1999, as amended, but were subsequently granted temporary leave to remain in the State for an initial period of one year. The majority of these would have been persons who were refused refugee status in the State.

The figures in the table above do not include persons who have been granted permission to remain in the State on the basis of parentage of an Irish-born child either under the revised scheme announced in January 2005 or under the earlier arrangements, or those granted residency on the basis of marriage to Irish or EU nationals. Many of these persons would otherwise have been considered for leave to remain in the context of the deportation system described above. For example, in the case of the Irish-born child scheme initiated in January of last year, a total of 17,920 applications for leave to remain were received, of which, as of 31 December 2005, 16,800 have been granted.