Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 210: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if the application for citizenship will be acceptable in the case of persons (details supplied) in Dublin 24; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15055/07]

Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)
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Applications for certificates of naturalisation were received in the Citizenship section of my Department on 22 August 2006.

Section 15 of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act, 1956, as amended, requires that an applicant must have had a period of one year's continuous residency in the State immediately before the date of application and, during the eight years immediately preceding that period, have had a total residence in the State amounting to four years.

The application of the first named individual was examined and it was determined that he did not satisfy the aforementioned residency requirements. A letter informing him of this was issued on 8 March 2007. It is open to him to lodge a new application if and when he is in a position to meet the statutory requirements.

Officials in the Citizenship Division are currently processing applications received in the latter half of 2004 and have approximately 9,100 applications on hand to be dealt with before that of the second named person. These are generally dealt with in chronological order as this is deemed to be the fairest to all applicants. It is likely, therefore, that further processing of her application will commence in the first half of 2009.

I will inform the Deputy and the person in question when I have reached a decision on the case.