Written answers

Tuesday, 27 November 2007

Department of Foreign Affairs

Passport Applications

8:00 pm

Photo of Denis NaughtenDenis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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Question 318: To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs the applications processed by his Department; the average waiting time to process each application; the steps he is taking to speed up the processing time; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25154/07]

Photo of Dermot AhernDermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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I understand that the Deputy is referring to application processes operated by my Department to provide services to the public and also applications involving Local Authorities.

Passport Application Process

To date in 2007, the Passport Office has processed 665,590 applications. The majority are channelled through the Passport Express service operated by An Post, and in the case of Northern Ireland, by the Royal Mail. The Passport Office guarantees that a person using these services will receive his or her passport within 10 working days provided that the application is complete and in order.

It is also possible to apply for a passport using the ordinary postal service, through Embassies and Consulates abroad and in person at the Passport Offices in Dublin and Cork. The turnaround time for these applications varies depending on the time of year and the level of demand on the passport service.

In the case of urgent travel it is possible to provide a forty eight hour service, and in the case of emergency a same day service. This emergency service is also available at weekends. The level of service provided by the Passport Office is continually reviewed to ensure maximum efficiency, effectiveness and value for money.

Consular Application Processes

The Department also processes applications for Irish citizenship by Foreign Births Registration and for letters of freedom for Irish citizens who require them in order to get married abroad.

In general, the processing of applications for Irish citizenship by Foreign Births Registration for persons resident in Ireland is currently taking about six weeks, from the initial submission of applications until the Certificate confirming citizenship is issued, provided that full documentation is presented. The timescale for processing these applications at our Missions abroad can vary depending on the volume of applications received, whether the documents initially submitted were correct and complete, and other local circumstances. Efforts are made to process applications as quickly as possible while ensuring that the legal requirements under the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Acts are met and that only applicants who are entitled to Irish citizenship are approved.

A letter of freedom to marry, often referred to as a Certificate de Coutume or a Nulla Osta, is only valid for a marriage ceremony that takes place within 120 days after it is issued. Applicants are advised to apply in good time and there is at present no significant waiting time for these applications to be processed. I might also mention that the Department provides a same day service for authentication of official documents.

The level of service for Foreign Births Registration and for letters of freedom is kept under constant review. In particular, we have focused on the development and implementation of IT applications which can improve application procedures. For the convenience of members of the public, we have recently begun to provide these services from the Department's Offices in Cork, in addition to the existing service provided in Dublin.

Irish Aid

As the Deputy is aware, Irish Aid have a number of programmes where development agencies and Non-Governmental Organisations can apply for funding for development projects. On occasion, some Local Authorities have applied for funding for specific development initiatives and these have been considered on the merits of the applications.

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