Seán Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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Question 572: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the reason for the delays in processing Irish citizenship applications which can run to upwards of three years; if the process of notifying applicants, if their applications meet the statutory conditions can be expedited; if additional staff will be recruited to reduce the current backlog of applications; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14203/08]

Brian Lenihan Jnr (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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The existing processing time for applications for certificates of naturalisation is approximately thirty months and this is primarily due to the significant increase in the volume of applications received in the last number of years. The procedures employed to assess an applicant for naturalisation are as set out in summary form below.

Upon receipt, an initial examination of each application is carried out to determine if the statutory application is completed fully. Incomplete application forms are returned to the applicant for amendment. Valid applications are then examined to determine if the applicant meets the statutory residency criteria set out in the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act. Passports and other documentation are examined in detail and enquiries with the Garda National Immigration Bureau may also be necessary. Since this procedure was introduced on 1 April 2005, over 3,500 applicants who applied since that date have been found to be ineligible. All such applicants are informed of any shortfall in their residency, within a matter of weeks from the date the application is received, and will be able to reapply when they have the required residency.

Further processing takes place at a later stage and involves assessing an applicant's financial status in respect of their ability to support themselves in the State. Enquiries with the Revenue Commissioners and the Department of Social and Family Affairs may be necessary in this regard. At the same time enquiries are also made with the Garda Síochána to clarify if the applicant can be deemed to be of good character. Depending on the complexity of any given case, these processes can take a lengthy time to complete. Once all enquiries are completed, the file is referred to me for a decision.

The Deputy will appreciate that the granting of Irish citizenship through naturalisation is an honour and applications must be processed in a way which preserves the necessary checks and balances to ensure that it is not undervalued and is given only to persons who satisfy the necessary qualifying criteria. The above procedures have been developed and refined over a number of years and I am satisfied that they are necessary to maintain the integrity of the naturalisation process. Consequently, having regard to the resources available, which are kept under constant review, there is a limit to the reduction in the processing time that can be achieved. I have, however, recently allocated additional resources to the Citizenship section of my Department as well as instructed my officials to undertake a review of the various processes in order that these might be streamlined further where possible.