Joe Costello (Dublin Central, Labour)
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Question 619: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if he will respond to correspondence (details supplied) referring to the reply to Parliamentary Question No. 340 of 25 November 2008 regarding the increase in fees for a certificate of naturalisation; if he will provide the citizenship certificate in English as well as Irish; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1166/09]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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The Irish Nationality and Citizenship (Fees) Regulations 1993, as amended in 1996, set out the prescribed fees payable by applicants on the issue of a certificate of naturalisation prior to 1 August 2008. The fees were as follows:

(a) where an application was made on behalf of a minor, a fee of €126.97

(b) where an application was made by a spouse of a naturalised Irish citizen, a fee of €126.97

(c) where an application was made by a widow or widower of an Irish citizen, a fee of €126.97

(d) in the case of all other applications, a fee of €634.87

(e) the fee payable under (a), (b),(c) or (d) shall be nil, if the application for the certificate concerned was made by or on behalf of a refugee or stateless person or by or on behalf of a programme refugee.

The Irish Nationality and Citizenship (Fees) Regulations 2008 set out the prescribed fees payable by applicants on the issue of a certificate of naturalisation since 1 August 2008. The fees are as follows:

(a) where an application is made on behalf of a minor, a fee of €200

(b) where an application is made by a spouse of a naturalised Irish citizen, a fee of €950

(c) where an application is made by a widow or widower of an Irish citizen, a fee of €200

(d) in the case of all other applications, a fee of €950

(e) the fee payable under (a), (b), (c), or (d) shall be nil, if the application for the certificate concerned was made by or on behalf of a refugee or stateless person or by or on behalf of a programme refugee.

The increases are in line with inflation for the period 1993 to 2008. Previous regulations contained an anomaly whereby spouses of naturalised Irish citizens paid a lower fee than spouses of Irish-born citizens. All spouses now pay the same fee for the same processing effort. While the fees are designed to reflect the effort and cost involved in processing the different categories of applicant, the certification fees do not recoup the full cost of processing in any category. A copy of the certificate of naturalisation is available in English from the Citizenship Division of my Department on request.