Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 213: To ask the Minister for Justice and Law Reform the developments to date in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42339/10]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 214: To ask the Minister for Justice and Law Reform the developments to date in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42340/10]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 215: To ask the Minister for Justice and Law Reform the position regarding an application for residency in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42341/10]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 213 to 215, inclusive, together.

Valid applications for certificates of naturalisation from the persons referred to in the Deputy's Question were received in the Citizenship Division of my Department in January & December 2008.

All valid applications are dealt with in chronological order as this is deemed to be the fairest to all applicants. The average processing time from application to decision is now at 26 months. More complicated cases can at times take more than the current average, while an element of straight forward cases can be dealt with in less than that timescale.

The length of time taken to process each application should not be classified as a delay, as the length of time taken for any application to be decided is purely a function of the time taken to carry out necessary checks. There is a limit to the reduction in the processing time that can be achieved as applications for naturalisation must be processed in a way which preserves the necessary checks and balances to ensure that it is not undervalued and is only given to persons who genuinely satisfy the necessary qualifying criteria. Officials in the Citizenship Division inform me that processing of both applications is ongoing and the files will be submitted to me for a decision in due course.

The first named person received a Long Term Residency permission from the General Immigration Division on the 23 February 2005. He subsequently applied for a Without Condition As To Time endorsement on the 8 May 2008 and received it on the 9 May 2008. Records with the Garda National Immigration Bureau indicate that he currently has the endorsement until 4 February 2014.

Officials in the Long-Term Residency section of my Department inform me that the second named person was granted a Stamp 4 for 5 years. A letter informing her of this issued on 16 June 2008.

I should remind the Deputy that queries in relation to the status of individual Immigration cases may be made direct to INIS by Email using the Oireachtas Mail facility which has been specifically established for this purpose. The service enables up-to-date information on such cases to be obtained without the need to seek this information through the more administratively expensive Parliamentary Questions process.