Brendan Ryan (Dublin North, Labour)
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Question 387: To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the reason a holiday visa application was refused in respect of a person (details supplied); if he will have this decision reviewed with a view to granting the holiday visa; if he will state exactly the documentation the applicant must provide in order to ensure a successful application; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33367/11]

Brendan Ryan (Dublin North, Labour)
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Question 388: To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality if it is his policy to refuse a holiday visa to applicants from non-EU countries for reason of not having a compliant travel history, even in cases when the applicant has not travelled outside his or her own country before. [33368/11]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 387 and 388 together.

The person referred to by the Deputy created a 'C type' i.e. short-stay visa application (on-line) on 3 August, 2010. Following full consideration by a Visa Officer this application was refused on 9 September, 2010 for the following reasons:

1. The Visa Officer had concerns surrounding the authenticity of documentation regarding employment submitted in support of the application. On contacting the applicant's employer by telephone, contradictory information was given as to whether the person concerned actually worked for the company and, if so, what was her period of leave;

2. The Visa Officer had concerns surrounding the immigration history of applicant. It was noted that the applicant had demonstrated no previous compliant travel history;

3. It was the opinion of the Visa Officer that the applicant had insufficient obligations to return to the home country in circumstances where a visa was to be granted.

The person concerned appealed this decision on 12 October, 2010. Following full consideration by a Visa Appeals Officer, the applicant failed to address the original concerns raised. The original decision to refuse the visa was upheld on 13 October, 2010.

It is of course open to the person concerned to submit a fresh visa application at any time. If doing so, the applicant would be strongly advised to be in a position to address the above mentioned concerns.

The Deputy may wish to note that the unique visa transaction number referred to by him would appear to be incorrect as it refers to a visa applicant from a different country.

Guidelines on the visa application process are available on the website of the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (www.inis.gov.ie).

Regarding the Deputy's question relating to travel history policy, I can advise that each visa application is considered on its individual merits. Factors taken into account when processing a visa application include all of the applicant-specific information available to the Visa Officer as well as more general in-country factors such as immigration trends and the socio-economic circumstances pertaining in the visa applicant's country of residence. A visa is merely a form of pre-entry clearance to travel to Ireland and is essentially the first line of defence in upholding the immigration system of our State. Processing a visa application involves a risk evaluation, where all pertinent circumstances of the applicant are considered in the round. The onus is on the visa applicant at all times to demonstrate to the Visa Officer that the risks involved are minimal and that a visa is merited. In considering a 'Visit Visa' type application, a key consideration by a Visa Officer is whether or not an individual will abide by and observe the conditions of a visa where granted.

The immigration or travel history of all applicants is also a factor in any evaluation. A cautious approach is adopted by visa officers when processing visa applications where no travel history is demonstrated. In such circumstances, the Visa Officer will normally look for other factors in the visa application which demonstrate a commitment to return home at the end of the visit. It is possible for an applicant to be refused a visa based solely on a lack of immigration or travel history, but such refusals are very rare. It is much more likely that the visa refusal will also be based on a variety of other reasons as happened in the individual case to which the Deputy refers.