Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 495: To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the current status and procedures followed to date with respect to an application for naturalisation in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3448/12]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I can inform the Deputy that the application has entered the final stage of processing and I intend to grant citizenship. The person concerned was informed of this in a letter issued to her on 10 January 2012. Once the prescribed fee and requested documents have been submitted, an invitation to a citizenship ceremony will issue to her at which she will make a declaration of fidelity to the Irish Nation and loyalty to the State and receive her certificate of naturalisation.

The granting of Irish citizenship through naturalisation is a privilege and an honour which confers certain rights and entitlements not only within the State but also at European Union level and it is important that appropriate procedures are in place to preserve the integrity of the process. Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to INIS by e-mail using the Oireachtas Mail facility which has been specifically established for this purpose. This service enables up to date information on such cases to be obtained without the need to seek information by way of the Parliamentary Questions process. The Deputy may consider using the e-mail service except in cases where the response from INIS is, in the Deputy's view, inadequate or too long awaited.