David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael)
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Question 1034: To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the current average processing times for visa applications from Chinese citizens; if Chinese citizens who have been granted an Irish visa are permitted to travel to the UK with the same visa without having to satisfy any additional UK requirements; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19325/12]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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Chinese citizens travelling to Ireland as tourists currently have their visa applications processed within 5 to 10 working days. The processing of visas for Chinese citizens coming here for business purposes ordinarily takes two to five working days. I am advised that these timeframes are well within international norms. It should also be noted that the approval rate for Irish visa applications lodged in China is 94%.

At present persons granted an Irish visa are not permitted to use that visa to travel to the UK. This is primarily due to the UK requirement that all visa applicants supply fingerprint (biometrics) data electronically as an essential element of applying for a UK visa. Quite obviously Ireland does not have the capacity to capture such data for all visa applications worldwide; currently for UK visas this is done in over 150 countries.

However, I can inform the Deputy that in December 2011, together with the UK's Immigration Minister, I signed an agreement which, among other things, commits both countries to developing a Common Travel Area visa. Such a visa would allow tourists and business visitors to travel to the Common Travel Area and to travel freely between Ireland and the UK. It is anticipated that such a visa will prove an attractive option for tourists and business visitors and it is intended to conduct a trial scheme which will be used to gauge likely demand and to resolve the substantial practical issues around its introduction.