Eoghan Murphy (Dublin South East, Fine Gael)
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Question 534: To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the position regarding a stamp 4 visa in respect of persons (details supplied). [34724/12]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I am advised by officials in the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) that the persons referred to by the Deputy sought permission to remain in the State on Stamp 4 conditions under the Long Term Residency scheme in May 2012.

Long Term Residency is granted on the basis that a non-EEA national has completed five years (60 months) legal residency in the State on work permit/work authorisation/working visa conditions. Residency is calculated from the corresponding Stamp 1 or Stamp 4 endorsements in an applicant's passport and not by the dates of commencement and expiry of each work permit. Periods of time where a person has not had legal residency or where they have been resident in the State on student conditions (Stamp 2) are not reckonable for an application for Long Term Residency.

In the case of the persons referred to by the Deputy, I wish to advise him that the persons concerned did not satisfy the residency criteria for Long Term Residency and accordingly their applications were not approved. The two persons concerned were advised of this decision by letter dated 21/05/2012.

The persons concerned may write to the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) of my Department seeking a change of immigration status. Further details are available on the INIS website www.inis.gov.ie.

Queries made 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.