Robert Dowds (Dublin Mid West, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality his views on the €60 charge for a single use re-entry visa for non EEA nationals leaving and returning to Ireland; and his plans to review same [58033/12]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The €60 fee for a re-entry visa is an administrative fee set to cover the cost of the processing of the visa. The fee, along with ordinary visa fees, is classed as a diplomatic and consular fee and is, therefore, set by my colleague the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade under S.I. No. 82/2004 - Diplomatic and Consular Fees (Amendment) Regulations 2004. No increase in fees has been applied since 2004.

The Irish visa system is intended to be self-financing and the revenue generated through the re-entry visa system is significant in ensuring this is the case. This is particularly important given the current economic climate. I consider this a reasonable fee in the circumstances and it has been found to compare favourably with the equivalent fee applied internationally.

Some exemptions exist for re-entry visa fees including:

- Visa fee exemptions for certain family members of EU nationals, under the provisions of the EU Free Movement Directive.

- Exemptions to certain family members of Irish citizens. It is estimated that over 1 in 8 re-entry visa applications during 2012 were fee-exempt.

It is important to note that in fact most people apply for and are issued multi-entry re-entry visas (the fee in this case being €100), allowing them, usually for the duration of their registration, to travel out of and back to Ireland freely.

I also wish to point out to the Deputy that the annual re-entry visa application total has fallen from over 64,000 in 2010 to 53,500 in 2011. Preliminary numbers for 2012 indicate approximately 44,000 re-entry visas were issued. This fall most probably reflects the significant increase in the number of citizenship applications granted since I entered office, which has in turn reduced the number of visa-required non-EEA nationals requiring re-entry visas.

I would also like to advise the Deputy that, in the absence of exit controls, re-entry visas have a role to play in the area of immigration control and security, providing greater visibility on movements out of and back into the country, notably the movements of children under 16; certain abuses in this area have come to light as a result of the issuing of re-entry visas.