Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality if he will provide an update on the State’s participation in discussions on guidelines on the Family Reunification Directive; if the guidelines will include defining dependency in relation to a sponsor for the purpose of family reunification; and if he will provide clarification on the evidence required to establish family links. [6001/13]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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The European Commission has indicated that it will during the course of 2013 publish some guidelines on the interpretation of Council Directive 2003/86/EC on the Right to Family Reunification. Since Ireland, like the UK, does not participate in the Directive it would not be in a position to contribute formally to the development of the guidelines. Nevertheless Ireland did participate in the Expert Group on Family Reunification convened in September by the Commission where Member States had an exchange of views on various issues covered by the Directive but which are also relevant to national policies in Ireland. We would likewise hope to attend any future meetings in this area.

The range of issues to be covered in any guidelines are not known at this stage and ultimately that is a matter for the Commission but could be expected to deal with most matters referenced in the Directive, including presumably that of dependency.

In terms of family reunification in Ireland it is my intention to publish in the coming period a detailed policy document on family reunification both where the sponsor is an Irish national and where he/she is from outside the EEA. Work has been underway on this for some time and it will include guidelines on all of the main issues including eligibility, dependency, the financial resources necessary to sponsor a dependent and any personal requirements the person seeking entry must meet. The purpose is to update the existing policies in operation and to address any gaps in the current regime in the interests of applicants, practitioners and staff. The aim is to achieve an appropriate balance between the legitimate aspirations of the family and the interests of society at large recognising of course that in many cases these will coincide.

It should also be noted that our existing policies in respect of certain classes of migration, for high skilled workers, Researchers, PhD Students, Entrepreneurs and Investors, providing for immediate family reunification of spouse and dependent children would compare very favourably with many other jurisdictions. Substantial numbers of cases are processed annually. Therefore it is not a case that Ireland does not offer family reunification and the new guidelines which my Department is working on will provide further clarity on the criteria and the process that will be applied.