Written answers
Tuesday, 24 September 2013
Department of Justice and Equality
Naturalisation Applications
Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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421. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the progress to date in the determination of residency status and or eligibility for naturalisation in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39161/13]
Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I am advised by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) of my Department that the person referred to by the Deputy currently has permission to remain in the State until 17 November, 2015. In addition, a valid application for a certificate of naturalisation has been received from the person concerned.
As the Deputy will appreciate, 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. While most cases are generally now processed within six months, the nature of the naturalisation process is such that, for a broad range of reasons, some cases will take longer than others to process. In some instances, completing the necessary checks can take a considerable period of time. I am informed that this application is now at an advanced stage of processing. A letter has issued to the person concerned requesting certain information. Upon receipt of this information the case will be submitted to me for decision.
The Deputy may wish to note that 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 established specifically 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.
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