Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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123. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the current residency status in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Dublin, their spouse and family; if the family satisfies eligibility for consideration for naturalisation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [51250/13]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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The person concerned and his spouse were granted temporary permission to remain in the State in 2001 under the arrangements then applicable to the non-EEA national parents of Irish born citizen children. His permission was renewed on a regular basis with the latest permission due to expire on 4 March, 2014. I am informed that the spouse of the person concerned has been naturalised. 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. The application is now at an advanced stage of processing and they will be informed of my decision in due course.

Queries in relation to general immigration matters may be made directly to Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) of my Department 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.