Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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565. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the position regarding eligibility for naturalisation-stamp 4 in the interim in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18950/14]

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 is currently registered in the State under Stamp 3 conditions having renewed their registration on 01 April, 2014. This permission is valid until 01 April, 2015 and is renewable directly with their local immigration officer shortly before its expiry date.

It remains open to the person concerned to make a written application to INIS seeking to have their immigration status changed to a Stamp 4 on the basis of family dependency of an Irish national.

I am also advised by INIS that there is no record of a current application for a certificate of naturalisation from the person referred to in the Deputy's question.

Section 15 of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended, provides that the Minister may, in his absolute discretion, grant an application for a certificate of naturalisation provided certain statutory conditions are fulfilled. The conditions are that the applicant must -

- be of full age

- be of good character

- have had a period of one year's continuous residency in the State immediately before the date of application and, during the eight years immediately preceding that period, have had a total residence in the State amounting to four years

- intend in good faith to continue to reside in the State after naturalisation

- have, before a judge of the District Court in open court, in a citizenship ceremony or in such manner as the Minister, for special reasons, allows

(i) made a declaration, in the prescribed manner, of fidelity to the nation and loyalty to the State, and

(ii) undertaken to faithfully observe the laws of the State and to respect its democratic values.

A foreign national who is married to, or is the Civil Partner of, an Irish citizen for at least three years may apply for naturalisation under section 15A of the Irish Naturalisation and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended, where they have been continuously resident in the island of Ireland for the year immediately prior to the date of their application and for two out of the four years prior to that year. The marriage or civil partnership must be subsisting and recognised under Irish law. Section 15A provides that the Minister may waive certain conditions for naturalisation if satisfied that the applicant would suffer serious consequences in respect of his or her bodily integrity or liberty if not granted Irish citizenship.

Section 16 of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended, provides that the Minister may, in his absolute discretion, waive some or all of the statutory conditions in certain circumstances i.e. where an applicant is of Irish descent or of Irish associations; where an applicant is a person who is a refugee within the meaning of the United Nations Convention relating to the Status of Refugees; or where an applicant is a Stateless person within the meaning of the United Nations Convention relating to the Status of Stateless persons.

It is open to any individual to lodge an application for citizenship if and when they are in a position to meet the statutory requirements as prescribed in the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956 as amended.

Queries in relation to general immigration matters 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.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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566. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality if previous offences in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Dublin will forever impede their ability to make a valid application for naturalisation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18951/14]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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All applications for a certificate of naturalisation are processed and assessed individually in accordance with the provisions of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended. Section 15 of the Act provides that the Minister may, in his absolute discretion, grant an application for a certificate of naturalisation if satisfied certain statutory conditions are fulfilled. In particular, these conditions require that an applicant is of good character; has had a period of one year's continuous residency in the State immediately before the date of application and, during the eight years immediately preceding that period, has had a total residence in the State amounting to four years; that he or she intends in good faith to continue to reside in the State after naturalisation; and has made a declaration in the prescribed manner of fidelity to the Irish nation and loyalty to the State.

It would be inappropriate for me to indicate how specific offences will be considered in any future application as each application is considered on its merits based on the entirety of the case presented. I can inform the Deputy that I am concerned to ensure that the threshold of what constitutes good character is, taking all things into account, maintained at an appropriate level and as such is fair to all applicants having regard to their particularcircumstances.

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 I know the Deputy will appreciate that it is important that appropriate procedures are in place to preserve the integrity of the process.

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 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.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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567. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the procedure to be followed in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Dublin to progress their case to a stamp 4-eligibility for naturalisation in view of the fact that they are resident here since 1999; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18952/14]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I am informed by the Irish Naturalisation Immigration Service (INIS) of my Department that the parents of the person concerned were granted permission to remain in the State in 2001 under the arrangements then in place for the non-EEA national parents of Irish born citizen children. The person concerned was granted permission to remain in the State for one year, on a stamp 4 basis on 23 January, 2014 by the relevant officials in the INIS. This positive decision was communicated to her by letter issued by registered post on 23 January, 2014. I have been informed by the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB), that the person concerned belatedly presented to GNIB for registration on 15 April, 2014.

Officials in the Citizenship Division of the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) inform me that there is no record of an application for a certificate of naturalisation from the person concerned.

Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to the 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 the INIS is, in the Deputy's view, inadequate or too long awaited.