Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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551. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the current position in respect of an application for a visa to visit here in the case of a person in County Dublin (details supplied) who made their application one month ago and who lives in the Democratic Republic of Congo; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21078/14]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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The visa applications referred to by the Deputy were received in the Visa Office, Dublin on 22 April 2014. A decision on these applications can be expected within the next four weeks.

As advised on the website of the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (www.inis.gov.ie) it is recommended that visa applicants apply for their visas eight weeks before the intended date of travel. While processing times vary throughout the year, at peak processing times, such as INIS is currently experiencing, it would be expected to take the full eight weeks to process the application.

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.