Ciarán Lynch (Cork South Central, Labour)
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78. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality when a determination will be made on an application for a visa by a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36758/15]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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I am advised by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) of my Department that the visa application referred to by the Deputy was received in the Irish Embassy in Cairo on 22 July, 2015 and subsequently referred to the Irish Visa Office in Abu Dhabi for processing.

Unfortunately, the expected time frame for processing of long stay visa applications such as the application lodged by the person in question has extended due to a large increase in the number of applications received in the Visa Office in Abu Dhabi. This is in part due to the difficulty in having supporting documents adequately verified by the issuing state. The person concerned has been informed of the situation by the Visa Office in Abu Dhabi.

While this application is pending, the person concerned made a visa application on 14 October, 2015 for a short-term visa to attend an Irish Medical Council exam. An exam visa was approved on 19 October, 2015 and is now ready for collection from the Irish Embassy in Cairo. The person concerned has been informed.

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.