Maurice Quinlivan (Limerick City, Sinn Fein)
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600. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the number of Irish passports issued outside the State in each of the years 1997 to 2016; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13903/17]

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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The numbers of passports issued by the Passport Service issued between 2006 and 2016 inclusively to citizens living outside the State are as follows:

The Passport Service does not have detailed statistics for the number of passports issued to persons outside the State prior to 2006. However, the following table provides the total number of passports issued between 1997 and 2005. Passports issued via our Embassies and Consulates overseas typically account for approximately 15% of all passports issued annually.

There has been a steady increase in the number of passports issued to citizens living outside the State over the past three years. The most significant increase (at 21%) in the number of passports issued to citizens outside the state has been between 2015 and 2016. While the Passport Service does not compile information on why citizens apply for passports, it is reasonable to conclude that the outcome of the UK referendum on EU membership has led to an increase in demand. Other factors include the growth in outbound travel from Ireland and demographic changes.