Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

160. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the means by which a person (details supplied) can get the required permission from the father of their child in view of the fact their child has qualified for entitlement to Irish citizenship in their own right; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25126/17]

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The Passport Service is obliged under the Passports Act, 2008 to obtain the consent of all guardians before issuing a passport to a minor. If a minor has only one guardian, the Passport Service can accept the consent of that guardian and a sworn Sole Guardian Affidavit. If a minor has two guardians but one guardian is unavailable or unwilling to provide consent, a court order is required dispensing with the consent of that guardian. In this particular case, the position is that the applicant has two guardians –the mother and father. Only the consent of the applicant’s mother is given on the passport application form. The Passport Service cannot proceed with the application without either the father’s consent or a court order dispensing with it. It should be noted that the requirement for the consent of guardians is in the interests of child protection. The issue of consent is separate as such to the citizenship of the child.