Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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123. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the primary and secondary legislation which stipulates that a civil birth certificate is required for first passport applications; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37754/18]

Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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124. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if it is planned that SAFE level 2 shall be accepted as documentary evidence of both identity and citizenship replacing the need for applicants to submit civil birth certificates for the purpose of making a first-time passport application; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37755/18]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 123 and 124 together.

SAFE Level 2, SAFE2, registration is a process that allows a person to verify their identity for a number of public services provided by specified bodies.

The Public Services Card and the relevant issuing process, which is managed by the Department of Social Protection, requires SAFE2 registration and verification. SAFE2 is secure & robust and gives a high degree of assurance regarding the identity of the holder.

The Passport Service currently requires evidence that first time adult applicants and those seeking to replace lost, stolen or damaged passports issued prior to 2005 are holders of a PSC. This measure has been an important step in protecting against fraud and identity theft and in upholding the integrity of the Irish passport.

All passport applications are subject to the provisions of the Passports Act 2008. The Act provides, among other things, that a person must be an Irish citizen before a passport can be issued to him/her. In order to meet this legal requirement, each person must demonstrate an entitlement to Irish citizenship in his or her passport application. The PSC does not verify citizenship.

Section 7 of the Act requires that the Minister be satisfied as to a person’s identity and that the person is an Irish citizen before issuing a passport to that person. Section 7(2) provides as follows: “The Minister may require an applicant for a passport to provide such information as the Minister may require for the purposes of the application and to produce to him or her such documents as he or she considers necessary or expedient to enable him or her to perform the functions of the Minister under this Part.”