Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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542. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if a review of the case in respect of an application for refugee status will be undertaken in the case of a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34795/19]

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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I am advised by the Immigration Service of my Department that if an application for International Protection has been made in the State, for confidentiality reasons it is not the practice to comment on such applications and the applicant or his or her designated legal advisor should contact the International Protection Office directly, either by email to info@ipo.gov.ie, by telephone to the IPO Customer Service Centre at 01 6028008 ,or in writing to Customer Service Centre, International Protection Office, 79-83 Lower Mount Street, Dublin 2.

Similarly, the International Protection Appeals Tribunal operates an email service which can be contacted by individuals with any queries regarding their application - info@protectionappeals.ie.

The Ministerial Decisions Unit also operates an email service at mduinfo@justice.ie. 

Under Section 26 of the International Protection Act 2015, it is an offence to identify an international protection applicant. The offence is punishable by summary conviction to a Class A fine or a term of imprisonment of 12 months or both. 

An applicant may appeal a recommendation by an international protection officer that the applicant should not be given a refugee declaration and/or a recommendation that the applicant should not be given a subsidiary protection declaration to the International Protection Appeals Tribunal.

Where an international protection officer recommends that an applicant should be given neither a refugee nor a subsidiary protection declaration, the Minister will consider in accordance with Section 49 of the International Protection Act 2015 whether to give the applicant concerned a permission to remain in the State.

Where the Tribunal affirms a recommendation that the applicant should not be given a refugee declaration and a recommendation that the applicant should not be given a subsidiary protection declaration, the Minister will, upon becoming aware of a change in circumstances or receiving new information from an applicant that had it been in the possession of the Minister when making such decision would have been relevant to that decision, review the decision in relation to permission to remain in the State.

The Chief International Protection Officer, following consultation with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), published a statement on the Prioritisation of Applications for International Protection under the International Protection Act 2015 on 27 February 2017, which is available on the website of the International Protection Office www.ipo.gov.ie.

Queries in relation to the status of individual immigration cases may be made directly to the Immigration Service of my Department 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 the Immigration Service is, in the Deputy’s view, inadequate or too long awaited.