Seán Canney (Galway East, Independent)
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458. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality when an application for a joint family visa (details supplied) will be processed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [43393/20]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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The applicant referred to by the Deputy created an online application for Long Stay Join Family (Irish National sponsor) visas on 25 July 2020. The application was received in the Dublin Visa Office for further processing on 6 October 2020. The application is currently awaiting comprehensive examination.

In accordance with the provisions of the Policy Document on Non-EEA Family Reunification, processing of family reunification visa applications, may take up to 6 months to determine from the date the documentation is received in the relevant Visa Office. However, this is a business target and not a legal obligation.

The Visa Office endeavours to have applications processed earlier than this, but this is not always possible. Applications are processed in the order in which they are received and will not normally be processed ahead of others unless there are extremely urgent reasons requiring immediate travel.

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