Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

468. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of citizenship applications that have reached a decision stage in each month from January 2020. [22745/21]

Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

469. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality her plans to speed up the processing of citizenship applications in hand to pre-Covid-19 pandemic rates; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [22746/21]

James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I propose to take Questions Nos. 468 and 469 together.

The table below sets out the number of citizenship applications that have reached a decision stage - where a decision has been made on the application by the Minister for Justice - in each month from January 2020, as requested by the Deputy.

It has also been decided to extend the statutory declaration process to a further 2,500 people and by the end of June, it is expected that 6,500 people will have been given the opportunity to complete their Irish citizenship.

In-person citizenship ceremonies have been provisionally scheduled to resume in December 2021, subject to the safety of all involved being assured.

Additionally, work is well advanced on a number of other measures to deal with the current unprecedented level of demand:

- An additional staffing resource is being assigned to the Citizenship Division of my Department. Attendant to this development, restructuring of the organisational structure of the Division is currently underway to ensure optimal customer service delivery;

- Plans for the digitalisation of the naturalisation process are also well advanced, in line with the plan to significantly modernise the justice sector through increased digital and ICT investment. As part of this process, online payments have been trialled for Minor applications and the process is currently being rolled out to Adult applications on a phased basis; and

- The paper based transaction model currently utilised with the National Vetting Bureau is being moved to a digital platform. It is anticipated this will substantially cut application processing times once it is fully operational.

The end result of the digitisation process will be to free up additional resources to focus on enhanced customer service delivery, ensuring the integrity of the process is protected and processing applications in a timely and efficient manner.

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

470. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the progress to date in the determination of an application for citizenship in the case of a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [22749/21]

James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The Citizenship Division of the Immigration Service of my Department requested further documentation from the person concerned on 12 April 2021. On receipt of the requested documentation, the application for naturalisation will be fully considered with a view to establishing whether the applicant meets the statutory conditions for the granting of naturalisation and will be submitted to me for decision in due course.

It is recognised that all applicants for citizenship would wish to have a decision on their application without delay. The nature of the naturalisation process is such that, for a broad range of reasons, some cases will take longer than others to process. In some instances, completing the necessary checks can take a considerable period of time.

The granting of Irish citizenship through naturalisation is a privilege and an honour which confers certain rights and entitlements not only within the State but also at European Union level and it is important that appropriate procedures are in place to preserve the integrity of the process.

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 at INISOireachtasMail@justice.ie, 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 Question process. The Deputy may consider using the e-mail service except in the cases where the response is, in the Deputy's view, inadequate or too long awaited.