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

347. 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. [30435/21]

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

An application for a certificate of naturalisation was received from the person referred to by the Deputy on 2 September 2020. A letter requesting further documentation was sent to the applicant on 30 November 2020, with no response received to date. As I understand that the applicant changed address on 22 December 2020, this letter will now be resent to the new address.

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.

It is recognised that all applicants for citizenship would wish to have a decision on their application without delay. However, 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.

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.