Thomas Gould (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein)
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459. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of applications made since 1 January 2021 for a new residence document under the withdrawal agreement as family members of UK nationals; the number of withdrawal agreement cards issued; and the actions her Department has taken to make family members of UK nationals aware that they must exchange their residence permit before 31 December 2021. [36376/21]

James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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Non-EEA family members or dependents of UK nationals continue to hold the same residence rights to live, work or study in Ireland, if they resided here at the end of the transition period on 31 December 2020. It is estimated that approximately 6,000 non-EEA nationals resident in Ireland will apply for a new residence document under the Withdrawal Agreement as family members of UK nationals.

Non-EEA family members or dependents of UK nationals are required to exchange their current valid Irish Residence Permit (IRP) Card for a new one stating that they benefit from the Withdrawal Agreement. This card exchange programme has applied from 1 January 2021, and is administered by the Immigration Service of my Department for applicants nationwide. Applications are made through an online renewal system.

As of 1 July 2021, 1,244 card exchange applications have been received, of which 1,202 have been completed.

To raise awareness of the card exchange scheme, my Department has created a Brexit information section on the Immigration Service website which includes information for non-EEA family members of UK citizens resident in Ireland. This, along with a frequently asked questions guide is available at inis.gov.ie/en/INIS/Pages/Brexit.

Social media content has been created to sign post available information on the website and published to my Department’s social media channels. My Department will continue to communicate the card exchange scheme deadline in the coming months and throughout this year.