Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail)
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537. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if a United States citizen who owns property in Ireland for a number of years may apply for Irish citizenship on the basis of having an Irish great-grandfather; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [36032/22]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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The granting of Irish citizenship through naturalisation is governed by the provisions of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended. All applications for a certificate of naturalisation are processed and assessed individually in accordance with the provisions of the Act. A determination on whether an applicant satisfies the statutory criteria attendant to naturalisation can only be made after an application is received.

 Section 15 of the Act sets out the statutory conditions that must be fulfilled for a certificate of naturalisation to be granted.

Section 16 of the Act includes a discretionary provision to waive the statutory conditions in certain circumstances, including where the applicant is of Irish descent or Irish associations (defined as related through blood, affinity or adoption to a person who is or is entitled to be an Irish citizen). Any application under Section 16 that relies on Irish associations and affinity should be supported by substantive documentation supporting the claim, documentation that renders the application exceptional and one where the normal pathways to citizenship provided for under the legislation are not appropriate. 

It is open to any individual to lodge an application for citizenship if and when they are in a position to meet the statutory conditions as prescribed in the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended.

However, an association going back two generations without any other link to the State is generally not considered as sufficient to warrant consideration of the waiving of the statutory residence conditions.

Applicants who seek to avail of the discretion provided under Section 16 of the Act are expected to have a reasonable period of lawful residence in the State, generally around three years, to show they have some substantial and tangible connection with Irish society and the State. An Irish association through a great-grandparent, (or a grandparent where that grandparent obtained citizenship through naturalisation) and where there is no, or negligible, reckonable residency would generally be deemed insufficient to warrant the exercise of discretion, and would result in a refusal.

Detailed information on Irish citizenship and naturalisation, along with the relevant application forms and guidance notes, is available on the following website. www.irishimmigration.ie/how-to-become-a-citizen/

Additionally, persons born outside of Ireland who have an Irish national grandparent born in Ireland may obtain Irish citizenship through registration in the Foreign Births Register, which is maintained by Department of Foreign Affairs. For more information please see: www.dfa.ie/citizenship/born-abroad/registering-a-foreign-birth/.