Thomas Gould (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein)
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373. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the status of the visa application by a person (details supplied); and if he will ensure that this visa is processed in a swift manner. [46673/22]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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The person referred to by the Deputy created an on-line Short Stay 'C' visa application on 1 September 2022. The supporting documentation and relevant fees were received on 5 September 2022 in the Riyadh office. This visa application was then forwarded to the Abu Dhabi Visa Office for further processing on 5 September 2022.

Processing of this application is ongoing at present. As each application is examined under it's own merits, we are unable to give an exact time-frame for completion. However, the applicant can be assured that there will be no avoidable delay in finalising their applications.

Visa applications are processed in order of receipt. Processing times can differ between application offices and application types. They may also vary during the year for example during peak travel holiday periods. In general, applicants can expect a decision for a short stay visit (tourist) visa approximately 8 weeks after receipt of a completed application.

Applicants are advised not to pay for airline or other travel tickets without having first been issued with a visa. The person referred to by the Deputy will be notified as soon as a decision has been reached by a Visa Officer.

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 (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 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.