Pádraig O'Sullivan (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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204. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of applications received and the number of approvals issued on an annual basis since its inception in respect of the immigrant investor programme, under each investment fund; the total investment under each fund, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9183/23]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy is aware, I obtained approval from the Government to close the Immigrant Investor Programme (IIP) to further applications from 15 February 2023.

The Immigrant Investor Programme was established over a decade ago during a time of unprecedented economic difficulty to stimulate investment in Ireland that would be of strategic and public benefit to the State. Since its inception, the Programme has brought significant investment to Ireland and has been operated by the Department of Justice to the highest professional standards.

The IIP Unit has published a FAQ on my Department's website, which will be updated with any further arising questions from the closure, and is available here: www.irishimmigration.ie/faqs-closure-of-the-immigrant-investor-programme-iip/

All IIP applications were examined in great detail by an Independent Evaluation Committee comprising key officials from my Department, the Department of Finance, the Department of Foreign Affairs, Enterprise Ireland and IDA Ireland who have appropriate corporate expertise in this area. This examination process involves an assessment of the commercial viability of the project; employment outcomes associated with the proposed investment; and the overall benefit to the Irish State.

My Department does not currently publish the details of individual approved IIP investments. The tables below provides a breakdown of IIP applications received, approved and the value of investments since the inception of the programme.