Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Aontú)
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204. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the average, total and highest cost of deportation for each of the past five years. [8515/24]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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I can advise the Deputy that deportation and removal processes are an essential part of any immigration system. It must be acknowledged that those who do not have a legal right to remain in this country must remove themselves from the State.

The Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) is responsible for carrying out deportations.

The below table sets out the number of deportations ordered and completed for the years 2019 to 2023 and to date in 2024; and the associated costs for those years. The figure for costs covers flights (often through hubs and long-distance) and some accommodation costs, where required, for all removals including Dublin 3 transfers and EU Removals.

A number of factors impact on costs in each instance and these account for the higher than average cost reflected for certain cases in the table below.

In particular, the costs for any particular deportation reflect the numbers travelling in each instance. In some cases a person may resist deportation and the GNIB will conduct a risk assessment to determine how many escorts are required. In addition, in cases where persons convicted of offences are being removed a higher number of escorts are typically required.

Flight costs also can often be impacted by the need to make arrangements to enable escorts to return on the same flight in some instances, for the personal safety of the escorts. Travel bookings are approved on a case by case basis at senior level in both GNIB and Immigration Service Delivery (ISD). Additionally, only certain airport hubs allow deportations to be conducted which impacts on routes available and consequently the costs incurred.

A final very significant contributor to higher than average costs are the additional costs incurred where flights have to be cancelled and rebooked at short notice, due to last minute legal or logistical issues. In complex cases this can arise on more than one instance in connection with an individual deportation.

*Total Deportation/Removals include persons who held a deportation order who were escorted from the State, along with Dublin 3 removals and EU removals. These figures do not include persons who self-deported or availed of the voluntary return programmes.

** Total Deportation/Removals costs includingthe flight costs and some accommodation costs, where required, for all removals including Dublin 3 transfers, EU Removals as well as deportations. These figures do not include persons who self-deported, and the costs for people who availed of the voluntary return programmes.

*** Average costs for Total Deportation/Removals includingthe flight costs and some accommodation costs, where required, for all removals including Dublin 3 transfers, EU Removals as well as deportations. These figures do not include persons who self-deported, and the costs for people who availed of the voluntary return programmes.

**** Please note that the figures for 2024 are provisional and subject to change.

***** Charter flight cost incurred in 2019, paid in 2020. This charter was for the deportation of 19 Albanian nationals and 4 Georgian nationals which was effected on 04/12/2019.