Written answers
Thursday, 22 February 2024
Department of Justice and Equality
Travel Documents
Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Aontú)
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205. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of people arriving in Ireland without travel documents, with false travel documents or with damaged travel documents in each of the past five years; and the location of entry. [8516/24]
Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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The Border Management Unit of my Department is responsible for frontline Immigration at Dublin Airport only, as such the below figures reflect the position at Dublin Airport. Other airports and other ports of entry are the responsibility of the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) and data as requested is not collated in this manner for other ports of entry.
Dublin Airport
| Year | Total Arriving Passengers | Total Refusals | Arrivals Without Documentation | False Documents + Identity Issues |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 16,318,300 | 6,151 | 1,579 | 1,849 |
| 2020 | 3,636,256 | 2,077 | 712 | 169 |
| 2021 | 4,118,027 | 3,210 | 2,082 | 279 |
| 2022 | 13,930,041 | 7,662 | 4,968 | 832 |
| 2023 | 16,628,545 | 5,826 | 3,287 | 872 |
*May be subject to slight variance following data cleansing.
Immigration officials conduct passport checks, and run operations as required, to ensure passengers arriving in the State are properly documented in accordance with Section 11 of the Immigration Act 2004.
The BMU and the GNIB are working closely with airlines on a range of measures to ensure that passengers have the appropriate travel documentation when boarding. Immigration officials are available 24/7 to assist airlines with queries in relation to immigration matters.
In addition to providing advice to airlines on specific queries, training is provided to airline ground staff on current travel documentation requirements to help them reduce the number of passengers boarding flights without correct documentation. The Department has recorded a 34% reduction in 2023 in the number of persons arriving in the State without appropriate documentation.
Section 2(1) of the Immigration Act 2003 places obligations on carriers to ensure that passengers travelling to the State are in possession of a valid travel document that establishes the person’s identity and nationality, and that they have the appropriate visa if required.
Where airlines are found to not have conducted appropriate checks on the documentation of people boarding they are issued with a fine for each individual case concerned. Airlines have been levied with fines for over €1.4m in 2023 and over €1.1m in 2022 in this regard.
My officials have begun a review into the current level of Carrier Liability fines.
When a person is refused leave to land at Dublin airport, the Immigration Officer will arrange for the person to be referred to the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) for removal from the State. The priority is to return them on the next available return flight to the last point of embarkation.
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