Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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549.To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of applications for citizenship currently being processed; and the countries of origin of the applicants and the number of applicants from each country, in tabular form. [25099/24]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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I am deeply conscious of how important the granting of naturalisation is to all of those who apply for it.

In a little over two years Citizenship Division of has gone from processing around 12,000 applications a year to processing over 20,000 applications. This 66% increase in processing has been achieved through digitising and streamlining processes.

The digitisation measures introduced include eVetting and online payments, and more recently a move to online based applications. This provides a streamlined application process and helps guide applicants through what is required for their application.

I am pleased to inform the Deputy that this week my Department welcomes approximately 4,800, new Irish citizens at six Citizenship Ceremonies held throughout today and yesterday at the INEC Killarney. A further six Ceremonies will take place next week on 20 and 21 June at the Convention Centre Dublin (CCD) in Dublin.

As these Citizenship Ceremonies are currently on going, the information requested by the Deputy is not readily available. I will write to the Deputy once the information on active applications is available.