Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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368. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the reason for the delays in appointments in the GNIB office in Galway; the steps being taken to deal with this issue; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [40101/24]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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My Department's Registration Office in Burgh Quay is responsible for registering immigration permissions for non-EU/EEA nationals residing in the Dublin, Meath, Kildare, Wicklow, Cork and Limerick areas only.

An Garda Síochána has oversight of the first registration and renewal of immigration residence permissions for non-EU/EEA nationals residing outside of the Dublin, Meath, Kildare, Wicklow, Cork and Limerick areas. I have no role in regard to the scheduling of these appointments.

The Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland (COFPI) recommended that immigration administrative functions should transfer from the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) to the Immigration Service Delivery (ISD) function of my Department.

Since 8 July 2024, the first registration and renewal of Irish residence permissions for applicants residing in counties Cork and Limerick have been carried out at the Registration Office, 13-14 Burgh Quay, Dublin 2. With this transfer, approximately 80% of all national registrations and renewals have now transferred from An Garda Síochána to my Department.

It is anticipated that the nationwide transfer of registration functions to my Department can be substantively completed by early 2025.

As the Deputy may be aware, my Department has established a modernisation programme to transform its immigration operations to provide a modern, transparent and accessible Immigration system that is faster, easier to access and more efficient for all its users. This ambitious programme of modernisation is aimed at improving the service we provide and is receiving significant ongoing financial investment. The modernisation programme will replace legacy immigration management systems, introducing a single view, on a single platform, of an individual’s engagement with all aspects of immigration services. When delivered, this platform will significantly improve customer service capacity with comprehensive self-service functionality, and enhanced border security capability and capacity.