Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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767. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of applications for citizenship granted on foot of Section 16 – Irish associations, in each of the past four years to date, with particular reference to spouses of Irish nationals unable to avail of the conventional pathways to citizenship; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [44823/24]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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Section 15 of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended, sets out the statutory conditions that must be fulfilled for a certificate of naturalisation to be granted. Section 16 of the Act gives discretion to waive the statutory conditions in certain circumstances, including where the applicant is of Irish descent or Irish associations (related through blood, affinity or adoption to a person who is or is entitled to be an Irish citizen).

Any application under Section 16 that relies on Irish associations and affinity should be supported by substantive documentation that renders the application exceptional and one where the normal pathways to citizenship provided for under the legislation are not appropriate.

The Deputy should be aware that there is no automatic right or entitlement to have any of the statutory conditions waived, even where the applicant comes within the certain circumstances defined.

Officials in my Department are in the process of finalising guidelines, which will provide clarity to both applicants and decision-makers on what factors may be considered when deciding whether to waive such naturalisation conditions under section 16(1)(a) of the Act. These new guidelines are being developed in the interests of fair and transparent procedures and comprehensive decision making. Details of the new guidelines will be made publicly available once they have been finalised. While statistics are not currently recorded in a manner that allows for the number of applications granted under section 16 to be extracted, arrangements for recording of such applications and associated decisions will be revised in parallel with the application of the new guidelines.

Detailed information on how to apply for naturalisation is available on my Department's Irish Immigration website at: www.irishimmigration.ie/how-to-become-a-citizen/

Additionally, any person born outside of Ireland who has an Irish national grandparent born in Ireland may obtain Irish citizenship through registration in the Foreign Births Register which is maintained by Department of Foreign Affairs, for more information please see: www.dfa.ie/citizenship/born-abroad/registering-a-foreign-birth/