Danny Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent)
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445. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality for the current processing times for join family visa applications; if there are any plans to review the process and reduce these application times; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4544/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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I understand that extended wait times can be frustrating for applicants and I want to assure anyone who has made an application for a join family visa that my Department is doing everything possible to progress applications as quickly as possible.

The entitlement to family reunification varies depending on the permission granted to the sponsor of the application. Accordingly, there is not a single common average processing time for join family visas.

Family members of Critical Skills Employment Permit holders can apply for join family visas at the same time as the Sponsor’s employment visa. When these visas are applied for together, they are processed in tandem and are typically completed within 12 weeks.

My Department aims to process join family visas applications made in other circumstances within 12 months and the majority of join family visas receive a first instance decision within this business target. These processing times apply to all applicants and the business target reflects the detailed and often complex assessment that is required to be carried out in relation to applications for family reunification.

In 2024, approximately 201,000 visa applications, of all types, were received by the Visa Division of my Department. This reflects an increase of 21%, compared to 2023, with over 35,000 additional applications received.

In 2024, approximately 22,000 join family visa applications were received by the Visa Division of my Department. This represents an increase of 14% compared to 2023, with over 3,000 additional applications received.

I am acutely aware that join family applications, are very important for the persons impacted and I am committed to improving the service my Department provides. In recent months, additional resources and staff have been assigned to my Department’s Visa Division which I expect reduce the waiting times for family applications in the coming months.

Processing times and decisions at the Overseas Visa Offices can be checked at the following link: www.irishimmigration.ie/visa-decisions/#decisions