Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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741. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth when his Department started to write to people with status/leave to remain in direct provision centres giving them dates by which they would have to leave the direct provision centre or be moved to another centre; the number of such letters issued to date; the criteria for issuing such letters; the rationale for this policy; the number of people who have been moved on foot of these letters; and a breakdown of these moves, including information on, from where; and the location to which they have been moved. [7298/25]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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Thank you, Deputy, for your question.

Our Department has a very urgent need for accommodation for people who are in the international protection application process and are entitled to reception conditions under EU regulations.

Our system has been forced to expand dramatically in the last two years, from accommodating 7,000 people at the end of 2021, to now accommodating over 33,000 people.

Despite this growth in our system, IPAS still operates at or near full capacity and as a result, over 3,400 male applicants have not been offered any accommodation since the end of December 2023.

People with status to remain in Ireland

When a person completes their international protection application and gets a positive decision, they have status that allows them to remain in Ireland. This also means they gain access to the full range of housing supports available to all Irish residents, which are not available to people going through the application process. About 5,300 people in IPAS accommodation, of the total of 33,000 people, have status or permission to remain.

All those with International Protection or Permission to Remain are written to once status has been granted and are advised they must now seek alternative accommodation. They are also advised that there are supports available to them in securing new accommodation options.

The Department is very mindful of the challenges that exist for people in trying to move on from the international protection system due to the significant pressure on housing availability within the private rental sector, social housing and housing market across Ireland.

Notifying people

People in IPAS accommodation who have had their status for the greatest length of time are currently being offered a transfer to alternative emergency accommodation, currently singles/couples who have their status for in the region of 6 to 9 months, and families who have their status for in the region of 12 to 18 months. This process began in September 2022 with single people with status.

To date, 3,300 households have been written to and advised of this transfer to alternative emergency accommodation. These households have been accommodated in various counties all over Ireland. I regret that my Department can't provide information on where people have been accommodated to protect their privacy and security.

The International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS) continues to accommodate people who have been granted status, until such time that they progress into accommodation the community.

Supporting people with status

The Department never allows people with status to be left without accommodation, even though there is no formal legal entitlement to provide people with status with accommodation. It is the case, where people have not be able to source their own private accommodation solution, that we have to ask people in IPAS accommodation to move to different centres at times, because we are operating in a system that is at or beyond capacity.

IPAS has a specific Transition team who work in collaboration with Depaul Ireland, the Peter McVerry Trust, the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, and Local Authorities to support residents with status to exit IPAS accommodation and access other housing options.

Those with status have the same housing entitlements as Irish Citizens and are supported to register with a Local Authority and, if required, to avail of the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) to secure alternative accommodation. In addition, those with status have the same social welfare entitlements as Irish Citizens.

This overall policy is in place to help ensure accommodation in non-emergency settings is available to newly arrived people seeking International Protection who have an entitlement to accommodation under EU and Irish law and who do not have any access to standard social welfare or housing supports.