Barry Ward (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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134. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality his views on the provision of a security clearance certificate that had been available in Ireland prior to April 2024, similar to what is available in other EU countries (details supplied); if this can be reviewed by his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12517/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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Police Certificates are issued on a non-statutory basis by An Garda Síochána and are an operational matter for the Garda Commissioner, who is responsible for the management and administration of Garda business.

I have checked this with the Garda authorities and they advise that there has been no change in policy regarding Police certificates.

The certificate, which is valid for 12 months, states your name, address, date of birth and also includes information about whether or not you have a criminal record in respect of this jurisdiction. They are not issued for the purposes of vetting or security clearance.

A Police Certificate is issued by the Superintendent or Assistant Principal Officer within the Division where the relevant applicant resides, or formerly resided, in Ireland.

Information about the process is available on the Garda Síochána website and outlines the limited purposes that Police Certificates are issued for, such as for Foreign Consular Authorities or Foreign Visas and immigration matters, or for Employment in the EU institutions.

A Police Certificate cannot be construed as Garda Vetting, a security clearance or a character reference. Garda vetting is not conducted for people on an individual basis. It is only conducted in respect of people working in full-time, part-time, voluntary or in a student placement capacity in a position in an organisation, through which they have unsupervised access to children or vulnerable adults.

I am advised that an application for a Police Certificate takes approximately three weeks to process and the requirements for what to include are also outlined on the Garda website.

I am conscious of the issues being faced by people in situations seeking a more robust criminal record certificate system for the purposes of obtaining a job and I can say that my officials are actively examining what measures could be introduced to address the matter.