Mattie McGrath (Tipperary South, Independent)
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150. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the immediate steps he will take to improve the vetting of IPAS applicants; the steps he will take to ensure that any asylum seekers found guilty of a crime will be deported; the steps he is taking to urgently restrict the number of economic migrants being housed by the state in IPAS accommodation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11484/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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It is a central priority for me as Minister that our immigration laws are robust and enforced.

An important element of our immigration process centres on establishing a person’s identity and nationality.

When it comes to those entering the international protection process, each person is fingerprinted and photographed. These fingerprints are checked against EURODAC, an EU database which stores the fingerprints of asylum applicants and those who have crossed borders illegally. As part of the EU Migration and Asylum Pact, the existing EURODAC database will be turned into a fully-fledged asylum and migration database, ensuring clear identification of everyone who enters the EU as an asylum seeker or an irregular migrant.

In addition to checks specifically on those applying for international protection, each and every person arriving at a port of entry in the State is subject to Schengen Information System (SIS) checks. Under this system Ireland sends and receives information on persons and objects; for example, persons wanted for criminal purposes, missing persons and objects which have been stolen or are wanted as evidence for a judicial purpose.

Criminal convictions are also considered when processing an international protection application. As part of this, character and conduct checks are carried out before applicants can be granted any permission to remain in the State.

An Garda Síochána notify my Department of matters which may be relevant to its consideration of an international protection application and there is ongoing contact in relation to the relevant individual.

I can assure the Deputy that the removal of persons in the immigration system who are involved in criminality or who are a danger to society is a priority for me. My Department works closely with An Garda Síochána and the Irish Prison Service to ensure the removal of high risk persons with a Deportation Order are prioritised, and effective action taken to ensure the people of Ireland are kept safe.

On my request, my officials are also carrying out a review of the exclusion provisions in the International Protection Act to ensure that these provisions are applied rigorously.

In relation to the number of international protection applications, these have risen over the past number of years with around 18,500 applications received in 2024.

We know that patterns in international protection applications vary over time and that is why it is important that the Government’s response adapts accordingly.

It is my belief that implementing a firmer migration system is a key element in reducing the numbers coming to Ireland to seek international protection.

Accelerated processing was introduced in November 2022 and it now applies to those from designated safe countries of origin, applicants who have received protection elsewhere in Europe and citizens of countries from which there are the largest number of applicants. Applications from countries subject to the accelerated procedure have reduced significantly since their introduction.

It is my intention to continue to ramp up investment in the end-to-end international protection process to speed up decision making. This will support reaching key targets, including making 25,000 decisions in the IPO in 2025 and to increase the number of appeals at the IPAT completed over the course of 2025.