Paul McAuliffe (Dublin North-West, Fianna Fail)
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544. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if international protection applicants arriving in Ireland from Palestine will have their applications prioritised, as recommended by the UNHCR. [15286/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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The decision to accelerate and prioritise particular international protection cases, or groups of cases, in accordance with the provisions of the 2015 Act, is kept under review. At this time applications from Palestine are not prioritised.

However, I can assure the Deputy that it is a priority to have recommendations made on all international protection applications as soon as possible. This will give status to those who are entitled to international protection to rebuild their lives here, while also ensuring faster decision making in respect of those who do not meet the criteria.

In 2024 the International Protection Office (IPO) delivered over 14,000 first-instance decisions compared to over 8,500 in 2023, while the International Protection Appeals Tribunal (IPAT) closed around 3,100 appeals in 2024 compared to over 1,700 in 2023.

I intend to further invest in the immigration system to support an ambitious target in the IPO of 25,000 first-instance decisions this year. The IPAT also aims to increase the number of appeals completed over the course of 2025 with recruitment of Tribunal Members to increase its decision making capacity currently taking place.