Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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192. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if a birth and baptismal certificate for a person born in Ireland in March 1923 is acceptable evidence for their grandchild, when applying for Irish citizenship and an Irish passport. [57033/25]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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All passport applications are subject to the provisions of the Passports Act 2008 ("the Act"), as amended. The 2008 Act provides, among other things, that a person must be an Irish citizen before a passport can be issued to that person.

Entitlement to Irish citizenship is determined by the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended, under which Irish citizenship may be obtained by birth, by descent, or by naturalisation.

A person may be entitled to Irish citizenship through descent. Eligibility for citizenship through descent (i.e. Foreign Birth Registration) can be ascertained on www.ireland.ie/en/dfa/citizenship. If eligible, a person may apply online for entry on the Foreign Birth Registry.

My Department is responsible for processing Foreign Birth Registration (FBR) applications for people who are born abroad and claim Irish citizenship through a grandparent born in Ireland or through a parent who has claimed citizenship also through FBR, naturalisation or post nuptial citizenship.

My Department can only assess a person's citizenship once an application, with all supporting documents, has been received. The list of supporting documents required for a FBR application are on my Department's website:

Civil birth certificates are required for births occurring after 1864. If a civil record cannot be located or does not exist with the General Register’s Office, the Passport Service understands that a church issued birth and baptismal cert can be submitted to the General Register's Office to formally register the birth. Once a civil birth certificate is issued it can then be submitted in support of the FBR application.

FBR applications are currently being processed within the normal turnaround time of 9 months from receipt of supporting documents. Applications which require further supporting documents will take longer to process.

By its nature, FBR is a detailed and complex process, often involving official documentation relating to three generations and issued by several jurisdictions. Such documents take considerable time to validate.

Should assistance be required with a FBR application, our Customer Service agents are available through phone and webchat services, from Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 4.30 p.m. They can be contacted at +353 1 671 1633, or via the webchat service: www.ireland.ie/contactpassportservice

Once my Department has issued a person with a FBR Certificate, the person has been deemed an Irish citizen and therefore may proceed to make an online application for an Irish Passport.