I welcome the opportunity to address the House today on migration and the continued development of Ireland's migration system, a subject of significant importance, not only for the Government but for Irish society as a whole.
Migration has always been part of Ireland's story. For generations, Irish people left these shores in search of opportunity, security and a better future, building lives and careers across the globe while maintaining deep and lasting connections to the country they had left behind. Many of those who emigrated made enormous contributions to the countries that welcomed them, and their experiences shaped not only our national history but also our collective understanding of what it means to seek opportunity, safety and the chance to create a better life for oneself and one's family.
Over recent decades, Ireland has evolved from a country largely defined by emigration to one that is increasingly characterised by immigration, with people from every corner of the world choosing Ireland as a place to live, work, study, invest, innovate and raise their families. Those who come here make important contributions across every sector of our economy and society. They work in our hospitals, schools, universities, businesses and public services, helping to drive economic growth while also supporting communities across the country and contributing to the success of our nation.
There can be no doubt that migration has strengthened Ireland and enriched our society in countless ways. It is important for me to say clearly that this Government recognises the value of those contributions. The people who have chosen to make their lives here have helped to shape the modern Ireland we know today and they will continue to play an important role in our future development and prosperity.
At the same time, migration is not a temporary phenomenon or a passing trend. Rather, it is one of the defining features of the modern world. Economic development, technological change, demographic pressures, labour market demands, humanitarian crises and international conflict all contribute to movements of people across borders on a scale not seen in previous generations. These are developments that are affecting countries throughout Europe and beyond, and Ireland is not insulated from those wider global trends.
As a small, open and outward-looking country, deeply connected to Europe and the wider world, migration will continue to play an important role in our future. Our economic success, demographic needs and international obligations all mean that migration will remain an important feature of Irish society for many years to come. The questions facing policymakers, therefore, are not whether migration occurs, but how it is managed and how we ensure that our migration system can respond to changing circumstances in a manner that is effective, fair and sustainable.
That requires a migration framework capable of achieving a number of important objectives simultaneously. It must support economic growth and competitiveness by enabling Ireland to attract the skills and talent that our economy requires. It must allow us to meet our humanitarian and international obligations to those fleeing persecution, conflict and instability. It must maintain secure borders and robust immigration procedures while ensuring that applications are dealt with fairly and efficiently. Above all, it must command and retain the confidence of the public.
These objectives are not contradictory. Indeed, they are mutually reinforcing. A migration system that is not managed effectively risks losing public confidence, while a migration system that lacks public confidence ultimately becomes more difficult to sustain over the longer term. Equally, a migration framework that is fair, transparent and rules-based, that provides certainty for applicants and consistency in decision-making, is one that is capable of maintaining the trust and support of the wider public. That is why this Government has been clear that Ireland must have a migration system that is welcoming to those who come here legally and contribute positively to Irish society, while also being firm, fair and effective in its operation.
We must continue to support economic migration, uphold our humanitarian commitments and promote successful integration, but we must do so within a framework that is orderly, sustainable and capable of responding to the challenges of a rapidly changing world. Ultimately, the principle of a rules-based migration system underpins every aspect of the Government's approach. It informs the reforms we are pursuing, the investments we are making and the long-term strategy we are developing to ensure that Ireland's migration system continues to serve the interests of the country, the communities that welcome new arrivals and those who come here seeking to build a future.
It is for precisely this reason that the Government is approaching migration not merely as a series of operational challenges to be addressed in isolation, but as a long-term strategic issue requiring co-ordinated planning across government. The development of a national migration and integration strategy reflects that broader approach and recognises that migration will remain an important feature of Irish society for many years to come.
As Members will appreciate, migration is not a stand-alone policy issue. It is a matter that touches virtually every area of public policy and has implications across government. Migration impacts economic development, labour market planning, housing, education, healthcare, integration, social protection, foreign affairs and national security. For this reason, migration cannot be viewed solely through the lens of any single Department or agency. It requires a whole-of government approach, long-term planning and a willingness to balance a range of important and, at times, competing considerations.
The reality is that migration presents both opportunities and challenges. Ireland's continued economic success depends on our ability to attract skills and talent from around the world, while our international obligations require us to provide protection to those who are genuinely fleeing persecution and conflict.
At the same time, we must ensure that our immigration systems remain robust, secure and capable of responding to changing circumstances while also supporting communities across the country that are experiencing the practical impacts of a growing population and increasing demand for public services.
Against that backdrop, the Government is developing Ireland's first national migration and integration strategy. The purpose of that work is to provide a coherent long-term framework that will enable Ireland to respond effectively to migration challenges while also preparing for an ageing population and future economic and societal changes. Migration policy requires a strategic framework that considers how migration intersects with broader national objectives including economic competitiveness, social cohesion and public service delivery.
Work on the development of the national migration and integration strategy is progressing across government, with engagement taking place across Departments and with relevant stakeholders. The objective is to develop a framework that sets out a long-term vision for how Ireland approaches migration while also ensuring that policy development in areas such as housing, employment, education, integration and public services is informed by a clear understanding of future migration trends and needs. The strategy will establish a framework through which the Government can better anticipate migration trends, assess their implications for public services, support workforce and infrastructure planning and incorporate migration considerations into long-term policy development.
The strategy will not seek to address migration solely through the lens of immigration policy. Rather, it recognises that migration intersects with a wide range of economic and social objectives and that successful outcomes require joined-up planning across a number of policy areas. In that regard, the development of the strategy represents an opportunity to establish a more coherent and sustainable framework for managing migration while ensuring the Government is better positioned to respond to future challenges and opportunities. The development of the strategy reflects an understanding that migration will remain an important feature of Irish society for decades to come. It is therefore necessary and appropriate that the Government adopts a longer term perspective, identifying the opportunities that migration presents while ensuring that the necessary systems, infrastructure and policies are in place to address the challenges that can arise.
Central to this work is a rules-based migration system. That principle informs every aspect of the Government's approach. People should be able to understand the legal pathways available to them to come to Ireland. Applications should be considered efficiently and fairly, and decisions should be made in accordance with the law. Rights, procedures and safeguards must be protected. Equally, once decisions are made, they must be implemented in a consistent and effective manner. A rules-based system benefits everyone. It provides clarity and certainty for applicants, supports confidence among employers and communities and enables the State to manage migration in an orderly, fair and sustainable way. It is through such a system that we can ensure Ireland remains welcoming and open while also maintaining the integrity of our immigration framework and the confidence of the wider public.
However, migration policy does not begin and end at the point of arrival. Successful migration policy must also focus on what happens afterwards. It must support people to participate fully in Irish society and to become active members of the communities in which they live. That is why integration remains a central pillar of the Government's approach. Integration is a two-way process that benefits both new arrivals and the communities that welcome them. It is also about ensuring that people have opportunities to work, access education, learn languages, engage with public services and participate fully in civic and community life, and fostering social cohesion, encouraging mutual understanding and ensuring the benefits of migration are shared more broadly across society.
The Government remains committed to supporting positive integration outcomes because strong integration is essential to maintaining public confidence in the migration system and ensuring that people who come to Ireland can contribute to their full potential. When individuals are supported to participate in the workforce, engage with their communities and build lasting connections, the benefits extend far beyond the individuals concerned. They strengthen communities, support economic growth and contribute to a more cohesive and resilient society. As migration continues to shape Ireland’s future, it is important that we approach these issues in a strategic and balanced way. The development of a national migration and integration strategy is therefore an important step in ensuring that Ireland has a clear, co-ordinated and sustainable framework for managing migration in the years ahead. It also provides the broader context for many of the reforms being implemented across the migration system.
Perhaps nowhere is the importance of long-term planning and effective administration and policy development more evident than in the significant reforms now under way within our international protection system. While migration has affected many years of public policy, it is fair to say there were visible pressures on the migration system in recent years in the areas of international protection, accommodation provision and the State's response to the war in Ukraine. In recent years, Ireland has experienced significant pressures across its migration system. Between 2022 and 2025, the State received more than 45,000 international protection applications, almost matching the total number received during the previous 16 years. At the same time, Ireland responded to the humanitarian consequences of Russia's invasion of Ukraine by welcoming more than 120,000 people fleeing conflict and seeking safety. These developments placed unprecedented pressure on the accommodation system, public services and administrative capacity. Throughout that period, public servants across multiple Departments, State agencies and local authorities worked intensively to ensure vulnerable individuals, families and children were provided with accommodation and support in accordance with the State’s legal obligations. Their efforts ensured that Ireland was able to respond to an exceptionally challenging period while continuing to uphold its humanitarian commitments.
The reality, however, is that our asylum system was not originally designed to accommodate demand on the scale experienced in recent years. International protection applications rose significantly over a relatively short period, reaching 18,500 in 2024 alone. While important modernisation work had already been undertaken within the Department, it was increasingly clear that the challenges facing Ireland were not unique. Similar pressures were being experienced across the European Union, highlighting the need for a more co-ordinated and sustainable approach at European level.
It is in that context that the EU migration and asylum pact represents such an important milestone. As Deputies will be aware, the new International Protection Act 2026 came into effect on 12 June and constitutes the most comprehensive reform of immigration law in the history of the State. Through this legislation, Ireland has implemented the EU pact on migration and asylum, the overall objective of which is to provide a fair, sustainable and efficient asylum procedure through greater convergence in asylum practices across Europe, including standardised procedures and significantly shorter processing times. Faster decision-making is fairer for applicants, fairer for communities and strengthens confidence in the system. We are now just over 100 days into its implementation and while it remains early in the process, the experience to date demonstrates that the new framework is already delivering positive results. More than 800 first-instance decisions have been issued, while the median processing time for a first decision has reduced to just 33 days. By comparison, under the previous system, median processing times stood at approximately 12 months for standard procedures and four months for accelerated procedures.
The reforms introduced under the pact are not solely about speed but also about improving the overall quality and integrity of decision-making. Enhanced screening measures, strengthened document verification capabilities and more effective use of electronic evidence are improving our ability to establish identity and identify vulnerabilities at an earlier stage, supporting more robust and better informed decisions. Just as important, procedural safeguards remain central to the system.
High levels of engagement with legal counselling and legal representation demonstrate that applicants are accessing and exercising their rights throughout the process while ensuring that decisions continue to be made within a framework that is fair and transparent. Of course, implementation does not end with the initial decision-making stage. The focus now is on maintaining momentum across the entire protection process, including appeals, transfers, returns and final case resolution. The objective is to ensure that improvements achieved at the front end of the system are carried through to final outcomes. Ultimately, the pact is about building an asylum system that is fairer, more predictable and more sustainable, both for applicants and for member states.
The reforms being delivered under the pact are also closely linked to the Government's wider work on accommodation. Since May 2025, my Department has been responsible for all aspects of the international protection process, including the provision of accommodation for people seeking international protection in Ireland. Under both Irish and European law, applicants are entitled to have their basic needs met while their applications are being considered, and accommodation provided through the international protection accommodation services, IPAS. It remains a central component of that responsibility.
The rapid growth in international protection applications over recent years required a corresponding expansion of accommodation capacity, much of which was delivered under emergency conditions. While those arrangements were necessary at the time, the Government's objective has always been to move towards a more sustainable and better planned model of accommodation provision. For that reason, significant investment has been made in expanding State-owned capacity through the acquisition of Citywest, the refurbishment of State-owned properties and the development of modular accommodation projects.
Alongside this, stronger oversight of revised rate card models are helping to improve consistency across the accommodation system while delivering significant savings for the Exchequer. Our long-term objective is clear: to reduce reliance on emergency responses and increase the proportion of accommodation provided directly by the State, thereby creating a more sustainable system and providing greater certainty for local communities and individuals seeking protection.
Alongside reforms within the international protection system, the Government is advancing a managed and responsible transition from temporary protection for those displaced by the war in Ukraine. The House will be aware of the extraordinary generosity demonstrated by communities throughout the country since the outbreak of that conflict. Ireland responded quickly and compassionately. On 15 July of this year, EU member states agreed to extend temporary protection for persons displaced from Ukraine until 4 March 2028. The decision provides important clarity for beneficiaries and member states while the European Union continues to support Ukraine and prepare for the eventual conclusion of the temporary protection regime. It also recognises the importance of supporting Ukraine's future recovery and reconstruction.
While that decision provides stability in the short term, the focus at European level has increasingly shifted towards planning for the future. In that regard, Ireland continues to implement the measures approved by the Government on 26 May, which are aligned with the Council recommendation of a co-ordinated approach to moving beyond temporary protection. These measures include the phased withdrawal of commercial accommodation, the development of alternative residence pathways, enhanced supports for integration and self-sufficiency, improved information provision and preparations for voluntary return and reintegration, where appropriate. That approach is already delivering tangible results. In May of this year, almost 16,000 people were residing in State-contracted commercial accommodation; today, that figure has been reduced to approximately 12,500. As contracts with certain accommodation providers conclude on a phased basis over the coming months, that transition will continue.
At the same time, appropriate arrangements have been put in place for individuals who face genuine barriers to independent living, with applications for continued support assessed on a case-by-case basis. The accommodation recognition payment continues to play an important role in supporting this response. Since its introduction in 2022, the scheme has enabled thousands of households across Ireland to provide accommodation on a humanitarian basis. Approximately 39,500 people are living in around 22,000 host properties supported through the scheme, demonstrating the remarkable generosity shown by communities throughout the country.
Looking beyond temporary protection, the Government recognises that many people who came to Ireland from Ukraine have established lives here, entered employment and contributed to their communities, and they wish to continue doing so. In recognition of that contribution, my Department has developed the temporary protection transition scheme, which opens for applications today. The scheme provides an alternative residence permission for eligible individuals who wish to establish a longer term basis for living and working in Ireland. Successful applicants will receive permission for up to two years, with provision for renewal, and time spent under that permission will count as reckonable residence for the purposes of applying for naturalisation. The scheme forms part of a broader suite of measures intended to support an orderly and sustainable transition from temporary protection while providing greater certainty for those who have already made a significant contribution to Irish society. It is important to emphasise, however, that this permission is not intended to replace temporary protection. That remains in place until March 2028, and those who do not qualify for the transition scheme will continue to benefit from temporary protection for as long as the directive remains in effect. Rather, the scheme provides an additional pathway for those who meet the eligibility criteria.
Taken together, the reforms being delivered under the EU pact on migration and asylum, the ongoing transformation of our accommodation system and the transition measures being implemented for beneficiaries of temporary protection reflect a broader objective. The Government is working to build a migration system that is fair, orderly and sustainable, one that meets our humanitarian obligations, supports integration, maintains public confidence and ensures Ireland is equipped to manage migration effectively into the future.
Successful migration policy is not simply about arrival, accommodation or legal status. It is also about integration. Integration remains a central objective of that approach and for many people citizenship represents the culmination of a successful integration journey. Irish citizenship is a significant status that reflects a lasting commitment between an individual and the State. It is one of the most important legal relationships that can exist between an individual and the State. It brings with it important rights, opportunities and protections, but it also carries responsibilities. It represents far more than residence in Ireland. It reflects a lasting and enduring bond with this country, its people and our shared future. As citizenship represents the fullest expression of membership of Irish society, it is important that the legislative framework governing access to citizenship remain robust, fair and sustainable.
As I noted earlier, the programme for Government contains a commitment to continue implementing a firmer migration system that protects the integrity of our immigration framework. Last year, the Government approved a broad package of policy and legislative reforms of Ireland's migration system so that it remains efficient, sustainable and aligned with international best practice. As part of that wider programme of reform, we are reviewing aspects of citizenship. As legislators, it is entirely appropriate that we periodically review the legal framework governing citizenship. Our laws must continue to meet current needs, reflect international developments and support effective modern migration systems. Indeed, the Government has a responsibility to review citizenship policy and adapt its frameworks in light of changing migration patterns, demographic developments and evolving public policy objectives.
The Minister, Deputy O'Callaghan, and I recently secured Government approval for the priority drafting of legislation to strengthen Ireland's naturalisation framework. The reforms being considered are intended to ensure that the pathway to citizenship by naturalisation reflects a genuine, sustained and meaningful connection to Ireland.
The general scheme of the Bill approved by the Government contains several key proposals. I would like to outline some of them. First, the scheme proposes increasing the standard residence requirement for naturalisation applicants from five years to eight years. Under the proposed model, an applicant would generally be required to demonstrate two years of continuous residence immediately before applying, together with six additional years of residence accumulated over the previous ten years. The rationale is straightforward. The rights and responsibilities associated with citizenship are significant. It is therefore reasonable that applicants demonstrate a sustained record of lawful residence.
Second, the scheme proposes that applicants demonstrate language proficiency, which is common across the European Union. That proficiency can be in English, Irish or Irish Sign Language. The objective is not to create barriers; rather, it is to support integration and ensure that citizens can participate. Importantly, the legislation would provide flexibility regarding the standard required, the method of assessment and the circumstances in which exemptions or waivers may be appropriate.
Third, the scheme proposes the introduction of a civics, society and politics requirement. This reflects the principle that citizenship involves active participation in life in the State. Understanding how our institutions operate, the rights we enjoy and the responsibilities we share helps to strengthen social cohesion and encourage active citizenship. We will ensure that any testing regime is proportionate, fair, accessible and transparent, and supports meaningful participation in Irish civic life without creating unnecessary barriers to naturalisation. The objective is not to reward educational achievement but to ensure individuals can navigate daily life, communicate effectively with their communities, participate fully in the workplace and perform the important duties of citizens, including voting and, where called upon, jury service.
The scheme also proposes measures relating to self-sufficiency. The objective is to promote independence and support positive integration outcomes. It is important to note that the detailed operation of these provisions would be determined through regulations following consultation with relevant Departments and stakeholders. These changes would provide greater clarity regarding the categories of residence that may be counted towards naturalisation and would provide that certain temporary permissions and schemes, including residence under the temporary protection directive, would not be reckonable for citizenship purposes.
These proposals should be considered in the broader European context. Some commentary has suggested that Ireland would become an outlier if the reforms were enacted. That is simply not the case. Citizenship policy is ultimately a matter for each sovereign state. Across Europe, countries have adopted different pathways to naturalisation, but almost all require applicants to demonstrate a substantial period of lawful residence and, in many cases, some degree of language competence and civic understanding. Fourteen EU member states require eight years or more of residence before naturalisation. Ireland is currently the only EU member state that does not require language competence. Civic integration requirements are also common across Europe. Taken together, these proposals would bring Ireland more closely into line with established European practice.
While we are discussing changes to citizenship policy, it is important to acknowledge the significant work undertaken in recent years to improve the operation of the naturalisation system. The number of citizenship applications received in recent years has increased substantially. Improvements in digital processes, enhanced operational capacity and ongoing reforms have enabled the Department to process applications more efficiently.
Citizenship ceremonies play an important role and I have been pleased to attend a number of them. The pride, commitment and sense of belonging demonstrated by those taking the declaration of fidelity to the nation at a citizenship ceremony is valued by people at home and around the world.
In conclusion, I recognise we are undertaking a series of major changes but at the heart of it the objective of the proposals is to have a firm, fair and balanced system of migration.
