Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 22 January 2026
468. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration if he proposes to allocate additional resources or make any legislative changes to address the lengthy waiting times within the garda vetting process; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5210/26]
View answerThe primary purpose of vetting carried out by the Garda National Vetting Bureau (GNVB) is to ensure the safety of children and vulnerable adults. This requires a robust Garda vetting process that reassures the public, and in particular parents, that appropriate checks are conducted on people taking on positions of trust.
I am informed by Garda authorities that the Garda National Vetting Bureau’s target turnaround time for Vetting Applications submitted by Organisations utilising the e Vetting system is 5 to 10 working days for over 85% of Vetting Applications received.
I am informed that 85% of vetting applications are currently processed within 9 working days, which is within the GNVB target turnaround time.
In a number of instances, it is necessary to conduct enquiries with external Garda Stations and Agencies such as the Courts Service, Probation Service, Child and Family Agency. These enquiries are conducted for a multiplicity of reasons such as verification of identity; updating of incomplete records; and establishing outcomes of investigations. In such instances, processing times may be significantly longer than the general average.
In addition, since the 7 July 2025, the Garda National Vetting Bureau (GNVB), in alignment with EU Directive 2011/93/EU and the European Criminal Records Information System (ECRIS), has introduced additional child protection checks with all EU Member States and the United Kingdom. These enhanced measures are part of an EU-wide initiative to strengthen the protection of children by facilitating the secure exchange of criminal record information, particularly concerning sexual offences, across borders in circumstances whereby the individual is seeking to work with children in Ireland.
These additional checks will specifically affect vetting subjects who have resided in an EU country (outside of Ireland) and/or the UK for any period. While these checks are crucial for safeguarding, they do result in extended processing times for the affected applications.
In respect of legislative changes to improve the efficiency of the vetting process, further to the work of the Garda Vetting Review Group, work to implement a number of key changes to improve the efficiency of the service while ensuring that it remains robust and effective are being progressed.
