Written Answers Nos. 545-564
545. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Social Protection the number of disability allowance recipients currently subject to periodic entitlement reviews; the criteria used to determine the frequency of such reviews; whether consideration is given to the long-term or permanent nature of a person's medical condition when scheduling reviews; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49677/26]
View answer546. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Social Protection if he is aware of concerns among families of individuals with severe and enduring mental health conditions regarding repeated disability allowance reviews; whether his Department will examine ways to reduce the administrative burden on claimants whose conditions are unlikely to improve; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49678/26]
View answer547. Deputy Paul Lawless asked the Minister for Social Protection whether his Department has assessed the impact that repeated disability allowance reviews can have on claimants with severe mental health conditions and their carers; whether consideration is being given to introducing longer review periods for such cases; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49679/26]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 545, 546 and 547 together.
My Department has a commitment to an annual level of control reviews and operates an ongoing continuous schedule of control and review activity for scheme recipients, including those in receipt of disability or pension payments. The objective is to ensure that customers continue to receive their correct rate of payment over the lifetime of their claim.
Reviews can arise from customer requests for a review of their claim, from targeted and random case selections, or where specific information comes to the attention of the Department. Factors such as length of time since last review, or where information is received from other agencies such as the Revenue Commissioners, or from members of the public, can also trigger control reviews. On review, claimants on a means-tested payment may have their weekly payment rate unchanged or adjusted upwards or downwards as appropriate, based on their up-to-date means assessment.
People on disability-related schemes may also have their claim reviewed to ensure they continue to meet the qualifying medical criteria for the scheme. However, where a Departmental Medical Assessor is of the opinion that no further review is required, no medical control review will be undertaken.
Information letters or MyWelfare notifications are regularly issued from the Disability Allowance section of my Department to a proportion of recipients, on a rolling basis, to remind them of the conditions for continuing receipt of their payment and their obligation to notify the Department of changes in their circumstances in a timely manner.
I and my Department understands the many pressures faced by people and always seeks to ensure that reviews are processed quickly and efficiently. Each decision made following a review is open to a review and/or an appeal to the Social Welfare Appeals office.
548. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Social Protection to examine a telephone allowance case (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49754/26]
View answerThe person concerned is in receipt of the maximum rate of State pension non-contributory, the Fuel Allowance (from October to April each year) and Living Alone Increase from 24 August 2012. The Telephone Support Allowance has been in payment to them since 8 June 2018.
They are also in receipt of the Household Benefits Package. This consists of a free television licence and a payment of approximately €35 per month, which is credited directly to their Electric Ireland bill.
As the person concerned will reach 80 years of age on 24 August 2026, they will automatically receive the over 80 increase of €10 euro per week in their pension.
Should they require further financial assistance, they should contact their Local Community Welfare Officer who may be in a position to assist. There is a National Community Welfare Contact Centre in place - 0818-607080 - which will direct callers to the appropriate office.
549. Deputy Mark Wall asked the Minister for Social Protection if he will consider a submission from a representative social protection office (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49762/26]
View answerI refer to representations made to you by the Representative Group of Branch Managers (RGBM) and the Branch Manager in Portarlington.
My Department currently has 55 Social Welfare Branch Offices at various locations around the country that play an important role in supporting the Department in the delivery of services at local level. As independent self-employed contractors, each Social Welfare Branch Office is operated and managed, under a commercial contract for service subject to public procurement rules, by a Branch Manager.
I fully acknowledge the continuous high standard of service delivery that Branch Managers including Ms Una O’Neill deliver to their customers.
There are two Branch Manager representative groups, The Branch Manager’s Association (BMA) and Representative Group of Branch Managers (RGBM).
As is standard in commercial agreements each Branch Manager is expected to meet their operating costs from within the agreed pricing.
The current Branch Manager remuneration package was agreed in conjunction with an improved service delivery model to be provided by Branch Managers in 2018, which replaced the link to claim loads and payments. The claim loads were in decline prior to 2018 and the 2018 model now implemented covered a baseline payment, a services and support payment and a service level payment.
Following representations from Branch managers in 2022 to discuss financial pressures, the Department made a once off recognition payment totalling €1.425 million to Branch Managers. This payment was in response to financial pressures on branch offices due to the impact of Covid, inflation, and the requirement to deliver services and supports for Ukrainian claimants. This was then the subject of a C&AG review. The C&AG’s recommendation on ex-gratia payments requires Department engagement with Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation to seek prior sanction for any proposed future ex-gratia or remuneration reviews.
Remuneration was reviewed in April 2023 by the Department and provided for a further increase in the Branch Manager renumeration arrangements in recognition of increased costs incurred for Branch Managers since 2018.
Following requests in 2025 from both Branch Managers Associations to review current payment arrangements, the Department carried out a review of remuneration arrangements in the context of the 2026 budgetary process. This request was based on increased costs incurred by Branch Managers for the provision of the service since the last increase in 2023. The review considered the items referenced by the RGBM including increases in minimum wage, sick leave provisions and auto-enrolment costs.
As required, the Department engaged with the Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation to secure sanction for increased Branch Manager remuneration. Following discussions with officials in that Department, sanction was secured to apply a 10% increase from 1 June 2026 with no further expenditure allocated for remuneration in 2026.
The Deputy will be aware that all Government funding for 2026 requires strict adherence to expenditure ceilings and in that context the approved remuneration package must be met from within the allocated 2026 budget. In light of these constraints the 10% increase from 1 June 2026 remains the offer available to Branch Managers.
Officials from my Department actively engage with the representative groups on service delivery issues relating to the Branch Manager contracts and are available to discuss these issues further.
550. Deputy Mark Wall asked the Minister for Social Protection if he will consider the attached submission on the wage subsidy scheme (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49763/26]
View answerSupporting disabled people and reducing the disability employment gap are key priorities for me and for the Government. That is why the Programme for Government and the National Human Rights Strategy for Disabled People 2025-2030 include a range of commitments in this regard.
The Wage Subsidy Scheme is a key disability employment support provided by my Department. It aims to encourage employers to offer substantial and sustainable employment to disabled people through a subsidy.
The Department of Social Protection published a review of the Wage Subsidy Scheme in 2024 following a public consultation to make the scheme more accessible and flexible. As a result, the minimum hours were reduced from 21 to 15 per week, and the scheme was expanded to the community and voluntary sector and the non-commercial semi-state sector. In addition, the language was changed to align with the social model of disability.
One of the recommendations made was to regularly review the subsidy rate. The National Human Rights Strategy for Disabled People 2025-2030 also includes a commitment to examine an increase in the subsidy rate. The rate was reviewed in the context of Budget 2026. As a result, the number of bands were reduced, and the subsidy rates were increased. The base wage subsidy paid to employers who employ disabled people is now €7.50 per hour, an increase from €6.30.
Employers who employ 25 or more employees on the Wage Subsidy Scheme can still avail of a grant of €30,000 towards the cost of employing an Employment Assistance Officer.
Budget 2026 also provided for the expansion of the scheme to people who's role has to be adjusted because they acquired a disability while in employment, those who have a progressive or degenerative condition that worsens, and those who transfer from Invalidity Pension to Partial Capacity Benefit.
Under the eligibility criteria applicable to the scheme, employees must be either new or an existing employee who is in their current employment for less than 12 months. Officials from my Department have met with representatives of the organisation to which the Deputy refers to discuss the issues raised and other relevant schemes that may be of assistance.
Any further changes to the scheme would be considered in a budgetary context. But I can assure the Deputy that improving employment outcomes for people with disabilities is a priority of mine. Indeed, closing the disability employment gap is a key focus of my Department during Ireland's Presidency of the EU, and beyond.
551. Deputy Claire Kerrane asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration whether his Department is engaged with the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth regarding potential reforms to Garda vetting and safeguarding-disclosure arrangements in the Early Years sector; and if he will outline the status of any such engagement. [48848/26]
View answerResponsibility for policy in relation to the Early Years sector, including as regard safeguarding disclosure arrangements, rests with the Department of Children, Disability and Equality. In relation to vetting, that Department, together with Tusla, engages directly with the Garda National Vetting Bureau in An Garda Síochána on operational matters affecting the sector.
Regarding the Garda Vetting Process more broadly, an Interdepartmental Review Group that comprised of officials from the National Vetting Bureau, my Department and other relevant Departments and agencies, including the then Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth have given consideration to vetting process and relevant legislation.
The Group’s primary focus was to examine the means of strengthening the vetting legislation in a workable and effective manner, while seeking to balance this with issues that have arisen regarding the re-vetting period and the transfer of vetting across other similar activities.
The Government is aware of ongoing concerns regarding certain aspects of the vetting process and I have listened carefully to the views of affected sectors. I believe that the vetting system should be updated to ensure that the burden of seeking vetting disclosures is minimised to the greatest extent possible, while maintaining the high standards that are necessary.
Further to the work carried out by the Interdepartmental Review Group, steps are now being taken to implement a number of key changes to the process that will ensure it remains robust and effective while improving the service to customers.
In practice, and subject to a general requirement that vetting be renewed every three years, it is envisaged that this will mean that when a person is vetted for the work they will be or are likely to be involved in as part of their employment or volunteering within identified risk categories, the person would not be required to repeat the process if they were to move to another role within the same risk category.
My Department is actively engaging with the Garda National Vetting Bureau on the detailed work of developing the necessary legislative and technical steps to meet these goals in a way that is workable in practice. This includes an assessment of appropriate models for an expansion of digital service delivery, which is a very significant project that will necessarily take time to fully scope and implement.
While the delivery of vetting services is an operational matter or An Garda Síochána, aside from this work to update the Garda vetting system, my Department engages an ongoing basis with Departments and other stakeholders in relation to any relevant policy issues that may be raised or identified, as they arise.
552. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the status of an Irish Residency Permit renewal application (details supplied); when it is likely that same will be processed in view that the application is pending over 15 weeks; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48863/26]
View answerThe person referred to by the Deputy applied to renew their immigration permission on 06 March 2026 and this application is currently in the queue for consideration.
The Registration Office within Immigration Service Delivery (ISD) of my Department provide a live application processing date broken down by stamp category, which is updated every Monday, and is available at the following link: www.irishimmigration.ie/registering-your-immigration-permission/how-to-renew-your-current-permission/renewing-your-registration-permission-if-you-live-in-the-republic-of-ireland/.
I understand that the extended wait times can be frustrating for applicants, and I can assure the Deputy that my Department is exploring every avenue available to facilitate as many customers as possible and to increase processing capacity.
The Registration Office is open seven days a week to facilitate customers to process both first time registration appointments and online renewals. Additional staff have been assigned to this work, which has now begun to reduce the processing time for renewals. For certain categories of renewals, the processing time is now approximately 6 - 8 weeks from the time of initial application, with no category exceeding a wait time of 16 weeks.
The Registration Office has also issued a notice to employers regarding the legality of employing someone awaiting renewal. This notice can be found here: www.irishimmigration.ie/registering-your-immigration-permission/how-to-renew-your-current-permission/notice-to-employers/.
If the application is approved, the person concerned can expect to receive their new Irish Residence Permit (IRP) card within the following 10-15 working days.
Applicants can now directly check the status of their immigration application on the Immigration Service’s Customer Service Portal. They can register for, or log in to their existing account, at www.portal.irishimmigration.ie/en/.
As an Oireachtas member, you can also request the status of individual immigration cases by e-mail, using the Oireachtas Mail facility at: IMoireachtasmail@justice.ie, which has been specifically established for this purpose. This service enables up to date information on such cases to be obtained without the need to seek information by way of the Parliamentary Question process.
553. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the current average waiting times for the different types of visa applications being made to his Department, for each of the past five years; and the reason the processing time is growing longer specially for Stamp 4 and family reunification visas. [48929/26]
View answer554. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration is he is aware of the difficulties being created by the long wait time for Stamp 4 renewal applications which can lead to the applicant being under severe stress; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48930/26]
View answer564. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration whether any assessment has been carried out of the impact of staffing allocations and redeployments on processing times for Irish residence permit registrations, renewals and Stamp 4 permissions; and if so, to provide details of the findings of that assessment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48952/26]
View answer565. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the average processing time and the number of applications awaiting decision for Irish residence permit registrations and renewals, including Stamp 4 applications, at the end of each quarter from 1 January 2023 to date, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48953/26]
View answer566. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the number of whole-time equivalent staff assigned to the Irish residence permit (IRP) registration and renewal system, including first-time registrations, renewals and Stamp 4 processing, for each year from 2020 to date and, where available, by quarter from 1 January 2023 to date, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48954/26]
View answer573. Deputy Paula Butterly asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration to respond to correspondence received (details supplied) in relation to Irish Residence Permit applications; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48969/26]
View answer586. Deputy Seán Crowe asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the processing time per category of immigration stamp; the number of staff employed to process immigration applications, in tabular form; if he is aware of the increasing length of time between application and approval; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49184/26]
View answer593. Deputy Mairéad Farrell asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration if his attention has been drawn to instances where delays with IRP renewals have impacted first-time home buyers’ ability to draw down on their mortgage; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49350/26]
View answer609. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the number of applications for renewal of immigration permission refused, in each of the years 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025 and to date in 2026, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49509/26]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 553, 554, 564, 565, 566, 573, 586, 593 and 609 together.
The Registration Office of my Department is currently experiencing an exceptionally high demand for first time registration appointments and immigration permission renewal applications.
I understand that the extended wait times can be frustrating for applicants, and I can assure the Deputy that my Department is exploring every avenue available to facilitate as many customers as possible and to increase processing capacity.
The Registration Office is open seven days a week to facilitate customers to process both first time registration appointments and online renewals. Additional staff have been assigned to this work, which has now begun to reduce the processing time for renewals. For certain categories of renewals, the processing time is now approximately 6 - 8 weeks from the time of initial application, with no category exceeding a wait time of 16 weeks.
The Registration Office provide a live application processing date broken down by stamp category, which is updated every Monday, and is available on the Immigration Service website at the following link: www.irishimmigration.ie/registering-your-immigration-permission/how-to-renew-your-current-permission/renewing-your-registration-permission-if-you-live-in-the-republic-of-ireland/.
While my Department endeavours to process applications as quickly as possible, processing times may vary due to a number of factors, such as the number of applications on hand, individual circumstances, the complexity of applications, whether further information is required, and peak application periods.
The Registration Office has also issued a notice to employers regarding the legality of employing someone awaiting renewal. If an employee’s Irish Residence Permit (IRP) card has expired and they are unable to obtain a new one by the expiry date of their current IRP card, they are still legally permitted to remain in the State on their existing IRP card for a maximum of 12 weeks. This is subject to the applicant submitting their renewal application prior to their current IRP card expiring. Further information on this notice can be found here: www.irishimmigration.ie/notice-to-employers-regarding-employees-awaiting-renewal-of-their-irp-card/.
In addition, customers may submit their renewal applications up to 12 weeks prior to expiry of permission, to allow sufficient time for an application to be reached and processed prior to a current permission expiring.
It is also open to any person to request to have their renewal application expedited due to extenuating circumstances, and they can do so by contacting the Registration team of the Department via the Customer Service Portal. They will need to explain their circumstances and the urgent need to travel and will be required to submit proof of travel, for example a flight booking and the reason of the emergency. All such requests are considered on a case by case basis.
Applicants can directly check the status of their immigration application on the Immigration Service’s Customer Service Portal. They can register for, or log in to their existing account, at www.portal.irishimmigration.ie/en/.
The table below sets out the number of full-time equivalent (FTE) staff assigned to the Registration Office within Immigration Service Delivery (ISD) at the end of each year from 2020 to 2025, as well as the number of staff as of 15 June 2026.
|
Year |
Number of FTE Staff |
|
2020 |
46.7 |
|
2021 |
47.8 |
|
2022 |
44 |
|
2023 |
40.6 |
|
2024 |
89.1 |
|
2025 |
81.7 |
|
2026 (as of 15 June) |
93.1 |
*Please note, figures are correct at time of issue, however, all statistics may be subject to data cleansing.
Staffing levels are kept under ongoing review having regard to demands placed on my Department’s ISD function generally.
Since 13 January 2025, all nationwide first-time registrations of Irish immigration residence permissions are the responsibility of the Registration Office of ISD of my Department. Furthermore, since November 2024, all renewals of immigration permissions transferred to ISD and are done using my Department’s online platform, meaning that applicants from across the country no longer have to attend in person at their local Garda Station.
As a result, information regarding refusals, average waiting times and the number of applications pending in previous years is not available.
The table below details the approximate number of online renewal applications awaiting to be processed at the end of each month so far in 2026.
|
Date |
Number of online renewals awaiting processing |
|
January 2026 |
57,000 |
|
February 2026 |
58,000 |
|
March 2026 |
99,000 |
|
April 2026 |
97,000 |
|
May 2026 |
86,000 |
|
June 2026 |
74,000 |
*Please note, figures are correct at time of issue, however, all statistics may be subject to data cleansing.
555. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the present status of the application by a person (details supplied) for retention of their permission to remain. [48933/26]
View answerI can inform the Deputy that the Domestic Residence and Permissions (DRP) division of my Department has received an application for permission to remain in the State from the person cited.
All applications are processed in chronological order of receipt. The person concerned can be assured that there will be no avoidable delay in finalising their application and will be contacted as soon as a decision has been reached.
Prior to submitting an online renewal application on the Immigration Service Delivery (ISD) online renewal portal (https://inisonline.jahs.ie/user/login), the applicant cited requires a letter from DRP granting them permission to remain in the State. This letter should be supplied when submitting an online renewal application.
Further information on the renewal process as well as the list of documents required for each stamp type are available on the ISD website at the following link: www.irishimmigration.ie/registering-your-immigration-permission/how-to-register-your-immigration-permission-for-the-first-time/required-documents/.
As an Oireachtas member, the Deputy can also request the status of individual immigration cases by e-mail, using the Oireachtas Mail facility at: IMoireachtasmail@justice.ie, which has been specifically established for this purpose. This service enables up to date information on such cases to be obtained without the need to seek information by way of the Parliamentary Question process.
556. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the number of accused persons his Department anticipates will be unable to secure legal representation in the District Court following the introduction of the single set-fee model on 1 July 2026; the modelling underlying that estimate; and, if no such estimate has been made, the reason no assessment was undertaken prior to the introduction of the reform; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48937/26]
View answer557. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration whether any review, evaluation or value-for-money analysis of the Criminal Legal Aid Scheme has been published since the IGEES review completed in 2018; whether the internal review of 350,000 District Court cases from 2022 and 2023 repeatedly referenced by the Minister in communications on this topic was externally validated or peer-reviewed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48942/26]
View answer558. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration further to the refusal to publish the internal review of 350,000 District Court cases from 2022 and 2023 on the grounds that the underlying dataset contains personal information, whether he will publish the aggregated and anonymised findings, neither of which constitutes personal data for the purposes of the General Data Protection Regulation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48943/26]
View answer559. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration whether he will publish the terms of reference, methodology, data sources and assumptions used in the review of 350,000 District Court cases, including how “unnecessary adjournments” were defined and measured; if the review analysed had any difference in the nature; the extent of adjournments sought by the prosecution in cases with criminal legal aid compared to those without, given that this material does not contain personal data and was not addressed by the publication refusal; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48944/26]
View answer560. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration further to Parliamentary Question No. 201 of 25 March 2026, which did not state the proposed fee, the precise set fee to be paid per defendant under the reformed District Court Criminal Legal Aid scheme; the reduced fee payable where a matter is sent forward or returned for trial; whether any appearances beyond those notionally covered by the set fee will attract no further payment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48945/26]
View answer561. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration whether the review’s comparison of legally-aided cases (313 days, 5 appearances) with non-aided cases (133 days, 3 appearances) controlled for charge seriousness, indictable versus summary disposal, plea, contested status, employment and homeless status of the accused, the existence of mental health issues that might reasonably be foreseen to cause additional delays, and custody risk, given that legal aid is granted precisely where loss of liberty is at risk; what definition of “outcomes” was applied in concluding that outcomes are “similar”; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48946/26]
View answer562. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the projected additional cost arising from adjournments, appeals and judicial review proceedings brought by or on behalf of unrepresented accused following the reform, net of any efficiency gain, given his statement that the reform is “not intended to reduce the cost to the State”; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48947/26]
View answer563. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration whether the Office of the Attorney General was consulted in relation to the compatibility of the proposed reforms with Article 38.1 of the Constitution and Article 6 ECHR; whether any constitutional or legal concerns were raised during the development of the proposal; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48951/26]
View answer577. Deputy William Aird asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the status of any ongoing negotiations to resolve the withdrawal of legal services over the civil legal aid fee in the Courts Services; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49058/26]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 556, 557, 558, 559, 560, 561, 562, 563 and 577 together.
It has not been possible to collate the information requested by the Deputy in the time available. I will write to the Deputy directly once the information is to hand.
