Matt Carthy
Ceist:
1002. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Justice the number of times the discretion available to her office under section 16 of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended, to waive the statutory conditions in certain circumstances, including where the applicant is of Irish descent or Irish associations (defined as related through blood, affinity or adoption to a person who is or is entitled to be an Irish citizen), by year, since 2013, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [56428/23]
Amharc ar fhreagra
The information requested is currently being compiled and I will write to the Deputy directly once the information is to hand.
The following deferred reply was received under Standing Order 51.
I refer to Parliamentary Question No. 1002 of 17 January 2024 where you asked: “….. the number of times the discretion available to her office under section 16 of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended, to waive the statutory conditions in certain circumstances, including where the applicant is of Irish descent or Irish associations (defined as related through blood, affinity or adoption to a person who is or is entitled to be an Irish citizen), by year, since 2013, in tabular form; and if she
will make a statement on the matter.”
As you will recall, the information was not available at the time of answering.
Unfortunately, the statistics requested are not compiled or recorded in such a manner to identify the answer to this specific question.
Section 15 of the Act sets out the statutory conditions that must be fulfilled for a certificate of naturalisation to be granted. Section 16 of the Act gives the Minister discretion to waive the statutory conditions in certain circumstances, including where the applicant is of Irish descent or Irish associations (related through blood, affinity or adoption to a person who is or is entitled to be an Irish citizen).
Any application under Section 16 that relies on Irish associations and affinity should be supported by substantive documentation that in the Minister’s view renders the application exceptional and one where the normal pathways to citizenship provided for under the legislation are not appropriate.
The Deputy should be aware that there is no automatic right or entitlement to have any of the statutory conditions waived, even where the applicant comes within the certain circumstances defined.
