Written Answers Nos. 248-267
248. Deputy Brian Brennan asked the Minister for Social Protection if the fuel allowance can be paid to a qualifying household when there is a change of circumstances (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54527/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe criteria for Fuel Allowance are framed in order to direct the limited resources available to the Department in as targeted a manner as possible. To qualify for the Fuel Allowance payment, a person must satisfy all the qualifying criteria, this ensures that the Fuel Allowance payment is targeted at those who are more vulnerable to fuel poverty, including those reliant on social protection payments for longer periods and who are unlikely to have additional resources of their own.
A change in the qualifying criteria such as including adult children who are undertaking an apprenticeship and not in receipt of a qualifying social protection payment, would change the targeted nature of the scheme.
I understand however that there will always be exceptional cases and it is for this reason that my department provides Additional Needs Payments as part of the Supplementary Welfare Allowance scheme. Any person who considers that they may have an entitlement to an Additional Needs Payment is encouraged to contact their local community welfare service. There is a National Community Welfare Contact Centre in place - 0818-607080 - which will direct callers to the appropriate office. In addition, applications can be made online via www.mywelfare.ie.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
249. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration if her Department will intervene in the case of the funding of a school (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54331/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraAt the outset, it is important to note that, as Minister, I do not comment on individual Immigrant Investor Programme (IIP) applications.
Since the closure of the programme, my Department has continued to process and submit applications to the Evaluation Committee for consideration and recommendation.
My Department is committed to ensuring that all applications will be examined on their own merits and will endeavour to conclude all decisions in a timely manner.
I can advise you that further details concerning the processing of outstanding IIP applications is published on the Immigration Service website of my Department, including an FAQ document. Both can be accessed at the following link: www.irishimmigration.ie/processing-of-iip-applications-on-hand-following-the-closure-of-the-programme/
250. Deputy Paul Nicholas Gogarty asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration if there are plans to review the citizenship process in areas such as length of residency immediately prior to application, criminal records, proficiency in Irish or English; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54522/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraI can inform the Deputy that all applications for a certificate of naturalisation are assessed individually based on the provisions of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, as amended.
Applicants are required to have 5 years reckonable residence in the State prior to making an application, except for spouses of Irish nationals where the requirement is 3 years.
As part of the naturalisation application process, an applicant is required to detail any offences they have, regardless of where an incident occurred, or how long ago.
Given the importance of citizenship, my Department also undertakes robust and comprehensive national and international checks on applications, including the Garda e-vetting process, or any other police vetting processes as deemed necessary. All applicants are required to satisfy the good character criterion under Section 15 of the 1956 Act.
At present, no language proficiency requirements apply with respect to naturalisation applications.
The Programme for Government contains a commitment to publish a National Migration and Integration Strategy detailing how the Government intends to meet the demands and opportunities facing Ireland’s society and economy over the next decade. My Department is currently working with other Government Departments to develop this strategy with the aim to publish it in 2026.
I can inform the Deputy that immigration legislation, including that relating to naturalisation, is kept under constant review by my Department.
251. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the number of IPAS centres and the number of IPAS residents associated with contracts for which the payment per bed per day are above €70; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54287/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe State is currently accommodating almost 33,000 people in 319 International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS) centres around the country, 9,500 of whom are children.
Significant reform is underway to speed up the international protection application processing system, and reduce the demand for accommodation. That includes moving away consistently, over time, from the emergency use of commercial accommodation and putting in place more facilities on State-owned sites.
The Department is also working to improve value for money by reviewing contracts and driving improvements in standards, governance and compliance. The introduction of a new rate card pricing model is driving costs down for new and renewed contracts, already saving over €52million since May 2025 on 104 contracts.
The information requested on new, renewed or existing contracts, and the prices agreed per contract as they relate to numbers of residents or sites, is considered commercially sensitive and is not available for publication. This is because providing the information could impede the Department's duty to achieve best value for money for services and contracts in active negotiation.
The average contracted nightly cost allows for fluctuations in the number of residents over time and also for varying types of accommodation configuration by centre and by contract. This cost is currently €71.
While information is not available for publication by centre, I can provide the Deputy with information on the average nightly contracted rate by county.
|
County |
Average nightly contracted rate per provider (€) |
|
Kildare |
92 |
|
Carlow |
91 |
|
Meath |
81 |
|
Dublin |
78 |
|
Louth |
77 |
|
Limerick |
75 |
|
Galway |
74 |
|
Leitrim |
73 |
|
Mayo |
72 |
|
Cork |
72 |
|
Sligo |
70 |
|
Letterkenny |
70 |
|
Laois |
69 |
|
Donegal |
69 |
|
Wicklow |
69 |
|
Wexford |
69 |
|
Waterford |
67 |
|
Monaghan |
67 |
|
Clare |
66 |
|
Roscommon |
66 |
|
Offaly |
65 |
|
Kerry |
60 |
|
Kilkenny |
60 |
|
Longford |
60 |
|
Cavan |
59 |
|
Tipperary |
59 |
|
Westmeath |
55 |
The average nightly contracted accommodation cost in 2025 is now calculated across nearly 320 accommodation centres, including State-owned and commercial accommodation. Contracted costs include accommodation and associated costs like facilities management, food, security, utilities etc.
252. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the number of IPAS centres and the number of IPAS residents associated with new or renewed contracts for each month in 2025; the numbers therein for which the payment per bed per day are now above €70, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54288/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy Department has been unable to provide a response to this question within the prescribed timeframe. A response will issue directly to the Deputy in the coming days.
253. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the average total time, from initial application to final appeal decision, for IPAS applications that were refused in 2024 and to date in 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54289/25]
Amharc ar fhreagra254. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the average period of time between a first instance refusal for an IPAS application and the submission of an appeal by applicants; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54290/25]
Amharc ar fhreagra255. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the number of IPAS decisions issued in each month of 2025 to date; the numbers and percentage where applications were granted and refused; and the number and percentage of those decisions that were appealed, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54291/25]
Amharc ar fhreagra256. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the number of IPAS decisions that were issued in each month of 2025 to date; the numbers and percentage were appeals were successful and unsuccessful, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54292/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 253, 254, 255 and 256 together.
I can assure the Deputy it is my intention to continue the investment in the end-to-end international protection process to speed up decision making.
In 2024 the International Protection Office (IPO) delivered over 14,000 first decisions compared to over 8,500 in 2023, while the International Protection Appeals Tribunal (IPAT) closed around 3,100 appeals in 2024 compared to over 1,700 in 2023.
The overall median processing time for first instance decisions was 16 months in 2024, and is currently 14 months in 2025. The processing time for applications under the accelerated process is four months.
In 2025 so far the IPO has made 15,332 decisions, 82% of these first instance decisions have been refused, withdrawn or deemed inadmissible.
The table below details the number of First Instance decisions issued in each month of 2025
|
Month |
Total |
|
January |
1,781 |
|
February |
1,624 |
|
March |
1,539 |
|
April |
1,594 |
|
May |
1,518 |
|
June |
1,593 |
|
July |
1,768 |
|
August |
1,674 |
|
September |
1,941 |
|
October* |
299 |
*To COB 6th October. Please note, figures are correct at time of issue, however, all statistics may be subject to data cleansing.
The table below details the outcome of the First Instance decisions issued on international protection applications in 2025.
|
Date - Year |
2025* |
% |
|
Refusal |
11,806 |
77% |
|
RS Grant |
2,284 |
15% |
|
SP Grant |
276 |
2% |
|
PTR Grant |
222 |
1% |
|
Withdrawal |
419 |
3% |
|
Inadmissible |
325 |
2% |
|
Total |
15,332 |
|
*To COB 6th October. Please note, figures are correct at time of issue, however, all statistics may be subject to data cleansing.
Data on the length of time refused applications spend in the international protection system is not stored in a manner which allows the data to be easily extracted.
International protection applicants have 15 days to appeal a recommendation made by the International Protection office. An appeal must be lodged in 10 days in the case of inadmissible appeals, subsequent application appeals, Dublin III Regulation Appeals and Appeals where the applicant’s country of origin has been deemed to be a safe country of origin.
Data on the average time between IPO decision date and the appeal being received is not stored in a manner which allows the data to be easily extracted.
In 2025, as of 28 September, 9,669 International Protection Appeals have been accepted.
The Tribunal has accepted a further 932 appeals relating to Subsequent Application Appeals, Inadmissibility Appeals, Appeals for Return under Dublin III, and Appeals concerning Reception Conditions.
As of 21 September 2025, 74% of all recommendations/decisions made in the IPO over the last 6-month period resulted in an appeal made to the Tribunal. This 'conversion rate' has risen from a rate of 56% in August 2024.
The overall median processing times for appeals determined by IPAT was 10 months in 2024, and in 2025 the overall median processing time is 12.7 months. The processing time for accelerated appeals is currently 11.5 months.
The table below shows the appeal decisions in 2025 to 28 September.
|
Issued 01/01/25 to 28/09/2025 |
|
|
|
Granted/Set Aside – Refugee Status (RS) |
884 |
26% |
|
Granted/Set Aside - Subsidiary Protection (SP) |
87 |
3% |
|
Refused/Affirmed – RS and SP |
2,363 |
71% |
|
Grand Total |
3,334 |
|
* Please note, figures are correct at time of issue, however, all statistics may be subject to data cleansing.
** A decision issued in a particular year may relate to an application submitted in a previous year.
The Tribunal has closed a further 1,113 appeals relating Subsequent Application Appeals, Appeals for Return under Dublin III, Withdrawn appeals and Appeals on decision concerning Reception Conditions. This brings the total appeals closed to date in 2025 to 4,447.
Ireland has opted in to the EU Asylum and Migration Pact which will come into effect in June 2026. The Pact will provide a fair, sustainable and efficient asylum procedure. This will be achieved through convergence in asylum practices across the EU.
My Department continues to focus on preparing for the Pact in advance of June 2026.
257. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration in view of the international protection applications made in the State between 1 July and 30 September 2025 by applicants from Georgia, India and Brazil, for a breakdown of the total number of applications; the number of applications refused at first decision; the total number of appeals lodged, and of those appeals; the number in which refugee status was granted; and the number in which subsidiary protection was granted; in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54294/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraOn 1st July, my Department introduced the first phase of a gradual transition to a new accelerated, end-to-end process for applicants entering the international protection system in Ireland. This new accelerated process mirrors elements of the future border procedure and screening required by the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum while still adhering to the existing International Protection Act 2015.
The new process is designed to enable testing of new border procedure timelines that will be required as part of the EU Pact requirements in June 2026. The border procedure allows 12 weeks to first and second-instance decisions and a further 12 weeks to return for those who receive negative decisions.
During the first phase of transition an accelerated procedure for first and second instance decisions was introduced for applicants from designated three safe countries of origin; Georgia, Brazil and India.
Between July 1 and 30 September, 367 applications were received under this initiative. This has resulted in a total of 166 first-instance decisions.
There were 104 appeals received and 60 appeal decisions made.
Final decisions have led to 26 deportation orders being signed and three people have opted to voluntarily return.
My Department does not provide detailed statistics on international protection grant and refusal rates by nationality.
The table below shows the total grants and refusals issued between July 1st and September 30th for those dealt with through the new accelerated end to end process.
|
First Instance Decision Grant |
First Instance Decision Refused |
Appeals received |
Appeal Grant/Set Aside |
Appeal Refused/Affirmed |
|
28 |
138 |
104 |
8 |
52 |
258. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration in relation to international protection applicants that are not given an offer of accommodation upon arrival, the process by which those applicants are contacted when a subsequent offer of accommodation is made; the methods of communication used; and the length of time applicants are given to respond to the offer; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54295/25]
Amharc ar fhreagra259. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration in relation to international protection applicants not offered accommodation on arrival (details supplied), if he will provide a breakdown of the number of cases recorded as inactive because the applicant could not be contacted; the number recorded as inactive because the applicant expressly declined the offer of accommodation, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54296/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 258 and 259 together.
Due to severe shortages of accommodation over recent years, from December 2023, the State had insufficient capacity within the international protection accommodation system to accommodate all applicants requesting material reception conditions.
IPAS prioritised accommodation for women, families and those with specific needs, meaning that single male applicants were most affected by this shortage.
Since March, the Department has been working to review the list of those waiting longest, and to make retrospective offers to eligible people, and the number of people unaccommodated has reduced to 613 in October 2025.
If a new applicant cannot be offered accommodation on arrival, they are eligible for a weekly allowance of €113.80 per week, an increase of €75 from the standard weekly allowance for asylum-seekers.
While most unaccommodated people are not rough-sleeping, IPAS has arrangements in place with a range of NGO partners to provide drop-in day services for unaccommodated people who are. This means people can access facilities including hot showers, meals and laundry services. IPAS also makes offers of accommodation to any applicant who is rough sleeping, identified through outreach that is organised 7 days a week.
While the demand for IPAS accommodation remains high, the reduced rate of new applications has meant that IPAS bas been able to review the cases of people who are awaiting an offer of accommodation and make offers to those who have been waiting longest.
These applicants' cases are checked by IPAS to confirm that their case is active, and then they are contacted by IPAS through the contact details they provide to the International Protection Office (IPO). An offer of accommodation is made and they have a number of days to confirm that they still require accommodation and wish to accept the offer.
This review has reduced the outstanding number of unaccommodated people from a maximum of 3,500 in March 2025, to 613 in October 2025.
This means that eligible people who applied for international protection during 2023 and 2024 and up until August 2025 have received an offer of accommodation.
|
Male Applicants presenting since 04/12/23 |
10,818 |
|
Accommodation offered on arrival |
1,582 |
|
Eligible for contingency payment in lieu of accommodation |
9,236 |
|
Offer made subsequently / case inactive |
8,623 |
|
Awaiting offer of accommodation |
613 |
The breakdown of data requested with respect to offers refused is not collated or available.
Depending on availability of spaces and numbers of new applicants, we will continue to make offers of accommodation to more people over the coming weeks and months.
Updated information on unaccommodated international protection applicants is published online at Gov.ie.
www.gov.ie/en/department-of-justice-home-affairs-and-migration/publications/statistics-on-international-protection-applicants-not-offered-accommodation/?referrer=https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/e202e-statistics-on-international-protection-applicants-not-offered-accommodation/
260. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the number of individuals detained in the State pending deportation between 24 September and 3 October 2025; and the prisons in which they were held; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54297/25]
Amharc ar fhreagra261. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the total number of individuals detained pending deportation to date in 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54298/25]
Amharc ar fhreagra262. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the average length of time individuals have been detained pending deportation to date in 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54299/25]
Amharc ar fhreagra263. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the five longest individual periods of detention pending deportation in 2025; the duration in each case; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54300/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 260, 261, 262 and 263 together.
It is a central priority for me that Ireland’s immigration system is robust and rules based. The enforcement aspects of our laws, including deportation orders, are an essential requirement for the system to work effectively and to ensure that there is confidence in the application of our legislation in this area.
Deportations are costly and complex to enforce. It is the preferred option to return people voluntarily and my Department has a voluntary return programme to assist people to return prior to the issuance of a deportation order. A person can only avail of voluntary return before a deportation order is issued and I have increased resources into this programme to enable persons who wish to return before a deportation order is issued to them.
If a person does not remove themselves from the State following the issuance of a deportation order, they will be removed, and my Department has taken action to significantly improve immigration enforcement measures and increase removals. The number of deportation orders signed in 2024 (2,403) increased by 180% compared to 2023 (857). This year 3,035 deportation orders have been signed up to 3 October 2025.
Last year, 1,122 people departed from the State under various mechanisms (i.e. enforced deportation, voluntary return etc.), an increase of 252% compared to 2023 (317). This year 1,546 persons have had their departure confirmed through these pathways up to 3 October 2025.
So far in 2025, four charter flight operations have removed 130 people who were subject to deportation orders from the State with a further 137 removed by the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) on commercial airlines. Additionally, 42 people are confirmed as having left the State independently after a deportation order was issued. Further removals will be conducted as the year progresses.
The enforcement of deportation orders, and the detention of people prior to their removal, is an operational matter for GNIB. A person who is the subject of a deportation order may be detained under Section 5 of the Immigration Act 1999 for up to 56 days for the purpose of ensuring their deportation from the State. An application to extend this period of detention must be made to the District Court.
If the person who is the subject of the deportation order is serving a sentence for a criminal offence and is released from prison at the end of their sentence, they can then be detained under Section 5 of the Immigration Act for a further 56 days.
The prescribed places of detention are contained in the Immigration Act 1999 (Deportation) Regulations 2005 and are: Castlerea Prison, Cloverhill Prison, Cork Prison, Limerick Prison, Midlands Prison, Mountjoy Prison, and Wheatfield Prison, as well as all Garda Síochána stations. However, not all of these locations are used for this purpose.
I can advise the Deputy that of the 267 individuals whose deportation orders have been enforced by GNIB so far in 2025, 212 were detained prior to deportation. Of this group, 25 had criminal convictions.
Of the 212 persons detained prior to deportation only one case exceeded 56 days. The average length of detention prior to deportation was 28 days. One person was detained for 77 days, one person was detained for 56 days and three people were detained for 55 days.
I can advise the Deputy that between the period 24 September 2025 and 3 October 2025, 36 people were detained for the purposes of deportation. Of these 27 were detained in Cloverhill Prison, four in the Dóchas (Mountjoy Prison), three in Cork Prison and two in Castlerea Prison.
264. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the amount that was originally budgeted for the development and implementation of the bedspace bed management system for international protection accommodation beds; the final spend to date on the system, including procurement, development, licensing and ongoing support costs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54301/25]
Amharc ar fhreagra265. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration when the bedspace bed management system was rolled out; whether the bedspace bed management system is now fully operational for all beds in the international protection system; and if not, to detail which categories of accommodation remain outside the system, and the reason for this; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54302/25]
Amharc ar fhreagra266. Deputy Gary Gannon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the procedure that was used for the management and allocation of beds in international protection system prior to the introduction of the bedspace system; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54303/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 264, 265 and 266 together.
BedSpace is a digital bed management service that has enabled our teams to move from a manual processing system to an online, digitised accommodation management system. Bedspace replaces a manual system whereby IPAS and all accommodation centres shared updates on resident numbers, movements and bed availability by weekly returns over email updates.
BedSpace provides the Department with centralised, real-time information on availability within the IPAS accommodation portfolio. BedSpace provides more effective collaboration between teams, reduces the risk of error from manual processes, and improves decision-making capabilities with accurate, up-to-date data. It meets all required standards in terms of data privacy and safety, and has been implemented across relevant teams in IPAS over the last 12 months.
The Bedspace system was developed through adaption of existing technology and capability within the then Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, commencing in late 2024, and going live as planned in February 2025. Use of the system continues within the Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration following the Transfer of Functions to this Department in May 2025.
The project cost was €1.1m for phase 1 implementation and this was completed on time and on budget.
267. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration if his Department has estimated the annual fines which Ireland would face under infringement proceedings should the State not be in a position to comply with the requirements which it has signed up to under the EU Asylum and Migration Pact; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54359/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs the Deputy is aware, Ireland has opted in to the EU Asylum and Migration Pact which will come into effect in June 2026. The Pact will provide a fair, sustainable and efficient asylum procedure. This will be achieved through convergence in asylum practices across the EU.
My Department continues to focus on preparing for the Pact in advance of June 2026.
The General Scheme of a new International Protection Bill to give effect to the measures of the EU Migration and Asylum Pact was approved by Government on 29 April 2025. The General Scheme has been published and referred to the Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Home Affairs and Migration for pre-legislative scrutiny. The drafting of the Bill is underway. It is expected that the Bill will be published by the end of the year. Enactment of the Bill and commencement of the Act is required by 11 June 2026.
It would be a matter for the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) to determine the level of fines to be imposed on a Member State it finds it to be non-compliant with transposition requirements or directly applicable legislative measures following referral of that Member State to the Court by the Commission.
