International Protection Bill 2026: Report and Final Stages
Seanad Éireann — 2026-03-25
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Maria McCormack (SF), Labour Panel

I will speak to amendment No. 58. I am conscious that we might not get any further but I will be happy if the Minister accepts this important amendment. It states:
In page 44, between lines 9 and 10, to insert the following:
“(k) information provided by the applicant regarding any prior immigration permission held in the State, including, where applicable, whether the applicant previously entered or resided in the State on—
(i) a student permission,
(ii) an employment permit [visa] or other work related permission,
(iii) a short stay or long stay [visa] ...
This came about as a result of a reply to a parliamentary question on student visas asked by Matt Carthy. The reply revealed that the Department does not collate any data on the number of people who initially came in on stamp 2 visas and subsequently make an application for international protection. The figures for Britain suggest that approximately 3.5% of those who come in on student visas make an application for international protection. If a similar percentage applied here, that would account for 2,000 applications a year. This amendment simply requires that the State record whether an applicant previously held any immigration permission. That information is essential for managing migration properly.
Understanding prior student work, visit or family-based permissions helps identify patterns, prevents the system's abuse and ensures fair, efficient decision-making grounded in accurate data. This is what the Minister said he is trying to ensure. I am hoping he will reconsider and accept this amendment. If we are going to do this, we need to try to do it right. Just because it is an Opposition amendment does not mean it cannot be accepted. This would only be of benefit, as would be many of the other amendments. I am conscious that we are getting close to time for the guillotine. I ask the Minister to accept amendment No. 58.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-03-25/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:46+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-03-25