To: Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration - Jim O'Callaghan
Physical proof of residence for minors living in Ireland
Please create a physical proof of residence for non EU minors / normally visa required minors who are legally resident in the State.
Why is this important?
Non EU / normally visa required minors living in Ireland do not receive any physical evidence that they are legally resident in Ireland. This makes travelling with Irish parents or travelling unaccompanied an unnecessarily stressful and risky task.
The Immigration website specifically stipulates that minors under 16 do not need an IRP card and when travelling out of the State must do so with a parent / guardian who has a valid IRP card.
BMU has advised if a minor travels out and back into the State unaccompanied, they need a visa on return?! Why?
Visas firstly, take months to issue, and secondly, the minor is LEGALLY resident in the State but the Department of Justice will not address this terribly grey area?!
BMU also stipulated if any issues arise, the airline can contact BMU at Dublin Airport - again, why? The said minor is legally resident in the State.
Even travelling with Irish citizen parents is problematic due to the Immigration website stating 'a parent / guardian with an IRP card', immigration in other countrie and airlines are then fixated on the 'IRP card' part of it. There was recently a family travelling back from Copenhagen, both parents naturalised as Irish and IRP cards expired, their child is under 16, so no IRP card issued. The mother had proof for her child from school, GP, welfare payments, dentist appointments and much more, staff in Copenhagen refused to let the child board due to no one having an IRP card! After many tears and begging, they were let on the flight last minute. BMU confirmed that minors of Irish parents did not need a visa to return, this email was shown to them and entirely dismissed!
Do you Minister, even comprehend the sheer (unnecessary) stress of this, or care for that matter, and how it potentially ruined what was a lovely holiday?
To touch on another situation, most families have their grandparents in their country of origin, some even have the other parent living in the country of origin and over the long summer breaks, it is the best time that parents would like to send their children back to visit - whether it be grandparents or the other parent, but they CANNOT because BMU have confirmed that is a minor travels without an IRO card parent / guardian, they need a visa to return. So a visa must be applied for from country of travel, and can take up to 6 months to process, so the minor goes on summer break holiday for 6 weeks, but cannot return until visa is issued 6 months later - please help me make that make sense?
There is always a blanket response of simply, under 16's do not need an IRP card, well I beg to differ, they absolutely do NEED something as physical proof from Immigration that they are legally resident in the State.
Perhaps you should take note from EU Treaty, as they allow and issue IRP cards for minors - lucky them.
I am appealing to you, not on behalf of myself, as this has no bearing on me, but on the thousands of immigrants who contribute to Ireland financially, who are all here legally and who on every IRP card renewal, have to pay the exorbitant fee of €300 - some doing that every year! Surely you can afford those people's minor children a stamp or a sticker in their passports confirming their legitimate, legal residence in the State?
The Immigration website specifically stipulates that minors under 16 do not need an IRP card and when travelling out of the State must do so with a parent / guardian who has a valid IRP card.
BMU has advised if a minor travels out and back into the State unaccompanied, they need a visa on return?! Why?
Visas firstly, take months to issue, and secondly, the minor is LEGALLY resident in the State but the Department of Justice will not address this terribly grey area?!
BMU also stipulated if any issues arise, the airline can contact BMU at Dublin Airport - again, why? The said minor is legally resident in the State.
Even travelling with Irish citizen parents is problematic due to the Immigration website stating 'a parent / guardian with an IRP card', immigration in other countrie and airlines are then fixated on the 'IRP card' part of it. There was recently a family travelling back from Copenhagen, both parents naturalised as Irish and IRP cards expired, their child is under 16, so no IRP card issued. The mother had proof for her child from school, GP, welfare payments, dentist appointments and much more, staff in Copenhagen refused to let the child board due to no one having an IRP card! After many tears and begging, they were let on the flight last minute. BMU confirmed that minors of Irish parents did not need a visa to return, this email was shown to them and entirely dismissed!
Do you Minister, even comprehend the sheer (unnecessary) stress of this, or care for that matter, and how it potentially ruined what was a lovely holiday?
To touch on another situation, most families have their grandparents in their country of origin, some even have the other parent living in the country of origin and over the long summer breaks, it is the best time that parents would like to send their children back to visit - whether it be grandparents or the other parent, but they CANNOT because BMU have confirmed that is a minor travels without an IRO card parent / guardian, they need a visa to return. So a visa must be applied for from country of travel, and can take up to 6 months to process, so the minor goes on summer break holiday for 6 weeks, but cannot return until visa is issued 6 months later - please help me make that make sense?
There is always a blanket response of simply, under 16's do not need an IRP card, well I beg to differ, they absolutely do NEED something as physical proof from Immigration that they are legally resident in the State.
Perhaps you should take note from EU Treaty, as they allow and issue IRP cards for minors - lucky them.
I am appealing to you, not on behalf of myself, as this has no bearing on me, but on the thousands of immigrants who contribute to Ireland financially, who are all here legally and who on every IRP card renewal, have to pay the exorbitant fee of €300 - some doing that every year! Surely you can afford those people's minor children a stamp or a sticker in their passports confirming their legitimate, legal residence in the State?
