Family Reunification
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's)
Qs 1 Who can apply for Family Reunification under the Refugee Act 1996 (as amended)?
Answer
Only people granted Refugee Status can apply for Family Reunificaton. People with Irish born child or other residency rights are not eligible to apply.
People granted permission to enter or to remain in the State under Family reunification, are not in turn eligible to apply for Family Reunification for additional family members.
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Qs 2 What family members can a Refugee apply for?
If the refugee is married, they can apply for their spouse (provided the marriage is subsisting on the date the application is made). The can also apply for any of their dependant sons or daughters (These children must be under the age of 18 and be unmarried).
If the refugee is under 18 years of age he/she can apply for their parents.
The Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform also has discretion to grant permission for other family members to be reunified with a refugee (E.g. Grandparents, grandchildren, siblings, disabled relatives etc.). In all such cases, the person being applied for must be dependant on the refugee.
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Qs 3 - How/Where do I make an application for Family Reunification if my family members are not currently in Ireland?
Answer
All applications for family reunification for people who are outside the Irish State are made to the Dept. of Foreign Affairs, Visa Office, 13/14 Burgh Quay, Dublin 2.
Visa forms are available from and must be returned to the Dept of Foreign Affairs, with all relevant documentation and the appropriate fee €60 per application (as at November 2004). Applications are then forwarded to the Immigration Section, Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform (DJELR) to associate with the file, which is then sent to the Office of the Refugee Applications Commissioner (ORAC) for investigation.
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Qs 4 - How/Where do I make an application for Family Reunification if my family members are currently residing in Ireland?
Answer
If a Refugee wishes to lodge an application for a family member currently residing in the State, he/she needs to inform the Family Reunification Section, Immigration Division, DJELR, 13/14 Burgh Quay, Dublin 2 directly. The application will then be forwarded to ORAC for investigation.
At no point does ORAC accept applications for Family Reunification from the refugee. All applications for Family Reunification must go through either the Department of Foreign affairs or Immigration Section of the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform as appropriate.
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Qs. 5 - How long will the process take??
Answer
Each application is investigated by ORAC in the chronological order in which they are received in the office. If all documentation and information has been provided at the earliest opportunity, it helps us greatly in producing our reports to the minister speedily. At present, we aim to have our reports issued to the Minister for JELR within two months of being in receipt of all the necessary documentation and information.
The decision to grant or refuse Family Reunification is made by Immigration Section in the Department of Justice Equality and Law Reform and the time frame for the final decision is highly dependant on the level of applications to be finalised in Immigration Section. Depending on the complexity of the individual case, this may take several months.
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Qs.6 - What documents do I need to submit when applying for my Husband/Wife?
Please note, the documents listed in answers to questions 6, 7, 8 and 9 are not an exhaustive list.
Answer
Original Birth Certificate/National ID Card/ Passport.
Original Marriage Certificate.
Original Divorce/Death Certificate of previous spouse(s) (if required).
Evidence of cohabitation (both past/current) i.e., tenancy agreements/utility bills/rent books/letter from Community Welfare Officer etc..
For a spouse currently residing outside the state you will also need a completed visa application form with 2 passport photographs.
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Qs.7 - What documents do I need to submit when applying for my dependant children?
Answer
When applying for dependant children (under age 18) you will need
Original Birth Certificate/National ID/Passport.
Original Statement of Parental Authorisation (granting permission for the child to travel to Ireland) from other parent if not travelling with child to Ireland.
Original Death Certificate of other parent if applicable.
Letter of authorisation from current guardian if not in the care of his/her parents.
If the children are not currently in Ireland you will also need a completed visa application form with 2 passport photographs for each child.
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Qs.8 - What documents do I need to submit if I am a refugee, under the age of 18, and wish to apply for my Father or Mother?
Answer
Original Birth Certificate of Refugee.
Original Birth Certificate/National ID/Passport of Refugee's Parents.
Again, if the parents are not currently in Ireland you will also need a completed visa application form with 2 passport photographs for each parent.
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Qs.9 - What documents do I need to submit if I am applying for dependant relatives other than those listed above (e.g. mother, father, brother, sister, child, grandparents, ward or guardian). ?
Original Birth Certificate/National ID/Passport.
Marriage Certificates (if applicable).
Death/Divorce certificates (if applicable).
Evidence of custodial rights over family member i.e., adopted/fostered child.
Evidence of financial dependency - that the refugee has been supporting his/her family i.e., money transfer receipts, bank statements, postal orders etc..
Evidence of physical dependency i.e. medical reports.
Evidence of current employment from Refugee (that he can support his family here).
If the family member is not currently in Ireland you will also need a completed visa application form with 2 passport photographs for each family member.
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Qs. 10 - Requests for the return of original documents?
Answer
All documents submitted by the refugee are generally retained until the decision has been reached on their application. If documents are required by the applicant for a specific reasons, they are advised to submit the reasons in writing to ORAC (if the file is still under investigation) or to Immigration (if the file is completed) stating the reason why they need the documents back.
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Qs. 11 - What if I receive a negative decision in my Family Reunification Application?
Answer
Should you receive a negative decision you will be informed by Immigration Division of the reasons in your decision letter. There is no provision under Section 18 of the Refugee Act 1996 (as amended) to appeal Family Reunification decisions. However, should you have new information that is relevant to the case, you should contact Immigration Section, DJELR, 13/14 Burgh Quay, Dublin 2.
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Qs. 12 - Where can I find the legislation governing Family Reunification?
Answer
Section 18 of the Refugee Act 1996 (as amended) Click here to read the Act.
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