17,000 non-national parents to have residency regularised
The Minister for Justice has moved to regularise the residency status of some 17,000 non-national parents of Irish-born children who gave birth prior to January 2005.
It follows a recent Supreme Court ruling that effectively stated that immigrants of Irish-born children did not have an automatic right to stay here.
Under the proposals, non-national parents of Irish-born children of good character and who provide accurate details of their status can expect speedy approval to stay and work in the state for an initial period of two years.
The new legislation will make it necessary for such immigrants to make a declaration to abide by the law and to make every effort to become economically viable.
Achieving economic viability within the two years will almost guarantee that residency will be renewed for a further three years.
These immigrants will not be permitted to bring relatives from abroad under the scheme.
