FIVE COUNTRIES ARE to be added to the list of states which the Government considers a safe country of origin.
Justice Minister Helen McEntee will bring a memo to Cabinet tomorrow proposing the list of countries. They are: Brazil, Egypt, India, Malawi and Morocco.
The minister is set to also update Cabinet on the actions her department is taking in the area of immigration, confirming that there has been a sharp increase in the number of prosecutions and imprisonments of asylum applicants for not having passports or travel ID as they enter the State.
Countries being deemed safe means the Department of Justice understands that there is generally no systematic persecution, no torture or inhuman or degrading treatment or no threat of violence from an armed conflict in that country.
While citizens from those countries can still seek International Protection in Ireland, the applications from these countries will be accelerated from today.
The designation of a state as a safe country of origin does not mean that a claim is inadmissible or that a person forfeits the right to make an application, but it does put the onus on the applicant to demonstrate why, and by way of exception, they are in need of protection.
At present, ten countries are designated as safe countries of origin: Albania, Algeria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Georgia, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and South Africa.
The Department of Justice said the introduction of accelerated processing has had a significant impact on the number of applications from those countries, which have dropped by over 50% since these procedures were introduced in November 2022.
Since Botswana and Algeria were added, applications from those countries fell by 71% and applications have fallen by 47% from Nigerian applicants since the country with the most applicants was accelerated.
Cabinet will also be told tomorrow that gardaí have prosecuted over 100 people so far this year for arriving to Ireland without appropriate documentation.
McEntee will tell her ministerial colleagues that a significant number have been convicted, with over 80 cases resulting in imprisonment for between one and nine months.
This contrasts with the jailing of two people under the Act throughout the entirety of last year.
Migrants rights groups have previously complained of “interference” in the normal asylum process when the jump of the prosecutions were reported by
Typically, asylum seekers wait for periods reaching up to several years to have their cases processed before they have their cases ruled on by the International Protection Appeals Tribunal (Ipat). This body decides on whether the person has qualified to remain in Ireland.
While the relevant sections of the Immigration Act covering possession of ID documents are officially the law of the land, figures show they have rarely been enforced in recent years.
Immigration experts have said this is due to it being understood that the Act was not applicable to asylum applicants, due to legal protections for people seeking refuge.
The Movement for Asylum Seekers in Ireland (MASI) told The Journal previously that it was very concerned by the practice, adding that it is a change to the system without any announcement having been made.
The minister will also confirm that she has assigned additional resources in Dublin Airport to carry out ‘doorstop’ operations on flights as they arrive to check for documentation.
Following a review of carrier liability legislation, new increased levels of fines for airlines will shortly be introduced, Cabinet will be told.
Specific funding has also been given to An Garda Síochána for a programme to assign Garda Airline Liaison Officers to transport hubs in Europe to prevent irregular migration, it is understood.
This programme is being expanded, the minister will confirm today.
McEntee has also suspended visa-free travel for refugees who have been issued travel documents by other EU Member States, added countries to the visa required list, and will will move to restrict travel on visa-free travel from countries with significant number of International Protection applicants.
On the issue of deportations, the minister will tell Cabinet that deportation orders signed in 2024 are 83% up on the same period last year.
As previously reported by The Journal, charter flights will be soon be required to support the removal process of international protection applicants who have not been approved to remain, with such flights due to commence later this year.
The procurement process for this is “well advanced”, McEntee has said, adding that it is envisaged that a tender will issue this week.
With additional reporting by Eoghan Dalton
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