Government hopes to ease backlog of asylum seekers with fast-tracked application process

Helen McEntee

UNDER PLANS BEING brought to Cabinet today, a new accelerated process for seeking international protection in Ireland will be put in place.

Minister for Justice Helen McEntee will introduce further measures which the government hopes will slowdown an increase in people seeking seeking international protection.

Among these measures, from today international protection applicants from the country which has had the highest number of people coming to Ireland over the previous three months will go into what is called an accelerated process.

This means they will have their cases decided on within 90 days.

Currently, the country with the highest number of people seeking asylum in Ireland over the last three months is Nigeria – accounting for 34% of all asylum applications this year with 2,053 applicants in 2024.

It is understood Minister McEntee believes the 50% reduction in asylum applications from countries designated as “safe” since fast processing was introduced for them is clear evidence that people who are not in need of protection are seeing the risk of refusal and deportation order as “not worth it”.

Currently, accelerated processing is in place for “safe countries” of origin – Albania, Algeria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Georgia, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and South Africa.

Elsewhere at Cabinet this morning, Minister for Higher Education Patrick O’Donovan will inform Government of plans to create over 1,000 new beds for student accommodation.

Some €100m will be allocated to the creation of 1,014 new state provided beds.

These will be split across UCD (493), DCU (405) and Maynooth University (116).

It is understood a third of this accommodation will be ringfenced for students availing of SUSI grants or students from low-income families.

Building work is expected to commence in DCU and Maynooth University this year, while in UCD work is set to begin in early 2025.