ICI News Bulletin - Issue 72

Thursday, 26 August 2010

1. “Sham marriages” debate risks stigmatising migrants
2. High Court reaffirms job market access rights of non-EU citizen partners of EU citizens
3. Government immigration advice phone line closed
4. Seminar to examine immigration Bills in Arizona and Ireland
5. Mothers and Daughters Lunch tickets selling quickly
6. Citizenship, gender equality and multiculturalism issues to feature at Cork conference

“Sham marriages” debate risks stigmatising migrants
Recent media coverage of allegations about non-EU citizens undergoing marriages of convenience with EU citizens to circumvent Ireland’s immigration laws risk stigmatising migrants in genuine, loving relationships, Chief Executive Denise Charlton said. Denise said assumptions about the legitimacy of a couple’s marriage should not be made on the basis of the partners’ nationalities.

Denise said while the Freedom of Movement Directive extended residency and labour market access rights to the non-EU citizen family members of EU citizens living or working here, it also gave the Government the ability to withdraw a residence permit, or refuse to issue one, when there was a reasonable belief that a couple had undergone a marriage of convenience. The ICI is unaware of any instance where the Government has withdrawn a person’s residence permit on the grounds that they underwent a marriage of convenience.

Previous policies the Government has introduced reportedly to combat marriages of convenience have affected all non-EU citizens applying for residence on the basis of their relationship with an EU citizen and have found to be unlawful. The ICI believes the Government has the authority to deal with the issue but must do so in a way that is fair and proportionate and subject to procedural safeguards. The EU has issued guidelines on dealing with marriages of convenience which could help achieve this.

High Court reaffirms job market access rights of non-EU citizen partners of EU citizens
The Government is currently reviewing the policy it introduced on June 1 which denied the non-EU citizen family members of EU citizens the right to work while their applications for a residence permit were processed. This follows a High Court Judge’s order late last month making clear that these migrants have the right to work.

The ICI believes it is a great shame that migrants were unnecessarily caused anxiety, job insecurity and hardship as a result of the Government’s policy and that the matter had to be taken to court. The ICI wrote to the Minister for Justice and Law Reform when the policy was announced in May, expressing the view that it was illegal and would inevitably lead to costly court challenges.

The Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service website now confirms that migrants applying for a residence permit on the basis that they are the family member of EU citizen will be issued with a Stamp 4 (permission granting access to the labour market) while their application is processed. It routinely takes six months to process these applications. For more information, please contact Senior Solicitor Catherine Cosgrave – This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Government Immigration advice phone line closed
The Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) telephone service 01 616 7700 is currently closed. Callers to the service hear an automated message advising them that INIS is unable to provide immigration, citizenship or visa helpline services at present.

Callers are advised by INIS that if they have an urgent query they must submit it in writing. The ICI will raise the issue at the next meeting of the Immigration Information Network, which is attended by a number of NGOs, INIS and the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB).

Seminar to examine immigration Bills in Arizona and Ireland
The ICI will host a briefing about the controversial new immigration Bill in Arizona and Ireland’s recently published Immigration, Residence and Protection (IRP) Bill, 2010 at the Carmelite Centre, Whitefriar Street, Dublin 2 on Monday September 6. The event is designed to inform people about the Arizona Senate Bill 1070 and its implications for ethnic profiling, as well as the ICI’s assessment of the IRP Bill.

The speakers at the event will be Karen Tumlin, Managing Attorney at the National Immigration Law Center in Los Angeles, who will be undertaking a professional exchange with the ICI, and Hilkka Becker, Senior Solicitor at the ICI. The project is part of the “Transatlantic Forum on Migration and Integration” and was made possible by support from the Robert Bosch Stiftung and the German Marshall Fund of the United States. For more information, or to attend the briefing, please contact Personal Assistant to the CEO, Ailbhe Bennett on 01 674 0202 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it by Monday August 30.

Mothers and Daughters Lunch tickets selling quickly
Tickets are selling quickly for the ICI’s popular “Mothers and Daughters Lunch”. The ICI will hold our annual fundraising lunch on September 17 at the Royal Marine Hotel, Dún Laoghaire to raise crucial funds for our anti-trafficking work. The event will provide an opportunity to celebrate and spend quality time with the wonderful women in our lives while also supporting the ICI’s work with victims of trafficking and in advocating for reforms to the way Ireland responds to the needs of women and girls who are trafficked into the Irish sex industry.

To ensure you don’t miss out on the opportunity to bring your mother or daughter(s) to this special event, call Ekaterina or Jake on 01 645 8160 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it to book your tickets. Places are limited so early booking is advised. Tickets cost €100 for lunch, entertainment, prizes and goody bags!

Citizenship, gender equality and multiculturalism issues to feature at Cork conference
Senior Solicitor Catherine Cosgrave will deliver a presentation on the current legislative and administrative arrangements governing citizenship applications in Ireland at a one-day international conference at University College Cork next month. On the basis of case studies, her presentation will explore some of the issues faced by migrants and their families during the application process, as well the impacts of decisions to grant or refuse citizenship.

The conference, on September 10, will examine the themes of gender equality, citizenship and multiculturalism in contemporary Europe and will feature speakers from Ireland, the UK, Canada, the US and the Netherlands. Professor Anne Phillips of the London School of Economics, who works in the area of political and gender theory, will be the keynote speaker. For more information about the conference please see: http://conferencing.ucc.ie/conference/conference.php?id=70