ESRI RESEARCH SERIES ESTABLISHING IDENTITY OF NUMBER 69 DECEMBER 2017 NON-EU NATIONALS IN IRISH MIGRATION PROCESSES SAMANTHA ARNOLD, MARTINA BYRNE AND ANNE SHERIDAN FO NCE R PO DE LI VI C E Y EMN Ireland is co-funded by the European Union and the Department of Justice and Equality. ESTABLISHING IDENTITY OF NON-EU NATIONALS IN IRISH MIGRATION PROCESSES Samantha Arnold Martina Byrne Anne Sheridan December 2017 RESEARCH SERIES NUMBER 69 Study completed by the Irish National Contact Point of the European Migration Network (EMN) which is financially supported by the European Union and the Irish Department of Justice and Equality. The EMN has been established via Council Decision 2008/381/EC. Available to download from www.emn.ie The Economic and Social Research Institute Whitaker Square, Sir John Rogerson’s Quay, Dublin 2 ISBN 978-0-7070-0446-4 DOI https://doi.org/10.26504/rs69 This Open Access work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited. THE EUROPEAN MIGRATION NETWORK The aim of the European Migration Network (EMN) is to provide up-to-date, objective, reliable and comparable information on migration and asylum at Member State and EU levels with a view to supporting policymaking and informing the general public. The Irish National Contact Point of the European Migration Network, EMN Ireland, sits within the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI). ABOUT THE ESRI The mission of the Economic and Social Research Institute is to advance evidence- based policymaking that supports economic sustainability and social progress in Ireland. ESRI researchers apply the highest standards of academic excellence to challenges facing policymakers, focusing on 12 areas of critical importance to 21st Century Ireland. The Institute was founded in 1960 by a group of senior civil servants led by Dr T.K. Whitaker, who identified the need for independent and in-depth research analysis to provide a robust evidence base for policymaking in Ireland. Since then, the Institute has remained committed to independent research and its work is free of any expressed ideology or political position. The Institute publishes all research reaching the appropriate academic standard, irrespective of its findings or who funds the research. The quality of its research output is guaranteed by a rigorous peer review process. ESRI researchers are experts in their fields and are committed to producing work that meets the highest academic standards and practices. The work of the Institute is disseminated widely in books, journal articles and reports. ESRI publications are available to download, free of charge, from its website. Additionally, ESRI staff communicate research findings at regular conferences and seminars. The ESRI is a company limited by guarantee, answerable to its members and governed by a Council, comprising 14 members who represent a cross-section of ESRI members from academia, civil services, state agencies, businesses and civil society. The Institute receives an annual grant-in-aid from the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform to support the scientific and public interest elements of the Institute’s activities; the grant accounted for an average of 30 per cent of the Institute’s income over the lifetime of the last Research Strategy. The remaining funding comes from research programmes supported by government departments and agencies, public bodies and competitive research programmes. Further information is available at www.esri.ie. THE AUTHORS Samantha is a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at the Irish National Contact Point of the European Migration Network (EMN), within the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI). Martina Byrne was a Research Assistant at the EMN. Anne Sheridan is Senior Policy Officer at the EMN. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS In compiling this study valuable assistance was received from officials of INIS, the Garda Technical Bureau and the International Protection Office. Thanks are also due to representatives of the Immigrant Council of Ireland. We also acknowledge the useful comments and suggestions received from our EMN intern, Conor Ryan, the EMN Ireland legal consultant and the referees. Thanks are also due to Emma Quinn, Head of the Irish National Contact Point of the EMN for comments and guidance. Finally, thanks are also due to our colleagues Elaine Byrne and Sarah Burns at the ESRI. We are grateful to everyone who shared their expertise with us for the purpose of writing this study. ABOUT THIS REPORT This European Migration Network study looks at the processes in place for establishing the identities of applicants for: short- and long-stay visas, residence and visitor permissions; international protection and permission to remain; and in relation to persons subject to a deportation order who have exhausted the asylum process. This study also looks at the process of establishing applicants’ identities at the point of access to the national territory. The report consists of information gathered by way of a common template, primarily for an overview, EU-level synthesis report, Challenges and practices for establishing applicants’ identity in the migration process. This report has been accepted for publication by the Institute, which does not itself take institutional policy positions. All ESRI Research Series reports are peer reviewed prior to publication. The authors are solely responsible for the content and the views expressed and do not represent the position of the Economic and Social Research Institute, the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service, the Department of Justice and Equality, or the European Commission, Directorate-General Migration and Home Affairs. Table of contents | iii TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................... VII SECTION 1 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Objectives and background to the study ............................................................... 1 1.2 EU Context .............................................................................................................. 2 1.3 Irish policy context ................................................................................................. 4 1.4 Methodology .......................................................................................................... 9 SECTION 2 ESTABLISHING IDENTITY OF NON-EEA NATIONALS IN MIGRATION PROCEDURES ........... 13 2.1 Introduction .......................................................................................................... 13 2.2 Organisation of responsible authorities ............................................................... 13 2.3 Documentation requirements .............................................................................. 15 2.4 Visa applications process: short- and long-stay visas........................................... 19 2.5 On arrival to Ireland: border control and the registration process...................... 23 2.6 International protection ....................................................................................... 28 2.7 Forced returns ...................................................................................................... 31 SECTION 3 DATA PROTECTION SAFEGUARDS ..................................................................................... 33 3.1 Introduction .......................................................................................................... 33 3.2 Data Sharing – Legal framework .......................................................................... 33 3.3 National data protection supervision – Eurodac .................................................. 36 3.4 Data protection inspections and audits ............................................................... 36 3.5 Complaints and legal challenges .......................................................................... 37 SECTION 4 CONCLUSIONS ................................................................................................................... 39 4.1 Documentation and biometric information ......................................................... 40 4.2 Legislation and policy reform ............................................................................... 40 4.3 Data sharing and protection ................................................................................. 41 4.4 Challenges ............................................................................................................ 42 ANNEX A REFERENCE LIST ................................................................................................................. 47 iv | Establishing identity of non-EU nationals in Irish migration processes LIST OF TABLES Table 1 Information and documentation to be furnished by non-EEA nationals at time of registration with GNIB/INIS ............................................................................................ 26 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1 Total number of visas applied for and refused in embassies or consulates in third countries, 2012-2016 ........................................................................................................ 7 Figure 2 First residence permits issued, by reason, per year, EU28, 2012-2015 ..........................