merrion street

To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Defence to outline the

government's plans to reform the visa arrangements for Chinese nationals

visiting Ireland to make our education and tourism sectors more

internationally competitive and to address the concerns of Chinese-born

Irish citizens regarding the red tape that their relations must go through

to secure visas to visit them here which is far more cumbersome than the

arrangements that apply in the United Kingdom.

Senator Averil Power

Response by Minister of State Dinny McGinley on behalf of Minister for

Justice, Equality and Defence Alan Shatter T.D.

I am grateful to Senator Power for raising this issue to give an

opportunity for me, on behalf of the Minister for Justice, Equality and

Defence, to outline the numerous positive developments that have taken

place in relation to the Irish visa regime since this Government came into

power and, in particular, those developments in relation to China.

The commitment of this Government to the facilitation and growth of visits

to Ireland from China is shown by the fact that Irish Naturalisation and

Immigration Service of the Department maintains a dedicated Visa Office in

Beijing. In general business visas are processed within two to five

working days of receipt and visit visa applications for Chinese nationals

within one to three weeks. It should also be noted that the approval rate

for visa applications lodged in China for travel to Ireland is 95% which

compares very favourably internationally. Application guidelines for all

visa categories are published on the Irish Embassy website in English and

Chinese. Applications for visas for Ireland are made online on a

user-friendly web-based form. This is in contrast to many visa regimes

which require the completion of lengthy paper application forms.

There is no evidence that the visa process is a barrier to tourist,

business or family visits from China to Ireland. In fact, the latest

report of the European Tour Operators Association which examined the effect

of visa obligations on tourists from India and China (covering the year

2010) showed that the figure for cancellations due to perceived visa delays

reflected very favourably on Ireland with only 15% of clients reporting

cancellations as against 21% for the Schengen area and 24% for the United

Kingdom.

This demonstrates that Ireland is not at a disadvantage to its main

competitors due to any issue with perceived delays in visa processing. The

Minister is advised that the checking procedures and processes in place are

at least on a par with the UK with whom we share a common immigration area

and less onerous than those in place for many other EU member states. Of

far greater impact on both tourism and business visits is the lack of a

direct air link between the two countries. If the Senator has a particular

case in mind or has suggestions which would further improve the situation

while at the same time maintaining sensible immigration checks, the

Minister would of course be glad to receive them form her.

The Minister launched the Short-stay Visa Waiver Programme, the first of

programme of its kind in the history of the State, on 1 July 2011. This

allows visitors or business people, including those from China, who have

lawfully entered the UK, including Northern Ireland, on a valid UK visa, to

travel on to Ireland without the requirement to obtain an Irish visa. CSO

figures for the numbers of trips by Chinese nationals to Ireland show that

there was a 24% increase in the twelve months following the introduction of

the Waiver Programme compared to the twelve months before. This

demonstrates a real positive impact of the Government’s initiative.

With effect from 1 August, 2012, a more liberal multi-entry visa regime for

business travellers and other visitors was implemented in the Irish Visa

Office in Beijing. This regime has been extended to regular family visitors

with a good immigration history. The Minister has asked his officials to

examine how this regime could be further developed.

In recognition of the growing number of affluent and independent tourists

from China, a scheme to enable independent Chinese travellers to come to

Ireland was introduced in November 2011. The category was formally launched

by An Taoiseach Enda Kenny during the course of his official visit to China

in April 2012. The visa application requirements for independent tourists

are minimal and I am informed that Tourism Ireland has welcomed this

initiative. This category of visa application is processed within 10

working days.

In relation to Chinese nationals visiting Ireland for study purposes, in

2012 a pilot programme in respect of English Language study was developed

jointly between the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS)

and Marketing English in Ireland (MEI), the umbrella body for English

language schools, for the Chinese market.

This programme seeks to target high quality, motivated English language

students and aims to develop the market in a sustainable way. The programme

is designed to significantly contribute to the development of Ireland’s

reputation as a premier destination for Chinese students to achieve a high

standard in English language education. The programmes are at an early

stage and it is important that they be given sufficient time to grow and

develop before a final review is undertaken. However, progress under these

programmes is reviewed on an ongoing basis.

Of course, all of these positive developments must be balanced against

protecting the country's vital national interests by maintaining an

effective immigration regime which is a feature of all visa regimes

worldwide. All visa applications must be assessed carefully to determine,

as far as possible, that the applicants will abide by the conditions of

their visa and will not become a burden on the State. These concerns apply

most pertinently in cases where elderly relatives are seeking to visit

their relations in Ireland which is a common feature of visa applications

from China. Such applications are not straightforward and present issues

which all countries must address. Nevertheless, the 95% approval rate for

visa applications from China demonstrates that the checks and safeguards in

place, in the long run, allow for the vast majority of persons seeking to

visit their relatives to do so.

4 July 2013