Asylum

Children and families in direct provision are being failed due to a lack of sufficiently robust oversight mechanisms and a "culture of fear" around raising complaints, the Ombudsman for Children's Office (OCO) has said. Launching the report, ombudsman Dr Niall Muldoon said government plans to bring

Asylum seekers can now open a bank account with Bank of Ireland following an intervention by the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission. The rights watchdog exercised its statutory powers through a formal process called an equality review, which has led to a change in the bank's policies.

The Home Office has come under fire after confirming plans to send asylum seekers to live in "squalor and inhumane conditions" at a former military site. The Napier Barracks site in Kent, run by private contractor Clearsprings Ready Homes, was the centre of controversy earlier this year after nearly

Plans to phase out the direct provision system of accommodation for asylum seekers by 2024 have been set out by the government in a white paper published this morning. Children's Minister Roderic O'Gorman, whose portfolio includes the direct provision system, said the new system will be run "on a no

Ireland's human rights watchdog has been granted permission to act as amicus curiae in a case concerning the National Driving Licence Service’s (NDLS) refusal to permit asylum seekers to exchange their foreign driving licences for Irish ones. The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission has

A long-awaited white paper setting out the government's plans to replace the widely-criticised direct provision system for asylum seekers will be published next week. Integration Minister Roderic O'Gorman originally promised to publish the white paper by the end of 2020, but told a conference on Tue

Asylum seekers will be able to seek work in Ireland six months after making their application for international protection under new rules announced today. Applicants previously had to wait nine months to apply for permission to work. They will now be able to apply after six months and their permiss

A non-binary person from El Salvador has been granted asylum in the UK in a first-of-its-kind ruling. Arthur Britney Joestar, 29, identified as a gay man when they arrived in the UK in October 2017 but came to identify as non-binary – i.e. neither a man nor a woman – after settling in Li

The widely-criticised direct provision system for asylum seekers in Ireland should be brought to an end by 2023, a major report has recommended. Dr Catherine Day, former secretary-general of the European Commission, was appointed last October to chair an advisory group on the "provision of support,

Restrictions on asylum seekers' access to the labour market in Ireland are set to be eased under new legislation, Justice Minister Helen McEntee has announced. The Department of Justice recently completed a review of the regime introduced in 2018 after the Supreme Court struck down the unconstitutio

In an international protection appeal, the Supreme Court has held that there is no express right to enter the State for the purposes of making an application, save where the person is at its frontiers. In her judgment, Ms Justice Marie Baker also criticised remarks made by Mr Justice Richard Humphre

The Legal Aid Board has denied claims that cuts to fees for solicitors advising international protection applicants will impact access to justice for a vulnerable group of people. An immigration solicitor told Irish Legal News last week that the new fee structure for the International Protection Sol

Fresh cuts to legal aid for international protection applications will further limit access to justice for vulnerable people, lawyers have warned. The new legal aid scheme includes dramatic cuts, such as reducing the fee for preparing submissions for an application by 58 per cent from €730 to &

The Home Office has been roundly condemned by lawyers across the UK for attacking the integrity of the legal profession and undermining the rule of law after releasing a video accusing "activist lawyers" of delaying deportations. The video, which was posted on the Home Office's Twitter page but late

The High Court in Belfast has quashed the Home Secretary's decision not to allow a Somalian man to make a fresh asylum application nearly 15 years after absconding during the asylum process. Omaar Ismail fled from Somalia in 2002 and claimed asylum in the UK shortly after arriving in London in early