Asylum

Over 20 years of documents relating to the Direct Provision system have been published for the first time by a legal academic as part of a new project exploring how the system emerged and developed. Dr Liam Thornton, a lecturer at UCD Sutherland School of Law, was awarded UCD Seed Funding for his "E

The Supreme Court has agreed to hear an appeal from the State over the definition of "child" in the International Protection Act 2015. Mr Justice Max Barrett ruled in May 2018 that the legal guardian of a child who is not their biological or adopted child is eligible for family unification.

The implications of Brexit for asylum policy and for vulnerable refugees and asylum seekers in Europe have been highlighted in a new Lords committee report. The most significant implication of UK withdrawal from the EU’s Dublin System – which determines responsibility for asylum applicat

Nearly 2,000 asylum seekers in Ireland were granted permission to work last year under a new system introduced after a landmark Supreme Court ruling. The new regime for asylum seekers to access the labour market was introduced last June when the absolute prohibition on employment was ruled unconstit

The Ombudsman, Peter Tyndall, has called for his remit to be extended to include how asylum applications are assessed by the Minister for Justice. Mr Tyndall appeared before the Oireachtas joint committee on justice and equality this morning to discuss the Direct Provision system.

German academic Dr Nina C. Leuck has been awarded funding from the European Commission to carry out research at UCD Sutherland School of Law on refugee education. Dr Leuck, who has lectured at UCL Laws in London for the past four years, will work with Professor Oonagh Breen during her two-year proje

Leaving the European Union means the loss of a safe, legal route for the reunification of separated refugee families in Europe, a House of Lords committee has told the UK government. The House of Lords EU Home Affairs Sub-Committee has written to Home Secretary Priti Patel to share key fin

A man seeking asylum in the UK from a country where homosexuality is illegal was rejected by an immigration judge because he did not have a gay "demeanour", a barrister has said. English barrister Rehana Popal said the judge had "taken a stereotype, used it as a benchmark and compared my client to i

The Government has set out the national standards for asylum seeker accommodation and reception centres in Ireland following engagement with the UN and various NGOs. Minister David Stanton, who convened an advisory group including UNHCR Ireland and NGO representatives, said the new standards would i

Ireland is in breach of EU law and is not fulfiling its obligations to asylum seekers under a directive which became legally binding a year ago, a new report has warned. The Irish Refugee Council (IRC) analysed Ireland's implementation of the EU Reception Conditions Directive, which the Government o

The State is failing to meet its international legal obligations by not carrying out vulnerability assessments of asylum seekers, the Irish Refugee Council (IRC) has warned. Nick Henderson, IRC chief executive, told RTÉ's This Week programme that such assessments are a "major feature" of the

Home Office rules on determining if asylum seekers are younger than 18 are unlawful, senior judges have ruled. The Court of Appeal has supported a claim made by an Eritrean man, who sought asylum in 2014, The Times reports.

Two people who came to Ireland as refugees but subsequently naturalised as Irish citizens have failed in their court bid to access the family reunification scheme. Ms Justice Marie Baker, sitting in the Court of Appeal, today handed down judgment in the test cases ‘MAM’ and ‘KN&rsq

The head of Ireland's International Protection Office (IPO) has been elected to chair the management board of the European Asylum Support Office (EASO). David Costello, deputy chair of the management board since 2015, will take up the new post for a three-year term.

A hotel which was earmarked as a possible Direct Provision centre has been subjected to an arson attack for the second time in five weeks. Repairs to the Shannon Key West Hotel in Rooskey, which was attacked last month, had just been completed when it was set on fire again last night.