The Irish passport office suspended the processing of Irish passport applications at the end of December 2020 when Ireland entered Level 5 Restrictions due to the Covid-19 pandemic. They have recently resumed processing activities, with up to 80,000 applications in the processing que to be dealt with.
Applicants who are experiencing delays in the processing of their Irish passport application may be entitled to take High Court proceedings to expedite the processing of their passport application.
Article 4(3) of European Council Directive 2004/38/EC places a duty on the Irish State, as a matter of EU law, to issue, and renew, Irish passports to Irish citizens. This duty is subject to the right to good administration arising as a general principle of EU law. An unreasonable delay in issuing or renewing an Irish passport can be a breach of that general principle and contrary to Article 4(3) of Directive 2004/38/EC taken together with that general principle.
In addition, this type of unreasonable delay can be in breach of the right under the Constitution of Ireland to have a decision on a passport application taken in accordance with natural justice and constitutional fairness of procedures, which demand that the decision is taken within a reasonable period.
If you are experiencing a delay in the processing of your Irish passport application, do not hesitate to contact our immigration department in Cork or Dublin today on 014062862/0212028080 or info@sinnott.ie to discuss the matter further.
