For many people with an Irish-born great-grandparent, citizenship by association may appear to offer a pathway to Irish citizenship.
On paper, this route exists and is available through the Department of Justice for applicants who can demonstrate Irish descent and a meaningful connection to Ireland. Unfortunatly, from our own experience working with clients and families, the reality of the process is often far more difficult, slow, and frustrating than most people expect.
An Available Route — But Not a Straightforward One
Citizenship by association is often explored by people whose great-grandparent was born in Ireland, but who do not qualify through the more straightforward Foreign Births Register route, which generally applies only up to the grandparent level.
In these cases, an application can be made under Irish descent or association through the Minister’s discretionary naturalisation powers. While this route is legally available, the process itself can be extremely cumbersome.
A Lack of Communication
One of the most difficult aspects of this application process is the lack of accessible communication channels. In our experience, there is often no clear point of contact or named case officer available to discuss these concerns directly. For people and families investing time, money, and emotion into the process, this can be deeply frustrating. It is also frustrating from our point of view because we are unable to provide definite answers, or even approximate answers, to many of these questions.
No Clear Feedback After Submission
Another major issue is what happens after the application form is submitted. As with any other civil service section one should expect some kind of feedback, updates, acknowledgements, or requests for further evidence. We at Oak Ancestry have quite a close working relationship with some of the GRO offices in Ireland who handle many record requests for us. However this is mainly due to the fact that there is a specific office and contact who can handle and process requests for records. If you want to apply for Irish citizenship through a grandparent, that process is well outlined with great feedback and processing times.
It appears however that the Citizenship by Association process has not assigned any key people to handle this. It can often feel as though the application disappears into a system with very little visibility. The absence of meaningful feedback can make an already difficult process even more stressful.
This is a shame because there is a clear desire among many in the Irish diaspora for wanting a closer connection to Ireland with the option of moving here to work and live and become an Irish citizen. There are not many countries in the world where this is the case. So many people want to apply for Irish citizenship through descent by a grandparent, or in this case, by association because of this inter-generational connection to Ireland. While Irish citizenship by descent is very well managed by the Irish government, the second option is less so.
A Balanced Perspective
At Oak Ancestry, we believe in being honest about the realities of the citizenship by association process. Our intention is not to deter anyone from applying. Rather, we feel it is important that families begin the process with realistic expectations around documentation, communication, and waiting times.
I wish the process of applying for citizenship by association were far more clear-cut. Those with Irish heritage should not be taken for granted or teased with the promise of such a meaningful and wonderful gift, only to be left facing uncertainty and disappointment.
Ultimately, all we can do is continue to put pressure on the department handling these requests and hope that, eventually, our persistence will pay off.
