Irish Citizenship Refusal Reasons

How Is ‘Good Character’ Defined?

Broadly speaking, being of ‘good character’ involves being law-abiding and meeting reasonable standards of civic responsibility. The courts have described this as following “reasonable standards of civic responsibility as gauged by reference to contemporary values”. Applicants are not expected to meet an unrealistically high standard of behaviour compared with Irish citizens.

There is no exhaustive legal definition or checklist that guarantees an application will succeed. However, ISD provides guidance on the information considered, and court decisions establish principles governing how the assessment must be conducted.

The Minister for Justice has broad statutory discretion when approving or refusing applications, but must exercise that discretion fairly, consider relevant information and take account of the applicant’s individual circumstances.

When Can Good Character Lead to Refusal?

Reasons for refusal vary from case to case. Even minor road traffic offences may be considered, but they do not automatically disqualify you. Their seriousness, age, any pattern of offending and mitigating circumstances all matter. In Talla v Minister for Justice and Equality, the Court of Appeal quashed a refusal because relevant considerations and explanations had not been adequately addressed.

Older reports involving parking offences, social welfare or contact with Gardaí should not be treated as automatic grounds for refusal. Lawfully receiving benefits is distinct from obtaining them through fraud or misrepresentation.

If refused, you should receive reasons. There is no standard administrative appeal, but you may reapply or seek judicial review where the decision may be unlawful or procedurally unfair. For advice on a past incident or refusal, call +353 (0) 61 518 025 or contact us online.

How Do the Authorities Check Good Character?

You are asked to provide information about your background to help process your citizenship application. ISD considers your answers alongside information supplied by An Garda Síochána and other relevant checks.

Adult applicants living in the Republic of Ireland are normally invited to complete Garda e-vetting during the application process. Applicants residing outside the Republic must provide a police clearance certificate from the relevant law-enforcement authority. Additional overseas police reports or supporting information may be required depending on your circumstances.

Information considered may include:

• Your criminal record, including convictions abroad.
• Driving offences you may have committed.
• Any ongoing investigations against you.
• Pending criminal cases.
• Cautions or other warnings you have received from Gardaí.
• Relevant civil court proceedings.
• Adverse immigration history.

A clear police check does not, by itself, guarantee that you satisfy the broader good character requirement.

What Should You Disclose and Explain?

You must answer the application questions fully and truthfully. Do not assume that a matter is irrelevant simply because it was minor, happened many years ago or did not result in a conviction. Equally, an investigation or allegation should be accurately described as such, rather than presented as a finding of guilt. You are given the opportunity to explain the circumstances that led to Garda or court action, including any extenuating circumstances. Where relevant, provide:

• The date and nature of the incident.
• Whether it resulted in a warning, charge, conviction, acquittal or another outcome.
• Any sentence or penalty imposed and whether it was completed.
• Relevant court documents or evidence correcting an inaccurate record.
• An explanation of mitigating circumstances and subsequent conduct.

The Minister must consider relevant explanations when assessing your character. Omitting requested information or providing misleading answers can create a separate issue, even where the original incident was relatively minor. Knowingly giving false or misleading information in a citizenship application can also constitute a criminal offence.

Overview of the ‘Reckonable Residence’ Criteria

Alongside the ‘good character’ requirement, not fulfilling the criteria for continuous, reckonable residence is one of the most common reasons why citizenship applications in Ireland are refused.

The specific guidelines state that all applicants must:

• Have a period of 365 days (1 year) continuous reckonable residence in the State immediately before the date of application for naturalisation, and
• During the 8 years before that, have had a total reckonable residence in the State of 1,460 days (4 years)

However, the specific meaning of the one year’s continuous, reckonable residence in the State has also led to ambiguity in the past.

Why Do Ambiguities Regarding the ‘Reckonable Residence’ Criteria Exist?

In 2019, a court ruling confirmed that the rule doesn’t actually require applicants to spend every single night on Irish soil for a year, as some interpretations of the rule would suggest.

Instead, a spokesperson from the Department of Justice stated that “it has long been recognised that many people may travel abroad for a holiday, or may have some unexpected or unavoidable reason to travel abroad…A period of up to six weeks for travel purposes outside of the State is currently permitted without impacting on the citizenship application.”

Despite this, the specific details of these exceptions have not yet been made into law, and may still cause ambiguity or uncertainty in the application approval process.

You may have have taken a holiday abroad or left Ireland for a short period of time because you thought you were able to do so without breaking your continuous residency. However, your citizenship application may still be refused because the exceptions mentioned aren’t set in stone and the Minister may argue that you have broken your continuous residency.

If you’re having difficulty recognising if you fulfil the residency requirement of your Irish citizenship application, it’s best to seek advice so you know where you stand when it comes to the review process. Speak to one of our legal advisors on +353 (0) 61 518 025, or contact us online today.

Overview of Irish Citizenship Through Ascent, and Waivers

If you’re looking to obtain citizenship through Irish associations by ascent, you may be eligible to have certain requirements waived, such as the requirement for continuous residency.

Association by ascent is when an applicant has Irish links through having siblings who are Irish citizens, or being a parent of an Irish citizen child.

However, the guidelines state that requirements may be waived only if there are ‘exceptional and compelling reasons’ to be considered.

However, similar to the ‘good character’ requirement, there aren’t any official definitions or guidelines of what ‘exceptional’ or ‘compelling’ evidence means.

In addition to this, what is considered to be ‘Irish association’ is unclear, and may be inconsistently applied across different citizenship application cases.

This has led to people being refused citizenship even if they’ve spent a significant portion of their lives in Ireland and who have Irish citizen siblings. The reasons for refusal given in these cases are that the evidence of Irish association is not ‘compelling’ enough.

Why Have Applications for Citizenship Been Refused in the Past?

People have previously been refused Irish citizenship because they haven’t been able to get certain requirements waived.

Despite the fact that these applicants have lived in Ireland for a significant portion of their lives, speak the Irish language and have Irish siblings, the Minister for Justice has stated that evidence such as this was not compelling enough to waive the continuous residency requirements, and therefore refused to grant citizenship.

In these cases, the Minister cast doubts on the strength of Irish association, despite the applicants arguing that the Irish link was clearly strong.

What ‘compelling and exceptional’ evidence mean is still unclear, which means that applicants should be aware of the potential for refusal if the Minister doesn’t consider citizenship cases to fit the criteria, such as in the example outlined above.

For more information about the options you may have to obtain Irish citizenship by association, and for expert advice on how to apply, reach out to our legal advisers today on +353 (0) 61 518 025, or contact us online.