Up to 500 Afghans fleeing turmoil in the country are to be given temporary residency rights in Ireland, under plans confirmed by the Minister for Justice on Tuesday.
The Afghan Admission programme will enable current or former Afghan nationals living legally in Ireland to apply to have their close family members who are living in Afghanistan or who have recently fled to bordering territories to apply for temporary residence.
Minister for Justice Helen McEntee said she was “conscious of the plight faced by the Afghan people” since the Taliban takeover and was “delighted” to confirm the opening of the programme.
The US completed its final withdrawal from Afghanistan in August this year, 20 years after invading the country. Days after the US withdrawal, the Taliban took control of major cities and the former Afghan government collapsed, leaving many Afghans desperate to flee.
Priority under the programme will be given to those whose “freedom and safety is most at risk”, including older people, children, single female parents, single women and girls, and people with disabilities.
Priority will also be given to people whose previous employment exposes them to greater risk, for example, United Nations and European Union employees, and people who worked for civil society organisations.
Applications will open for the new programme this Thursday, for a period of eight weeks until February 10th, 2022. Afghans living in Ireland can apply for temporary residence for up to four close family members.
“A reversal of human rights, increased violence and fear of reprisals has led to a large number of displaced people seeking help,” Ms McEntee said.
It had also been “a very worrying time for the Afghan community living in Ireland as they fear for the safety of their family members in Afghanistan or displaced to neighbouring countries,” she said.
Minister of State at the Department of Justice, James Browne, said the department hoped to process applications "as quickly as possible".
“I look forward to welcoming the first family members to Ireland under the programme in the near future,” he said.
The Government plans that the sponsoring family member in Ireland would accommodate the person seeking residency. It is believed this would mean there would not be a need for new accommodation associated with the programme.
As part of the department’s response to the crisis in Afghanistan, an additional 500 places have been made available through the Irish Refugee Protection Programme for refugees from Afghanistan since August.
So far this year, 110 Afghan nationals have been granted a statutory family reunification permission under the International Protection Act 2015, and the department has issued 102 Join Family visas to Afghan citizens since August.