Panic amongst migrant workers
“It's very sad to see people whose parents are very sick and they want to visit them for the last time but they can't.”
Those were the words of Cork-based INMO member and migrant worker representative Janet Baby Joseph who is calling for immediate action from the Government to address the ongoing Irish Residence Permit (IRP) renewal backlog.
“The Department (of Justice) is well aware that there is a backlog, but they are not giving a right response,” said Ms Joseph.
“People are being removed from their work,” she added.
The IRP is a mandatory certificate for all non-EU people wishing to live and work in Ireland. It also allows migrants to travel freely in and out of the country. The earliest a person can apply for an IRP renewal is 12 weeks before it expires.
However, due to delays in the automated process, renewals are taking far longer than 12 weeks, meaning applicants are at risk of losing their jobs.
The process was previously managed in-person by An Garda Síochána before transitioning to a fully online system managed by the Department of Justice in 2025. Though this move was intended to modernise the process, it has resulted in severe delays.
Ms Joseph said a lack of communication from the Department of Justice has caused extreme distress to people in Cork who have been left in limbo by the delays. In light of the backlog, the department issued an extension whereby people could still travel with their expired IRP card, however, that extension ended on 28 February.
“Unfortunately, there’s no email address or phone number to contact the department to find out what’s going on,” said Ms Joseph.
“I don’t understand, when it’s online, why should it take so much time? Because all your details are in.
“When you do the online application, all the documents are uploaded straight away, the payment is online, so they get the money straight away, so what’s the reason for the delay?” she added.
Jincy Shinoj, an Indian health care assistant living in Cork, said the delay has had a severe emotional impact on her and has prevented her from seeing her children.
She said: “I have not been able to travel to my hometown, and I deeply miss my children and family. Being away from them for such a long time without clarity on when I can travel, has been very stressful. For those of us living away from our families, the IRP card is extremely important, especially in case of emergencies back home.
“At the moment, I feel quite stuck and helpless due to the delay. I kindly request the Government and the Department of Justice to consider finding effective solutions to address these delays,” added Ms Shinoj.
Fellow Indian national, Satish Bala, an admin worker at a Cork hospital, has had his mortgage for his new home withheld due to him not having a valid IRP. His landlord is now pushing him and his family out of their current rented property.
Mr Bala said: “We sent a query on this ten days ago but we have no reply from them, and if we call the call centre, they are very rude on the call.
“This has affected me and my family emotionally and made us panic about our mortgage approval. We are panicking until either they approve my mortgage, or they ask us to start the mortgage process again in future after the IRP renewal.
“We started our mortgage process last March and it’s March again and we need to wait another three months. It’s exhausting,” he added.
The Cork Independent reached out to the Department of Justice for a statement on this issue, but none was received by time of going to print.