I want to introduce Benjamin. He travelled to Ireland from his west African country of birth with his mother and siblings when he was five. He travelled legally on his mother’s passport and so never held his own passport from his country of birth.
Benjamin first became aware of his immigration status at the age of 14 when he was taken into the care of the State. But it was the day he turned 18 that everything changed.
Because he had major difficulties sourcing official identity documentation from his birth country, he started facing barriers at every turn. He couldn’t get an age card so couldn’t socialise with friends. He was forced to drop out of third-level education because he lacked an “official identity”, he couldn’t get a job or open a bank account. He ultimately became undocumented while living in the only country he had ever known as home.
Unfortunately we know Benjamin is far from the only young person facing these challenges. From our many years of experience providing direct support to migrants and their families, we are all too aware that the lack of clarity or consistency in immigration processes for young people, and the large number of young people it was affecting, was a serious, systematic issue that needed proper investigation.
International comparisons
This investigation took the form of a year-long project; including conversations with 32 young migrants plus consultation with more than 180 professionals including social workers, guardians ad litem and aftercare workers, alongside extensive research into Ireland’s immigration system and international comparisons.
This culminated in the recent publication of a new report, The Experiences of Migrant Children in Ireland. The report comprehensively reveals how Ireland's immigration system fails to consider the individual rights and needs of children, and how this is having a devastating impact on the lives of too many migrant children such as Benjamin in Ireland.
In the process of preparing this report we documented how children are largely invisible in Ireland’s immigration system. One significant problem is that until a child is 16, they are assumed to have the same immigration permission as their parent, but cannot access confirmation of this position.
In the majority of cases, they literally have nothing to prove the right to live in Ireland; no letter from the State, no identity card, no official proof. Furthermore, there is no legislation or guidance on what the appropriate permissions are which should be granted to children. This lack of clarity results in inconsistency in the immigration permissions granted when they turn 16 – even in seemingly identical circumstances.
Immigration status
Our research also details how children in State care are at a particular disadvantage because they do not live with their parents on whom their immigration permission is dependent.
In the absence of a tailored permission not only does the young person lack certainty about their immigration status, but social workers and others also are operating in a near complete vacuum.
Consider the difficulties faced by any child or young person in care, then add to that labyrinthine, unclear and often incomprehensible layers of immigration issues and you will begin to understand the additional barriers and disadvantages young people from a migrant background will face.
In these circumstances simple ambitions such as studying, going to college, or simply working to support themselves once they turn 18 become distant and often unattainable.
Central to these issues is the fact it is very difficult for children to easily access information or specialised legal advice about their immigration status. Too often they and those around them are unaware that immigration issues need to be dealt with, of their duty to register with Garda National Immigration Bureau at 16, or their eligibility to become an Irish citizen.
This lack of a systemic approach has far-reaching consequences. As part of our research we also spoke with Aoife, who was born overseas and had one Irish parent, and was therefore entitled to Irish citizenship.
However, because her birth was never officially registered as a “foreign birth” she did not realise there was any issue until she turned 18 and faced a bureaucratic nightmare.
Now, aged 20, Aoife is still waiting for documents to be provided from her birth country so she can finally apply to the foreign births registry to become an Irish citizen. The lack of knowledge and delay in Aoife registering to become an Irish citizen has meant she has had to put her life on hold; she cannot access third-level education because, as she is currently considered to be an “international student”, it is far too expensive. She has also faced problems getting a job or accessing social welfare payments. She is in limbo, lost in the system and unable to progress in any direction.
Major barrier
It is clear Ireland’s immigration system needs an overhaul so it can more effectively, efficiently and fairly meet the needs of migrant children and young people, as well as those of adults.
With lack of clear, appropriate and timely information being a major barrier the first and most important step would be to establish a specific agency or contact point that will take responsibility for providing information on immigration to children, their parents and associated support services.
There is also a clear need for a comprehensive, child-sensitive, transparent legal framework for immigration that includes clear, accessible and fair formal procedures for conferring immigration status on children and their families.
Lastly, in recognition of the particular challenges faced by migrant children and young people in State care, the legislation should grant children who are subject to care orders permission to reside that enables access to jobs (from when they are of legal age to work) and access to social welfare, housing and financial support for education on the same basis as Irish citizens.
Happily, after a long road, Benjamin recently became a naturalised Irish citizen. But such cases do not always have a happy ending. As we set our sights towards welcoming more migrant children into Ireland it is essential we develop an immigration system that works for everyone.
These young people are part of our shared future as a country, and we must do everything we can to ensure they reach their potential. Brian Killoran is chief executive officer of the Immigrant Council of Ireland