Press release
Minister Flanagan announces continuing growth in numbers living in Ireland for work or study, and ongoing rise in tourist visa applications
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41% increase in visa applications since 2012, with a continuing growth in tourists from key emerging markets of India and China.
The Minister for Justice and Equality, Charlie Flanagan TD, today published ‘Immigration in Ireland: Annual Review 2017’. The publication includes updated statistics for all aspects of immigration in Ireland, and also identifies key policy and operational developments during 2017 as well as some areas of future focus.
The Minister emphasised the continuing growth in the number of people coming to Ireland to visit, to work and to study:
"With a strongly growing economy, and a positive international reputation, Ireland is continuing to attract record numbers of people who want to visit our country with over 125,000 visa applications received during 2017. Across the majority of visa categories, grant rates for such applications are 90%, and with direct flights from China to Ireland coming on-stream during 2018 we can expect to see continuing growth in visitors from markets such as China and India.
"The numbers of people legally living in Ireland to work, to study, or to settle here with their families have also continued to grow strongly as our economy recovers. There are now almost 128,000 people from outside the EEA who are legally living in Ireland – these are students and workers from Brazil, from India, from China, from the USA, and from many, many other countries. They are supporting the continuing economic growth of our nation, and the diversity which they add to Irish society is hugely important.
"This important publication sets out many other statistics and updates on immigration in Ireland which deserve attention – from the 8,199 new Irish citizens in 2017 to the 14.8m passengers who arrived at Dublin airport. The Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service plans to process over 250,000 immigration applications during 2018, with continuing improvements to services and technology to deliver better customer experiences, while maintaining a safe and secure immigration system."
ENDS
The annual review of immigration in Ireland provides updated statistics on all aspects of immigration, including border management, visas, registration and residence, citizenship, international protection and removals from the state.
Immigration in Ireland: Annual Review 2017 is available below:
Visas are only required for tourists travelling to Ireland from countries which are visa required. Therefore visitors from countries in the EEA, and countries such as USA, Canada and New Zealand are not captured within these statistics.