I wish to raise an issue around joint family visa applicants. Like so many of these issues that we get into our offices it goes from the particular to the general once one starts looking at it. A constituent got in touch with my office. He is working at University Hospital Waterford and he is well integrated into both the workforce and the wider community and wants his wife to come and join him here in Ireland. He has applied for the visa. I am advised that visa applications are processed chronologically in the order in which they are received at the respective visa offices. I did a little bit of digging in the background about where we are with that chronology. We are now processing visas that were applied for in June 2023. By contrast, if one was applying for a visa to study here the applications being processed are up to March 2024. There is quite a difference between those two. I would say that 11 months is an awfully long time to wait after an application to have a family member come and join the applicant. So many of the people who are arriving on these work visas are sorely needed within our health system and in our wider economy. We should be expediting their families being able to join them if they are settling down here in the longer term. Will the Taoiseach look at this to see if some resources could help solve that waiting time?

I thank Deputy Ó Cathasaigh for raising this important matter on the joint family visa applications. I will talk with the Minister for Justice to see if it is a resourcing issue and if there is any way to assist. I will ask the Minister to come back to the Deputy directly.