AS Limerick’s population has changed in recent years through increased levels of migration, from those seeking asylum/international protection, those arriving for work and studies, and in some cases those entering illegally, one might have thought the courts play a huge role in deciding who can legitimately stay and who must leave.
However while the Courts Service itself doesn’t directly handle asylum applications, it does interact with the asylum system, as asylum-related decisions can be reviewed in the courts.
The Court Service is a State agency primarily responsible for running the courts, providing administrative support, managing court buildings and facilities and operating court systems, but it does not decide asylum applications itself — judges and the administration of justice are, of course, separate from the court service’s core functions.
Judicial review
If a person’s asylum/international protection application is refused by the first-instance decision-maker (the International Protection Office (IPO)), the applicant can appeal that refusal through a judicial review.
A judicial review application is a request to the High Court that it review a decision made by a person or body performing a public function.
Beyond the regular appeal routes (through the International Protection Appeals Tribunal (IPAT), an independent quasi-judicial body), applicants can also bring judicial review proceedings in the High Court.
In such cases, the court reviews whether the decision of the IPO (or sometimes the Tribunal) was lawful and procedurally fair.
These reviews do come before the courts and are part of the High Court’s ordinary jurisdiction — and the Courts Service facilitates these hearings administratively.
To apply for judicial review, one must show they were affected in some way by the decision they are challenging. They must also show their case has grounds.
According to the latest Courts Service annual report (2024), there was a 5.5 per cent decrease in the number of asylum judicial review cases in 2024 in comparison to 2023 figures.
“Waiting times for asylum judicial reviews at pre-leave stage were significantly reduced in Q4 2024 in order to accommodate a potential increase in the number of asylum- related judicial review proceedings in 2025,” said the report.
Costs
According to Citizens Information, there is “no fixed rate” of charges for legal fees for statutory judicial reviews for asylum application reviews, so the advice is that one should get some quotes before deciding on legal representation.
Solicitors must advise applicants in writing of their fees or provide an estimate of a sum or give information about how charges or fees will be calculated.
The Government, for its part, has promised a “firm but fair” asylum system, and as part of increased restrictions it has funded €2.5million on deportation charter flights in total.
Limerick Fianna Fáil TD and Minister of State at the Department of Justice, Niall Collins, said the State’s system of voluntary returns is an important aspect of the State’s “rules-based migration system”.
In total, 1,609 asylum seekers left Ireland voluntarily last year, a 72 per cent rise on 2024, said Minister Collins.
“This government is focused on relieving migration pressure by removing the number of people in the system who are not successful in their applications,” the Limerick TD pledged.
“Last year over 80 per cent of people who applied for asylum have had their claims rejected at first instance and the way to respond to this is to ensure that people need to know if they come to Ireland and their application gets rejected, they must leave.”
Minister Collins added: “We want to give people confidence in the operation of the immigration laws of our country”.
As the courts continue to review decisions applications, one recent incentive introduced by the Department of Justice, Home Affairs, and Migration is provision of a monetary grant for people to voluntarily return to their country of origin.
The “reintegration grant” is seen as a final incentive for persons to apply to voluntarily leave.
Under these new rules, families who applied for international protection before September 28, 2025, and who choose to voluntarily return to their country of origin, can receive up to a maximum of €10,000 or up to €2,500 for an individual.
Of course, the courts have also been utilised to charge persons accused of causing criminal damage to IPAS centres, however none of these alleged offences relate to the Limerick area.
According to the latest weekly breakdown of IPAS applicant arrivals, published by the Department of Justice, Home Affairs, and Migration, IPAS occupancy levels nationally have increased from 5,096 in 2017 to 33,215 on January 18 this year.
The weekly breakdown report showed that occupancy in the Limerick City and County was at 729 on January 18.
The Government stopped publishing complete detailed lists of every international protection accommodation service (IPAS) centre and occupancy figures by specific centre for security concerns following a string of attacks by those opposed to the system.
There are, however, six distinct accommodation locations in the Limerick area, according to the HSE, with 12 in nearby Clare and 4 in north Tipperary. In the 22 centres in the Mid West region, 2,396 people are currently resident.
A HSE spokesman said that “data on grant and refusal rates is not easily broken down by region, however, the Department can confirm that approximately 81 per cent of applicants for international protection in 2025 and 72 per cent in 2024 were refused permission at first instance”.
New Law
According to Minister Collins, recent Government approval for publication of the International Protection Bill 2026 will bring Ireland in line with the EU Migration and Asylum Pact, to introduce “faster processing of asylum claims with a much more efficient decision-making system”.
“Faster processing will mean that applicants spend less time in IPAS accommodation, and it will significantly reduce the cost of the asylum system to the State, and will also mean that successful applicants will be granted international protection sooner, and those whose applications are refused can be returned to their country of origin sooner,” said the Limerick TD.
The Bill which is going through the Houses of the Oireachtas, must be approved prior to June 12, 2026, to become operational, as required by EU law.
To sum up, the Courts Service itself does not itself decide asylum applications — that function lies with the IPO and IPAT — but it supports the judicial system where asylum decisions are challenged through judicial review or other legal proceedings in the High Court and higher courts.
– Court Reporting Scheme