Photo credit: RTE
A large group of migrant workers have protested over Family Reunion Policy.
The Irish Times reports that people from outside the European Economic Area working on a General Employment Permit must wait 12 months after arriving in Ireland before they can apply for their families come to join them. Another condition is that a person must be earning more than €30,000 to bring their partner to Ireland, and €40,000 to bring one child, and it increases from there.
Even after the application has been made, it may take a year for the form to be processed. The application might be unsuccessful, for reasons including required earnings, people often have to wait to become Irish citizens, which takes seven years, before they can have their families join them.
Mr Nurudeen Oyewole who is the spokesman for the Families Belong Together campaign group was among a large group of migrant workers who protested over Family Reunion Policy in front of the Department of Justice building in Dublin on Wednesday, the International Day of Families.
Some of the protesters carried placards stating “Minister McEntee, reunite our families.” Others held photographs of their loved ones. The protesters chanted, “What do we want? Our families here. When do we want it? Now.”
The campaigns manager of Migrant Rights Centre, Ireland said, “We believe everyone coming to work in Ireland deserves to have their family with them.”
