Meath family held overnight at Turkish airport amid Irish visa confusion

Abdullah and Fatima's eldest son was refused entry to Turkey because he didn't have a re-entry visa for Ireland, even though the Department of Justice has stopped issuing the document to minors.

A Meath-based GP has told of his family's horrific holiday experience with their three children going almost 24 hours without food after Turkish immigration refused his son entry because he did not have an Irish re-entry visa.

Abdullah Afghan said his six-year-old son Azlaan is not an Irish citizen even though he was born in Ireland and that the Government had stopped issuing visas for minors.

The family have lost out on €3,350 as a result of the ordeal, as they did not have time to cancel any of their bookings.

The Department of Justice told the Irish Examiner that “re-entry visa requirements for children under the age of 16 have been suspended until further notice”, adding the Immigration Service had “informed airlines” of this decision.

It said anyone was free to leave the State, but they must comply with the visa requirements of their intended destination.

“It is a matter for those jurisdictions to decide what immigration entry requirements they have and they may waive any visa requirement at their own discretion,” the spokesperson added.

Nasc, the Irish Migrant and Refugee Rights Centre, said this summer, a number of families with third-country national children under the age of 16 have reported difficulties travelling abroad.

“The change in policy by the Department of Justice to remove re-entry visa requirements for minor children resident in Ireland has had the unfortunate consequence that when crossing borders outside of Ireland, parents are unable to verify that their child is legally resident in Ireland and will be permitted to return,” a spokesperson has said.

One more ordeal on path to citizenship

Abdullah, 35, who has worked in hospitals in Mayo, Cork and Meath, said his family experienced the difficulties caused by this change in policy first-hand. He said their nightmare travel experience is just one more “stressful ordeal” on the path to securing his son’s Irish citizenship.

Abdullah arrived in Ireland eight years ago with his wife Fatima, and their three children were born here. Abdullah and his two youngest children are Irish citizens and Fatima has a resident's permit, but their son Azlaan is still waiting on his Irish passport because the couple had only been here for two years when he was born, rather than three.

Azlaan has an intellectual disability, which means he deals with anxiety and struggles with social interactions. His parents have been been trying to secure his naturalisation as an Irish citizen for the past 15 months, a process they say has been complex and confusing considering it is “next-to-impossible” to speak to a Government representative on the phone.

However, Azlaan loves to travel and stay in different places, so the family booked a holiday to Turkey. 

Instead, they ended up stuck in a holding area for inadmissible passengers overnight, with no access to food, and three hungry, upset children who were unable to sleep on the floor, all because they did not have a document that is no longer being issued.

Abdullah and Fatima Afghan said their children were hungry and upset.

“When we planned the holiday we applied for a re-entry visa for Azlaan, but the Department of Justice sent us a letter the next week saying that they were not issuing them for children anymore and so we wouldn’t need one.

“We were sceptical about this after speaking to friends who also have family members born here who are waiting on their citizenship being granted, so we set off with our son’s birth certificate, the letter from the department, and his birth certificate that shows he was born in Ireland, as well as his Afghan passport, and a valid visa to enter Turkey,” Abdullah said.

The family made it to the airport in Turkey without a hitch, only to be told when they got there that Azlaan wouldn’t be permitted entry due to not having a re-entry visa.

“We had set out at 10am that morning, as we know about queues in Dublin Airport and our flight was at 4pm, we made it to the Turkish airport at 10pm.

“They moved us into the holding area and took all of our documents. They kept saying stay here and we will get you food, but the food never came.

My children couldn’t sleep because they were so hungry that they were in tears for most of the time.

"My wife became upset as well, and we were stuck like that until 6am in the morning, when we were put on a flight back to Ireland.

“It was an extremely depressing time for us, it has put me off the idea of travelling again. Seeing my children so upset and not being able to do anything about it or get them any food was a horrible experience."

While they were in the Turkish Airport, Abdullah attempted to contact the Irish Embassy’s emergency assistance line, but he got no answer or call back.

“What really broke my heart was that we had to explain that we weren’t going on the holiday anymore, and Azlaan knew it was because he had a different passport. He kept saying they won’t let me go in because I don’t have a red passport like all of you, why is my one not red, at six he shouldn’t have to be thinking about all of this,” he said.

When the family arrived back to Dublin, immigration services gave them back their documentation, Abdullah said they were told by officials that what had happened to them was happening regularly since the Government stopped issuing re-entry visas for children.

It is not right that we are going on 16 months trying to get an Irish passport for a child who was born in Ireland, and has never left the country for more than 10 days.

"I myself am a citizen, and I have worked in multiple hospitals, emergency departments, and now as a GP.

“In general, we have found Ireland a very welcoming place. People were kind and welcoming when we came here in 2014, leaving our troubled and dangerous home country behind us. It is just a pity that we are still in the dark as to when my son will be granted an Irish passport,” Abdullah said.

Fiona Hurley from Nasc Ireland said that before the department stopped issuing re-entry visas for minors, the requirement itself was “often considered bureaucratic and expensive by families”, as they had to get documents from schools or GPs, and had to pay a €60 fee.

“A solution would be to provide a certificate for travelling that could be valid for up to five years. This would reduce the administrative burden on the State and would provide a simple solution to families who need to travel with their children,” she suggested.

Ms Hurley further stated that the current delay in processing citizenship application is a larger issue, as on average it is taking 26 months.

A spokesperson for the Department of Justice said that while they could not comment on individual cases, Justice Minister Helen McEntee recognises how important the granting of naturalisation is to those who apply for it.