€160k tender to help Ipas assess asylum seekers’ transfer requests

The International Protection Accommodation Service receives an average of around 8-10 applications to change accommodation on medical grounds per week. Picture: Leah Farrell/RollingNews

The Department of Justice is to spend up to €160,000 to assess whether requests from asylum seekers to transfer accommodation on medical grounds are “warranted or necessary”.

It is seeking a company to provide “impartial medical opinion” to help assess the claims, which average at around 8-10 per week.

“While the majority of special reception needs or vulnerabilities can be addressed in all Ipas accommodation centres, some persons and families require transfers to Dublin or certain other counties to access hospitals or other specialist services,” the department said.

“Other applicants require single rooms, self-catering, or accessible accommodation to address their specific special reception needs or vulnerabilities.

“Currently, transfers are limited due to extreme pressure on the Ipas accommodation portfolio.

“Transfers are facilitated only in exceptional circumstances if more suitable accommodation is available.”

Number of asylum applications falling

While the number of people seeking asylum in Ireland has fallen since the heights of a few years ago, there were still an average of 270 people per week applying for international protection in Ireland last year.

At the end of March, this had fallen to 256 people per week on average. 

As of May 3, Ipas was accommodating 33,000 people in Ireland, including 9,900 children at over 300 accommodation centres.

It said that it endeavours to address special reception needs when assigning accommodation through supports or alternate options, but it may be the case after their initial assessment that a person needs a transfer on medical grounds.

The expert medical practitioners will be required to review the medical documentation and referral forms, as per the contract sought by the department.

“They will provide a view as to whether or not, in their professional opinion, particular transfer requests/locations or other considerations on medical grounds are warranted or necessary,” it said.

In the first four months of this year, 120 such requests were made.

Service to be rolled out in third quarter

The justice department expects to deploy this service in the third quarter of this year, with the option of up to five years for the expert services.

In recent times, the Government has faced criticism for adopting what the Immigrant Council of Ireland has described as an “increasingly regressive” stance on migration.

It warned that many migrant workers are unable to be joined by their families, while waiting lists for the Irish residence permit have “shot up”.