Information released to the Freedom of Information advocacy group, Right to Know, has found that in total, over the past five years, 2,613 fines have been issued to airlines for allowing non-nationals to travel to Ireland without documentation, generating €4.075 million in revenue for the state.
The FOI request was submitted by journalist Ken Foxe and the information was then provided from records held by the Garda National Immigration Bureau.
The FOI request from Mr Foxe sought the following information:
“a database/spreadsheet/record of all fines levied on transport operators for failing to carry out proper documentation checks for arrivals into Ireland. This database to include the name of the transport provider, the amount of fines that have been levied, the number of fines, the number of fines that were unpaid after 28 days, the number of times the fine was doubled, and any other information that is held by AGS (An Garda Siochana) on each fine.”
According to Right to Know, the information supplied shows that the number of fines imposed on airlines and transport operators for carrying passengers into Ireland without proper documentation has seen a significant increase this year.
“In the first four months of 2023 alone, there were 346 instances where carriers were penalised, with this number projected to exceed 1,000 by the end of the year. Between January and April, gardaí collected €519,000 in fines from these airlines and transport operators.”
Specific details about which companies paid how much have not been disclosed.
The group go on to note that “the figures appear to contradict statements made by former Justice Minister Simon Harris, who recently claimed that the number of asylum seekers arriving in Ireland without documents was decreasing. The data obtained shows that in the entirety of 2022, there were a total of 735 fines issued, amounting to just over €1.1 million. In only the first four months of 2023, the fine total has already reached 47% of last year’s sum, with eight more months to go. In 2021, operators paid a total of €826,500 in fines for 547 separate arrivals in Ireland. During 2020, when international travel was significantly limited due to the Covid-19 pandemic, there were 410 fines amounting to €624,000. In the pre-pandemic year of 2019, the gardaí collected just over €1 million in fines from airlines, covering 575 individuals who arrived without proper documentation.”