An article in the Irish Independent on Monday,
27th August discusses the new laws that are designed to crack down
on sham marriages. Immigration officials have seen a rise in sham marriages,
where a non-EU national marries an EU national for the sole purpose of gaining
residency. The article reports, “Sums of at least €2,000 are being paid to
Eastern European women to take part and in some cases gardai have found
payments of up to €10,000.” After the non-EU national has gained a permanent
form of residency, the marriage is dissolved. An analysis of the immigration
figures have revealed that a disproportionate number of sham marriages occur
between Pakistanis and partners from Baltic states, specifically Latvia.
“One-third of the 1,617 applicants last year were to marry a Latvian or
Lithuanian national.” The gardai have found no evidence that these women were
the victims of trafficking.
The issue has been raised by UK Home Secretary
Theresa May, and Minister for Justice Alan Shatter, as well as discussed at EU
Justice and Home Affairs meetings. The gardai blocked 150 marriages that they
believed to be fraudulent, but the High Court in Dublin ruled that they had no
authorization for such an arrest. Legislation is currently being drafted to tighten
the restrictions and prevent this abuse of residency rights.
Brophy Solicitors
27.08.12
United States lawful permanent residency refers to a person's immigration status: the person is authorized to live and work in the United States of America on a permanent basis.
ReplyDeletemake sure that the address on both are the same. The officer may ask to see them. San Diego immigration lawyer
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