Trinity College Dublin Student Union has passed a motion calling on College, the Irish government, and the Irish Immigration Services to provide clearer communication to users of the service.
The motion was proposed by Arts, Humanities and Social Science (AHSS) Convenor Julia Bochenek; Junior Sophister Electronic Engineering Class Representative Mihai Mesteru; Junior Sophister Environmental Science Class representative Jade Schanen; and Volunteer Forum Coordinator, Alice Payne. The motion was seconded by International Students Officer Dylan Krug.
During discussion Mesteru accused the International Immigration Services of “incompetency” in dealing with international students. Mesteru pointed out that international students are now facing financial difficulties as they cannot find work without visas.
Mesteru was followed by Dylan Krug who commented that “Immigration services are criminally understaffed”.
Commenting on the validity of the motion proposed, Krug further commented that “we need to enshrine it as a motion we will continue to fight for”.
This was then followed by Mueller-Owens urging students to vote for the motion.
The motion highlights difficulties international students have had in securing appointments from Irish Immigration Services Delivery and in securing residency permits in a reasonable amount of time. According to the motion, students have frequently had to wait more than 90 days to secure appointments, which can limit their ability to travel between countries.
The motion goes on to say that such difficulties also limit students’ ability to study and to secure part-time work.
The motion describes the lack of communication from the Irish Immigration Services Delivery as “incompatible” with proper delivery of services to international students.
With the passage of the motion, TCDSU’s officers—including the president, the welfare & equality officer and the international students’ officer—will be mandated to lobby for improvement of the service.
