The European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA) and the Irish authorities have agreed to a targeted Operational Plan that aims to assist the International Protection Appeals Tribunal (IPAT), with processing the appeals lodged against first instance decisions. The support aims at ensuring that the Irish authorities can make the best use of their resources to tackle the existing appeal caseload, while setting up new structures and processes required under the Pact on Migration and Asylum
The EUAA’s support comes as Ireland reports having received increasing numbers of applications for international protection over the last several years, from 2 649 in 2021 to 18 561 in 2024. This increase has significantly impacted the country’s appeal system, with around 15 929 cases pending appeal at the end of September 2025. Separately, the EUAA’s latest data show that Ireland received over 6 000 asylum applications in the first half of 2025.
The signature of the Operational Plan comes after the Irish authorities formally requested support in June 2025. The plan was signed by the EUAA’s Executive Director, Ms. Nina GREGORI, the Deputy Secretary for the Irish Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, Mr. Doncha O’SULLIVAN, as well as Ms. Hilkka BECKER, Chairperson of the International Protection Appeals Tribunal (IPAT). The plan remains valid until 31 December 2026.
The Agency will deploy up to 30 personnel to Ireland and will focus on preparing appeal files, by carrying out research for Tribunal members on Country-of-Origin Information and evolving international protection jurisprudence. The Agency will also aim at providing interpretation for difficult-to-source languages.