A recent deportation flight that removed 24 men from Ireland to Pakistan cost the Government approximately €473,000, according to the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, reports Breaking News.
This was the fourth — and most expensive — chartered deportation flight arranged this year. It follows three earlier flights: two to Georgia and one to Nigeria between February and June, which together cost €530,941.
The cost of the September 23rd flight to Pakistan does not include other related expenses such as ground handling, paramedic services onboard, and flight management fees, reports Breaking News.
So far this year, a total of 130 people have been deported via chartered flights. An additional 137 individuals have been removed on commercial airlines by the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB).
The first chartered flight involved the deportation of 32 individuals to Georgia, costing €102,476 — about €3,302 per person.
A second chartered flight to Georgia in May deported 39 people. It cost €103,751, or roughly €2,660 per person, reports Breaking News.
A return charter to Nigeria in June cost €324,714 and was used to deport 35 people, including five children, which amounted to about €9,278 per person.
The Pakistan deportation flight on September 23rd, which removed 24 men at an approximate cost of €473,000, worked out to nearly €20,000 per person — making it the highest-cost deportation flight this year, reports Breaking News.
Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan disclosed the cost in response to a parliamentary question from Social Democrats TD Gary Gannon this week, and noted the final figure could rise as some invoices were still pending.
“Deportations are costly and complex to enforce,” he said. “It is the preferred option to return people voluntarily and my department has a voluntary return programme to assist people to return prior to the issuance of a deportation order. If a person does not remove themselves from the state following the issuance of a deportation order, they will be removed, and my department has taken action to significantly improve immigration enforcement measures and increase removals,” reports Breaking News.
The number of deportation orders issued jumped by 180% last year, rising from 857 in 2023 to 2,403. Up to October 3rd this year, a total of 3,035 deportation orders had been signed.
“The chartered flight to Pakistan on September 23 involved the removal of 24 adult males,” said Mr O’Callaghan. “I can confirm that the returnees on this flight were accompanied by Garda personnel, medical staff, an interpreter, and a human rights observer. The cost for provision of the aircraft for the fourth charter operation is approximately €473,000 for a return flight to Pakistan. The total costs for this operation are not yet available as the invoicing process has not yet been completed,” reports Breaking News.
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