Irish Grandmother, Adopted mother - FBR Reg. Challenges

[aidycas]

Hi there,

I am wondering if anyone on these boards can assist with my challenges and/or is able to advise around a possible course of action for me.

I am born in South Africa to a mother who was born and adopted in England. My mother was born to an Irish mother and an English father. My father's parents were born in South Africa but my father's grandfather left Ireland in 1915. My father did not register in the FBR prior to my birth.

I have followed the FBR process with my local consulate. They rejected my application on the grounds that the adoption certificate I was able to produce was an English Adoption Authority and not an Irish Adoption Authority. I then went to the Adoption Authority of Ireland and applied for the inter-country adoption entry to be added to the register. They did so, I paid the fee, they sent me the certificate. I then used the certificate in the application however the final application was again rejected and the reason cited was that my mother became an Irish citizen from the *date of entry* into the register, i.e. that is when I completed the process in 2013/2014. This means that my mother is a citizen and entitled to a passport but I am not as I was born prior to this date.

I engaged with solicitors in Dublin earlier this year and, after I made payment to them, they sent me a report stating that there isn't really any ambiguity around the citizenship provision act but that my strongest chance of getting the FBR entry correct is by working on the basis that my grandmother was, in fact, born in Ireland. They advised that the FBR process is shrouded in ambiguity and getting a hold of people at the department is very challenging. I sent a query through on the website. Completing the FBR process is exactly the same thing as what I did in 2013/2014.

I have read the the forums and supporting websites on the internet extensively.

I really am at a loss here and don't know how to proceed further.

Any help greatly appreciated.

Thank-you,
Aidan