High Court finds errors in refusal of Palestinian student visa

The High Court has ordered a fresh review of a study visa refused to 20‑year‑old Gazan student Shaymaa Abudalu, highlighting “significant and demonstrable errors” in the Department of Justice’s handling of the application.

Abudalu, who was awarded a fully‑funded engineering scholarship at University College Cork, had her visa denied in July on several grounds. Justice Anthony Barr directed that the application be reconsidered within 10 working days.

Lawyers from Phoenix Law, representing Abudalu and a further 38 Palestinian students with similar refusals, said the case raises “very serious concerns” about the integrity of the department’s processing of study visas.

Documentation lapse revealed

Four days before the hearing, the Department of Justice submitted an affidavit claiming that Abudalu had not provided all required financial documents. However, Phoenix Law later obtained the original email from UCC sent to the Irish embassy in Tel Aviv, which included the complete application and supporting paperwork. The department acknowledged that the documents had reached the embassy but were not forwarded to decision‑makers in Dublin.

The Department of Justice declined to comment on individual cases, while the legal team called for inquiries into whether the error was isolated and whether visa processing changes this year have affected other applications.

Source: Irish Examiner. Photo: Quang Vuong / Pexels.