- The State has expended €2.88m excluding VAT on ten charter deportation flights since February 2025.
- The highest cost flight to date took place on Thursday to South Africa at €735,000 for 42 people.
- A total of 377 individuals have been deported via these charter operations.
- Air Partner Ltd secured the contract through a competitive procurement process in November 2024.
- Deportation orders signed reached 4,700 in 2025 to date.
The Irish State has spent €2.88m on charter deportation flights since February 2025. Air Partner Ltd based at Gatwick provides these services under a contract signed in November 2024. The most recent flight departed Dublin Airport on Thursday to South Africa at a cost of €735,000 and carried 42 individuals.
Ten flights have taken place in total. The Department of Justice confirmed costs average €7,639 per deportee across 377 people removed. Earlier flights included destinations such as Georgia, Pakistan, Nigeria, Romania and Poland or Lithuania. Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan revealed that the contract with Air Partner Ltd holds a potential value of €5m over up to five years. The company operates as a global aircraft charter broker and arranges aircraft from third party operators.
Factors that influence costs include the number of people, destination country and requirements for escorts or transit through hub airports. The number of deportation orders signed in 2025 stands at 4,700 which represents a 96 pc increase on 2024. To 5 June this year officials signed 2,108 deportation orders.
Minister Jim O’Callaghan shared “charter flights provide an alternative to commercial flights and can be more appropriate in circumstances when a group of individuals are being removed to the same destination”.
“This has increased the options available to An Garda Síochána to effect removals and deportations. A number of factors impact the costs associated with deportation operations. Deportations are costly and complex to enforce. 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. It is a central priority for me that Ireland’s immigration system is robust and rules based”.
