The High Court has ordered the Minister for Foreign Affairs to make a decision on an application for an Irish passport for a child who was born in the UK via a surrogacy arrangement as the Judge came down on the side of the applicant.

The boy’s parents are a married same-sex couple residing in Britain. One of his fathers is a dual citizen of Ireland and the UK, but he is not a biological parent.

The court heard that the boy’s UK birth certificate initially recorded the name of his birth mother and his biological father. However, the England Family Court later issued a parental order which reassigned parentage from the birth mother to the boy’s non-biological father.

It follows, Mr Justice Max Barrett ruled, that this parental status is also recognised under Irish law, contrary to the Department’s claim that a parent was “understood to mean either the mother or father of the child or a male adopter”.

The judge directed that a decision on the passport application be made but said it did not seem necessary for the court to direct that the minister issue the boy a passport. That is because if the minister does not appeal the decision, a passport will be issued and if an appeal is lodged, then a stay on the court’s decision would need to be granted.