Sir, – After 16 years of living and working here, obeying the laws of the land while proactively fulfilling my part of the social contract, I still have not earned the right to be a citizen of this country and hence do not have the rights of an Irish citizen. These essential rights are only purchasable, not earnable.
At this point I would be charged €175 for the privilege to apply for naturalisation and €950 for the actual naturalisation, not including fees for the subsequent issuing of an Irish passport. This makes Irish citizenship a luxury item I can not afford.
But don’t worry, I shall continue to perform my citizen’s duties as I have for all these years while waiting in hope that some day I might earn my rights. – Yours, etc,