ISL Act
The Irish Sign Language Act 2017 (Act 40 of 2017), signed into law by President Michael D Higgins on 24th December 2017 and commenced on 15 December 2020 recognises Irish Sign Language as an official language of Ireland. The Act sets out Deaf peoples entitlement to interpreting to access information and services provided by public bodies.
The Act outlines the requirement for courts and public bodies to use interpreters whose qualifications are verified by the Register of Irish Sign Language Interpreters (RISLI).
ISL Act Section 7
“A court or public body, in compliance with its obligations under this Act, shall not engage the services of a person providing Irish Sign Language interpretation unless the person’s qualifications have been verified under an accreditation scheme funded by the Minister for Social Protection.”
An Irish Sign Language (ISL) interpreter will have their qualifications verified and published on risli.ie once they meet the registration criteria. A court or publicly funded body is required to engage interpreters who have had their qualifications verified by the Register of Irish Sign Language Interpreters (RISLI)