There has been a 21 per cent increase in the number of people refused permission to remain in the State by the Garda immigration border control unit in Dundalk in the last year.
Up to the end of July this year, 570 people, mainly men, were refused leave to land there, compared with 470 by the end of July 2005. Of that number, just 10 people sought asylum.
The unit, which was set up by Garda Commissioner Noel Conroy two years ago, inspects the seven trains and 34 buses daily that stop in Dundalk on their journey from Belfast to Dublin. They also stop cars and taxis.
"The problem is big . . . and is not dwindling," according to a Garda spokesman.
The unit is online and linked to the Garda National Immigration Bureau database and has access to the UK Immigration Service computer system.
Details on those taken to the unit's office in Dundalk Garda station are entered into the database to see if they have had previous contact with the immigration control unit - for example, whether they were seeking asylum in the Republic but had left the country without permission and were now trying to re-enter it.
"We today refused leave to land to a 26-year-old man from Eritrea who we confirmed as a failed asylum seeker in the UK.
He was on an Ulsterbus which we inspected this morning. He has not sought asylum here and he will be returned to the custody of the UK Immigration Officials in Holyhead later," the Garda spokesman explained.
The unit works in tandem with an officer from the Department of Social and Family Affairs who checks the department's database for any potential abuses of the welfare system.
"We had one person who had residency in Italy and Spain and was getting entitlements there as well as here," he added.
The growing numbers being highlighted by the immigration unit underlines that Ireland remains a popular destination for economic migrants.