A total of 191 prisoners serving life sentences have applied for parole since the new Parole Board was formed last year - but not one has yet been granted it.
All but one of these prisoners made a previous application for parole to the Interim Board, which previously considered all applications, and were not granted release.
The Parole Board was formed last July to determine the eligibility for parole of prisoners serving life sentences.
Life-sentence prisoners must now serve 12 years before being considered for parole, compared to seven years previously.
Parole can only be granted if the Parole Board is satisfied that the prisoner does not pose an undue risk to the public, that he or she has been rehabilitated, and that it is appropriate in all the circumstances to release him or her on parole.
Victims of crime are able to make submissions to the parole board and may receive legal assistance to do so.
Prisoners granted parole are still serving a life sentence but in the community. They may be returned to prison if they re-offend or break any of the conditions of the parole order.
Minister for Justice Helen McEntee said none of the 191 prisoners that have applied for parole have yet been granted it.
And all but one of these prisoners serving life made a previous application for parole to the the Interim Board before the new Parole Board was formed.
Ms McEntee said: "The Irish Prison Service is required to notify the Board of all prisoners eligible for consideration under the Act.
"Upon such notification, the Board is required to invite these prisoners to apply for parole.
"To date the Board has been notified of 228 such prisoners and, following the issuing of invitations, has received 191 applications from this group of prisoners.
"These applications have been acknowledged and the applicants have been informed that the Board will commence gathering the necessary reports required in order to give consideration to their application.
"Information on the process has also been provided to these applicants and is widely available throughout the prisons estate generally.
"All applicants had previous involvement with the Interim Board.
"In one case however, although a participant in the previous process, the application was not ready for consideration by the Interim Board prior to its cessation of operations in July 2021."
Ms McEntee also said a chief executive has now been appointed to the Parole Board and life sentence prisoners' applications will be considered shortly.
Ciairin de Buis, who has worked in the NGO and not-for-profit sector for over 25 years and served two terms as a member of the advisory Parole Board, was appointed chief executive of the Parole Board last month (DEC).
In response to a parliamentary question, Ms McEntee said: "A considerable amount of preparatory work must be undertaken by the Board relating to processes, applications and corporate governance before cases can actually be considered.
"I am advised that the Board will begin making decisions on applications in early 2022."
