The countdown is on to Census night, which takes place on Sunday, April 3.
Every person in Ireland is required to fill out the form, which is a count and account of everyone in the country on that night.
There are 11 household questions and 33 questions to be completed for up to six individual people who are present in the household on Census night. Topics include age, marital status, gender, place of birth, occupation and housing characteristics.
READ MORE: Ireland’s Census 2022 comes with €44,440 fine as major warning blatantly written on front of form
For the first time this year, a Time Capsule has been included, which allows members of the public to write a voluntary and confidential message of their choice that will be securely stored for 100 years before being released.
In typical Irish fashion, people have been sharing hilarious ideas for what they could write in it.
Some replies have gone viral, with people even uploading photos of the completed section online.
LADbible Ireland compiled some replies, which have since gone viral with over 23,000 likes on Instagram.
“Have Mayo won an All-Ireland yet?” one person wrote.
Another drew a picture of a penguin and said: “In the event that penguins and photos don’t exist in 2122, for whatever reason, this is what a penguin looked like”.
The penguin theme continued with a third attempting to confuse their descends, writing: “Our penguin overlords are coming. Do not fear. Rejoice”.
Twitter has also been filled with people sharing what they could write.
One person said: “Think I’ll just go with a one-liner for the time capsule part of the Census form: 'I buried all the gold in the'."
Another joked they could write: "By now most of you will have developed webbed feet, and be happily amphibious".
Another threatened: “My enemies list, going on the Census time capsule thing tomorrow night.”
Referencing the recent Oscars controversy, another Twitter user said: “I'm saving my real opinion on The Slap for the time capsule section of the Census.”
Aside from the jokes, many people loved the idea saying it is a “fantastic chance to talk to your descendants 100 years from now.”
Meanwhile, people are being reminded they are legally obliged to complete or be included in the Census form or they could face a huge fine.
The Statistics Act, 1993 is the basic legislation covering all surveys carried out by the Central Statistics Office, including the Census.
Section 25 of the Act enables the Taoiseach to make Orders requiring people to provide information under the Act, while Sections 26 and 27 of the Act provide for the Director General of the CSO to require people to complete and return a form, following the making of such an Order by the Taoiseach.
A major warning has been blatantly written on the front of Census 2022 form, alerting people that they could be fined up to €44,440 in certain circumstances.
The 'Legal obligation to participate' section, reads: “This is a Notice under Section 26 of the Statistics Act 1993. The Census is being taken under the Statistics Act 1993 and the Statistics (Census of Population) Order 2020.
“Under Sections 26 and 27 of the Statistics Act 1993, you are obliged by law to complete and return this form.
“Only the Time Capsule section of this form is voluntary, under Section 24 of the Statistics Act 1993. This means that you are not obliged to complete that section.
“Any person who fails or refuses to provide this information or who knowingly provides false information may be subject to a fine of up to €44,440.”
Below are the mistakes to avoid if you don't want to end up with a hefty fine.
Fail to provide information requested in a statutory inquiry (Section 36)
Prevent an Officer of Statistics (i.e. a CSO staff member or field officer) carrying out her/his duties (Section 37)
Obstruct the Director General or an Officer of Statistics in the exercise of her/his functions under the Act (Section 40)
Wilfully destroy, damage or falsify any document or record issued for the collection of statistics for a statutory inquiry (Section 42)
Provide information, written or oral, or deliver a document, knowing it to be false, in purported compliance with a requirement under the Act (Section 43)
Anyone found guilty of an offence under the Act is liable on summary conviction to a fine up to €2,500, or on conviction on indictment to a fine up to €44,440.
READ MORE: Next census date revealed with new questions about smoking, the internet, childcare and more
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