Irish Citizenship

If you are not a national of the UK, Switzerland and the European Economic Area (EEA), certain residency periods may count as reckonable residency necessary for qualification for naturalisation. If you have been lawfully residing in Ireland as a holder of a type of long visa, such as an employment visa, granting you permission to live in the country, this will count towards reckonable residence requirements.

The same applies if you reside in Ireland as an Irish citizen’s civil partner or spouse. Below are some instances of time periods that count towards reckonable residence:

• Stamp 1 – time you spent in the State under a work permit.
• Stamp 1G – time you spent in Ireland as the civil partner or spouse of a work permit holder.
• Stamp 3 – time you spent as the dependent of an employment permit holder or other legal Ireland resident.
• Stamp 4
• Stamp 5
• Below are examples of residency periods that do not count towards reckonable residency:
• Stamp 1G – time you spent on Third Level Graduate Scheme under this stamp.
• Stamp 1A
• Stamp 2 – time you spent under a student visa.
• Time you spent in the State while undocumented.
• Time you spent in the State under a Tourist Visa for non-EEA nationals.

The Immigration Service Delivery website features an online residency calculator that you can use to determine if you meet the conditions for Irish citizenship by naturalisation. If you are a non-EEA national, you must complete the online residency calculator when submitting your naturalisation application.

Immigration permission stamps and documents from the Department of Justice & Equality indicating your granted permissions serve as proof of the length of your residency in Ireland. When applying for citizenship by naturalisation, it is crucial to keep your immigration registration updated with no gaps.

It is important to allow enough time to facilitate your GNIB appointment to renew your permission before expiry. Otherwise, gaps in your residence permissions create situations where your residency is not considered continuous for citizenship application purposes. Also, if you spent extended periods outside the country, you will be required to explain the absences.

If you are a non-EU/EEA/Swiss dependent young adult, you may be eligible to apply for Irish citizenship by naturalisation. You may use the reckonable residency of your parents if you lack the required reckonable residence requirements. Ireland considers you a young adult if:

• You are between the ages of 18 and 23 when you apply for naturalisation.
• You legally immigrated to Ireland with your family unit.
• You currently attend secondary school in Ireland or transfer directly from secondary school to third-level education.
• You are still continuously dependent on your parents.

Citizenship application for a non-EU/EEA/Swiss dependent young adult is the only exception where Stamp 2 permissions may count towards reckonable residence. If you are using this route, you must complete Application Form 8.

You must provide certain documents from the aforementioned documentation list with your application. You must also include a letter from your college or school indicating the date of your registration and attendance.

You may be an Irish citizen through birth if you or your parents were born or adopted in the country. If you do not have entitlement to Irish citizenship through birth, you can become a citizen when you enrol your birth on the Foreign Births Register. An individual is a citizen of Ireland through birth if they are part of the categories below:

1. Born in the Country before January 1, 2005

If you happen to have been born in Ireland prior to January 1, 2005, you are a citizen of Ireland through birth automatically. If you happen to have been born in Northern Ireland prior to the same date, you could claim Irish citizenship. You can elect to be a citizen of Ireland and apply for an Irish passport.

2. Born in the Country after December 31, 2004

Irish citizens voted to alter the constitution of Ireland to end entitlement to Irish citizenship through birth automatically by all individuals born in the country. As such, if you were born after January 1, 2005, the entitlement to be a citizen of Ireland depends on your parents’ residency history and nationality. If when you were born, either one of your parents was a citizen of Ireland; you become a citizen of Ireland automatically if you were born in the country.

3. Born Abroad to an Irish Parent

In case you were born abroad and your parents were born in Ireland and had entitlement to Irish citizenship, you become a citizen of Ireland through birth automatically.

4. Born in the Country and Cannot Claim Citizenship to another Nation

You may have been born in the Republic of Ireland, and the above categories do not apply to you. If this is the case and you cannot claim citizenship to another country, you become a citizen of Ireland through birth automatically.

5. Irish Citizenship in Case You Were Born Outside the Country

If you were born abroad and your parents were born in the Republic of Ireland and held citizenship status when you were born, you become a citizen of Ireland through birth automatically. If you were born abroad to parents who were also born abroad, you can become a citizen of Ireland

if one of your parents was a citizen of Ireland when you were born.

You must register this birth in the Foreign Births Register to claim citizenship by birth. The only exception is if your parents happened to be outside the country in public service when you were born. Your Ireland citizenship becomes valid from the registration date rather than from your date of birth.

Citizenship by descent is another route to Irish citizenship you can take if you were not born in Ireland and do not reside in the country. If one or both of your grandparents were born in the country, but none of your parents were born in the country, you can become a citizen of the Republic of Ireland.

Also, if one or both of your parents were born in the country and they held Irish citizenship when you were born, you are entitled to apply for citizenship. You are not automatically entitled to Irish citizenship based on previous extended ancestry or ancestors that are not your parents and grandparents.

Also, you are not allowed to claim citizenship based on extended familial relations (cousins, uncles, or aunts) if your parents or grandparents were not citizens of Ireland when you were born. You will be required to enrol your birth in the Foreign Births Register.

You may apply for Irish citizenship on the basis of Irish associations. Irish association refers to relations through blood or adoption by a citizen of Ireland. Irish citizenship through association is at the discretion of the Minister.

If you want to apply via this route, you must have lawfully resided in Ireland for at least three years as proof of your connection to the State. Also, these applications take longer to process (up to two and a half years).

If a citizen of Ireland adopts a minor who is not a citizen of Ireland, the adopted minor becomes an Irish citizen. Also, some individuals can claim Irish citizenship through several special declarations.

Application Process

Once you have determined the appropriate route to Irish citizenship, the application process involves the following steps:

1. Checking That You Qualify

To become an Irish citizen, you must meet the eligibility conditions stipulated in the Nationality and Citizenship Act as detailed herein.

2. Fill in an Application Form

Depending on your route to Irish citizenship, you have to fill in the current application forms on the Immigration Service Delivery website. These forms include Form 8, Form 9, Form 10, and Form 11. Carefully read all the notes attached to the forms, and do not leave any sections blank.

3. Gather Your Documents

The relevant supporting documents will depend on your route to Irish citizenship and your circumstances. If your documents are not in English, they must be translated by a professional translator. Note that if you are an adult applicant, you are required to send a tax clearance certificate that certifies that your tax affairs are in order.

If for any reason, you are unable to include the required documents, you must include an explanation as to why you cannot attach the documents. In case you are unable to include your marriage certificate or birth certificate, you may use affidavits. Affidavits are only acceptable if you can prove that you cannot obtain the certificates.

4. Make a Declaration

Once you have filled out the relevant application form, you must make a statutory declaration when you are ready to submit the form and documents. A statutory declaration is an official written statement swearing that the information you have provided is true.

A party authorised to witness statutory declarations must witness the statement. These parties include a solicitor, a notary public, a commissioner for an oath, or a peace commissioner.

5. Send Your Application

It is important to carefully check your application form and ensure you have included all the relevant documents. The application form contains a checklist that you are required to follow. Once your form and relevant documents are in order, you send the same to the relevant application office, whose address will be included in the form.

Application Fee

When submitting your application form and attached documents, you must pay an application fee. The application fee is 175 Euros. You are only allowed to pay the application fee via banker’s draft.

Any bank can provide a banker’s draft. You make the payment to the Secretary-General, Department of Justice. No other payment method is accepted. The application fee is non-refundable. If your application is rejected, you will not get this amount back.

Most applications for Irish citizenship by naturalisation are processed within 12 months. Immigration Service Delivery contacts you within several weeks to inform you if your application has passed the first processing stage. During this time, ISD may request additional documentation or clarification on the specific information you include in your application, after which you are afforded an application number.

If your application is approved, ISD will send you a letter. You will be requested to pay the Certification Fee and submit your Irish Residence Permit if you are a non-EEA/UK/Swiss national. You will be invited to attend a citizenship ceremony.

The Foreign Births Register enables descendants of Irish citizens who move abroad to claim Irish citizenship. Below are the steps for registering a birth on the Foreign Births Register:

Before application – ensure that you are eligible to apply and have an email address.

Gather your documents – check that you have all the necessary documents, including original birth certificate, certified copy of identification (national ID card, driver’s licence, passport), four photographs, and similar documents related to the Irish citizen you are basing your application on.

Complete online form – You must submit your application online on the Department of Foreign Affairs website. You submit the completed form electronically and print a hard copy to sign and send.

Pay the application fee – after completing the application form, you pay the registration fee online.

Have your documents, form, and photographs witnessed by a witness personally known to you.