Dual Citizenship in Ireland

Acquiring Irish dual citizenship through descent is contingent on the status of your parent at the time of your birth and whether they were an Irish citizen at that time.

You will automatically have Irish citizenship if either of your parents were born in Ireland, regardless of where you were born. This means you do not need to apply for dual citizenship; you will automatically have it.

Your parents do not need to have been married at the time of your birth for you to claim Irish citizenship through descent.

If you are claiming Irish dual citizenship through descent from your Irish grandparent(s) due to neither of your parents having been born in Ireland, one of your grandparents must have been born in Ireland.

Either one parent or an Irish-born grandparent must have had Irish citizenship at the time of your birth for you to be eligible to acquire dual citizenship.

Extended previous ancestry is irrelevant – only your parents or grandparents and their Irish citizenship status will allow you to qualify.

Naturalisation is the process in which an individual who is born in one country acquires citizenship of another.

If you wish to apply for naturalisation in Ireland, you must have lived in Ireland for a certain length of time under specific forms of immigration permission.

Some forms of immigration permission do not count as reckonable residence in Ireland, meaning that your time spent in the State under these permissions cannot be used to apply for Irish naturalisation. To qualify for Irish dual citizenship by naturalisation, you must:

• Be aged 18 or older (unless you are married, in which case you may be under 18)
• Be of good character (a background check will be complete – a criminal record will be taken into account)
• Intend to continue living in the State (you must have been resident in Ireland for at least four years of the previous eight years and must not have left Ireland for more than 6 weeks in the 12-months immediately prior to making your application for naturalisation)
• Make a declaration of fidelity and loyalty to the State by attending a citizenship ceremony

Yes, you are eligible to apply for dual citizenship as the spouse/civil partner of an Irish citizen. The conditions of applying for dual citizenship by naturalisation through marriage are:

• You must have been married to/in a civil partnership with an Irish citizen for three years
• You must presently live together in an ongoing marriage/civil partnership of no less than three years
• You must be of full age when you apply for dual citizenship through naturalisation

This is in addition to meeting the standard requirements for those applying for Irish citizenship by naturalisation.

You must have been legally resident in Ireland for at least 3 of the previous 5 years, including one year of continuous residency immediately prior to applying for naturalisation. It is your responsibility to provide documents that prove that you were in Ireland for each year that you claim to have resided here.

Similarly, you must provide documents proving that you and your spouse/civil partner live together permanently. This may include:

• P60s, Property Tax or Social Welfare documents
• Mortgage statements
• Bank statements showing direct debits for utility bills etc.
• Rental agreements
• Spouses Revenue documentation
• Employment letter for spouse

You can have dual Irish citizenship with any other country that also allows for dual citizenship.

As of 2023, there are around 60-70 countries worldwide that allow for dual citizenship, including Ireland.

The exact number is difficult to determine as certain countries only allow for dual citizenship in certain specific scenarios. For example, countries such as the Netherlands, Bulgaria and Cambodia normally only allow dual citizenship if the applicant already has prior ancestral connections to that country.

Citizenship through birth or descent

To claim Irish dual citizenship by birth or descent, you must have your birth registered in the Foreign Births Register. This requires documenting the applicant’s descent from either an Irish-born grandparent or from a parent who is an Irish citizen. To complete this registration, you must submit certain documents, which may include (but not be limited to) the following:

• Your birth certificate and marriage certificate if applicable
• Any name change documentation if applicable
• Proof of identity (passport/national identity card/drivers licence etc.)
• Two proofs of address
• Four passport-sized photographs of you – a professional witness who knows you personally must sign two of your passport photos as a form of verification. This witness must also stamp your application form with their official stamp and certify that the copy of your state identification is genuine

If you are claiming Irish dual citizenship through a parent or grandparent, you must also provide their birth certificate, marriage certificate if applicable and death certificate if applicable. Proof that they are an Irish citizen is also necessary (by providing their passport/drivers licence etc.)

You will need to fill in the online application form and upload the relevant supporting documents through the portal on the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFE) website.

Once you’ve filled in the form and successfully registered on the register, you will become a dual Irish citizen and will be eligible to apply for an Irish passport.

Citizenship by naturalisation or marriage

If you wish to become an Irish dual citizen by naturalisation or marriage, you must obtain Form 8 from the DFE.

Form 8 will need to be printed out and filled in physically. You cannot apply for citizenship by naturalisation or marriage online.

Once completed, you should arrange the form with the supporting documents for your citizenship application.

The completed citizenship application should then be sent to the following address:

Citizenship Applications

Registration Unit

Immigration Service Delivery

Department of Justice

PO Box 73

Tipperary Town

Ireland

E34 N566

The specific requirements for Irish dual citizenship will depend on the specific pathway you’ll use to acquire Irish citizenship.

For example, if you wish to obtain dual Irish citizenship by descent, you will have to ensure that either:

• One of your grandparents was born on the island of Ireland, or
• One of your parents was an Irish citizen at the time of your birth, even though they were not born on the island of Ireland

Meanwhile, if you wish to obtain dual Irish citizenship through naturalisation, or by marriage, you will have to ensure that you meet the following requirements:

• You are aged 18 or over (exceptions can apply if you’re applying for citizenship through marriage)
• You’ve spent at least 4 years of reckonable residence in Ireland, with an additional 1 year of residence immediately before the date you apply
• You intend to continue residing in Ireland after you apply
• You are of good character
• You will attend a citizenship ceremony and make a declaration of fidelity

Note that there may be different requirements for minors under the age of 18 and young adults who are dependent on their parents or guardians.

If you are granted dual citizenship in Ireland, you will typically be granted Stamp 6 immigration permission.

This permission allows you to remain in Ireland indefinitely with full citizenship rights. Some of these rights include:

• The right to vote – this is a significant right for Irish citizens who are able to vote in General elections as well as local elections, European elections, Presidential elections and referendums
• The right to stand for political office
• The ability to serve on a jury if called upon to do so
• Entitled to diplomatic support from Irish embassies etc.

Those who have acquired Irish dual citizenship will also automatically gain EU membership status since Ireland is an EU member state meaning they can:

• Travel freely between EU countries without requiring a visa/being subject to passport controls
• Take up residence in an EU country without having to meet particular criteria
• Take up employment in any EU country without having to acquire special permission

There are numerous benefits to becoming an Irish dual citizen. These include the following:

• The ability to live, work and study in both Ireland and the UK
• The ability to live, work and study across all EU/EEA member states
• The ability to vote in Irish and European elections
• The ability to be elected to the government in Ireland
• Freedom to take advantage of Irish diplomatic support
• The ability to pass on Irish citizenship to your children

Once you have been granted dual Irish citizenship status, you can apply for an Irish passport.

Since 29th March 2016, any first time applicant of an adult passport (who is resident in Ireland) must provide a photocopy of their Public Services Card for identification.

It is no longer a requirement to supply a copy of photographic identification or proof of use of name. However you must still provide proof of address when making your passport application.

Different documentation is required with your passport application depending on how you acquired Irish citizenship.

Get in touch with one of our experienced immigration lawyers in Ireland who can evaluate your specific circumstances to ensure that you provide the relevant documentation.

If you acquired Irish dual citizenship through naturalisation, you must provide:

• Your naturalisation certificate
• Your foreign passport
• Your birth certificate
• Your civil marriage/civil partnership certificate