Short Stay 'C' Visa Ireland

If you are a citizen of an EU/EEA country, or if you’re a citizen of Switzerland, you will not need to apply for a visa to enter Ireland and you will not need to register for permission to enter when you arrive. Ireland is a part of the European Single Market, which is an arrangement enabling free movement of people within these areas.

Also, citizens of certain other countries will not need to apply for a visa if they are only staying in Ireland for a period of up to 90 days. It is important to note that citizens of these particular countries will still need to register for permission to enter in order to be permitted entry into the country, in contrast to citizens of Switzerland or a country in the EU/EEA.

If you are a citizen of a country which does not fall into any of these categories, you will need to apply for a form of short stay visa if you want to travel to Ireland.

Tourist visa

The Tourist Visa is for those who wish to travel to Ireland for a period of up to 90 days for the purposes of tourism. You can also apply for a tourist visa if you want to study a short-term course at a recognised institution, such as an English language course.

Business visa

This is for activities related to your job. It allows you to attend meetings and to negotiate or sign agreements or contracts. You are permitted to work for up to 14 days with the Business Visa.

Family or friends visa

The Short Stay Family/Friends Visa can be applied for if you want to travel to Ireland for up to 90 days to visit family or friends who are Irish residents.

The Conference or Event Visa allows you to travel to Ireland to attend a conference or other related event in the fields of business or academia.

Employment (Atypical Working Scheme) visa

With the Employment (Atypical Working Scheme) visa, you can take up short term employment in Ireland if you have been given approval from the Atypical Working Scheme Division.

Exam visa

The Exam Visa enables you to travel to Ireland for up to 90 days for the purposes of sitting an exam which is necessary for your current employment or course of study.

You will not be given an exam visa if your exam is not deemed to be necessary.

Internship visa

If you are required to undertake an internship as part of your studies, you can apply for the Internship Visa.

Join Ship visa

This visa is designed for those wish to come to Ireland to work as a seafarer on a ship which is departing from Ireland.

You can apply for the Marriage Visa after you have received an acknowledgement from the Registrar which confirms the date of your receipt of notification of your intention to marry/enter into a civil partnership.

Medical treatment visa

A Medical Treatment Visa enables you to come to Ireland for a medical procedure in a private hospital, under certain conditions.

Performance or Tournament visa

With this visa, you can come to Ireland for up to 90 days to stage a performance, such as a music or theatre performance, or to take part in a competitive tournament such as a sporting event.

Training visa

The Training Visa enables you to enter the country to attend a training course. Your training course must be arranged, and paid for, by a company you work for, or an organisation which you belong to.

Visa for non-EU/EEA & non-Swiss citizen travelling with EU/EEA/Swiss family

If you are a non-EU/EEA/Swiss national and wish to travel to Ireland to accompany an EU/EEA/Swiss citizen who is moving to or residing in Ireland, you will be eligible for this visa.

The specific requirements which you need to fulfil depends on the particular short stay visa you are applying for.

Still, regardless of the particular short stay visa you are applying for, there are are a few universal points which immigration officials will assess in your short stay visa application.

These include:

• Whether you will leave Ireland within the 90-day period
• Whether you have proof of onward travel from Ireland
• That you have enough money to sustain you during your time in Ireland (or that the person sponsoring you does), meaning you will not require access to Irish public funds
• That you won’t breach the Common Travel Area by seeking to enter the UK via Ireland without a UK visa
• A consideration of your immigration history, including whether you have made any serious breaches of Irish or UK immigration law
• Whether you have a history of any serious crimes

Any attempt to mislead the Department of Justice & Equality through the submission of false documentation will result in your application being refused, and possible further ramifications.

In some cases, you could be banned from applying for an Irish visa for five years if you are found to have deliberately mislead the Department of Justice & Equality.

The documents which need to be provided depends on the short stay visa you are applying for.

Still, there are a number of documents which you will almost certainly need to provide with any short stay visa application including:

• Application summary sheet from the online application
• An application letter explaining why you want to travel to Ireland
• Your passport and a photocopy of each page from previous passports, if possible
• Two passport-sized colour photographs with your signature and Visa Application Tracking Number on the back of each of them
• Information on your accommodation plan in Ireland
• Information on your financial plan whilst in Ireland
• Proof that you will return home from Ireland

The documents must also be in accordance with official guidelines set by the Department of Justice & Equality, which are:

• Documents must be provided in their original form. Photocopies are not accepted, except where stated
• Any letters from companies, schools, universities and colleges must be on official headed paper
• Documents which are not in English or Irish must be fully translated by a certified translator. You need to provide both the original documents and the translated ones

For expert guidance on the documents which you will need to provide in your visa application, please do not hesitate to contact us on (+353) 061 518 025.

The steps to apply for the Ireland Short Stay “C” visa are as follows:

1. Ensure that you meet all of the eligibility criteria for the visa and that you have all necessary supporting documents to hand.
2. Visit the AVATS online visa portal.
3. Start to fill in the online application with your personal details and details of the visa you wish to apply for. In this instance, you should select the ‘Short Stay (C)’ visa type and select the relevant reason for travel (e.g. “conference/event”, “Exam”, “Marriage”, etc)
4. When you’ve finished filling in the application, ensure you take a note of your visa application transaction number.
5. Print out, sign and date the application summary sheets. These should then be sent to one of the following as noted on the summary sheet:
   • The Dublin visa office
   • An international visa office
   • An Irish embassy or consulate
6. Pay the application fee. How you pay this fee will vary based on the application office you send your application to.

Short Stay “C” visas typically take around 8 weeks to process.

However, note that the specific time it takes to process your visa may well vary depending on the visa office. In addition, external factors such as busy periods of the year or particularly complex pieces may mean that it takes longer to process your application.

If you’ve submitted your application to an Irish embassy, you may be able to view updated decision times via the Visa Processing Times and Weekly Decision Reports.

Once you have completed your summary sheet, you will need to pay the application fee.

• €60 for a single-entry short stay C visa
• €100 for a multi entry short stay C visa

Do note that there could be extra charges with the application, such as consular fees. You will also need to take into account the cost of professional translation of any of your documents.

Once the DFE has processed your application, your original documents will be returned to you.

If your application is approved, your Irish visa will be stamped in your passport and you will be able to travel to Ireland.

If your visa application is rejected, you will be sent a letter of refusal. This letter will outline the reasons why your application has been rejected and also let you know if you’re eligible for an appeal.

If you choose to appeal your refusal, you must do so within 2 months of receiving your letter of refusal.

When appealing the refusal, you must write a letter clearly outlining the reasons why you think the decision should be overturned, citing the original reason for refusal and offering any new information that might help your case.

This letter should then be sent to the address stated on the refusal letter.

Technically, an Irish visa does not guarantee that you will be permitted entry to Ireland – it simply permits you to travel to Ireland freely.

When you arrive in Ireland, you will need to report to an immigration officer at border control.

You will need to show your passport, visa and other relevant documents. You ought to bring photocopies of documents from your application including your application summary sheet, application letter and proof of your financial situation.

If the immigration officer is satisfied with your documents, you will be given official permission to enter, and a landing stamp will be placed in your passport.

On the other hand, you could be refused entry into the country if the immigration officer has any concerns with your proposed entry.

Can I extend my short stay visa?

You cannot extend short stay visas in Ireland unless there are unforeseen, very exceptional circumstances. Ordinarily, you must leave the country no later than 90 days after your date of entry into the country.

You will need to apply for a form of long visa after you have left Ireland in order to stay for longer than 90 days.