Visa Information

• Residents of the EU do not require a visa to enter Ireland.
• In addition, residents of some 60 other countries do not need a visa.
• In most cases a valid passport is sufficient for a stay of up to 3 months.
• Before arriving in Ireland, a visitor should make sure that his/her passport is valid for at least another 6 months.
• In the case of countries that require an entry visa into Ireland, the visa is usually valid for a period of 6 - 12 months.

A work permit in Ireland is NOT REQUIRED in the following cases:

• Training in Ireland - Workers who come to Ireland for professional training that does not exceed 3 years, must be equipped with a legal authorization from their overseas employer as well as from the body that will host them in Ireland.
• A worker of a multi-national company - Employees of multi-national companies who come to Ireland for up to 4 years must have a letter from the multi-national company administration.
• The spouse of an Irish resident.
• The parent of an Irish resident.

Passports are required for everyone when entering Ireland except EU nationals who are only required to produce evidence of their EU nationality and identity in order to be admitted to any EU Member State. This evidence can take the form of a valid national passport or national identity card. Either is acceptable

To apply for visas please contact your nearest Irish Embassy or Consulate or download application forms from The Department Of Foreign Affairs Ireland Web Site

Following a move in January 2006 the Irish Government gave responsibility for immigration and visa matters to the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS), an agency that operates within the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform.

Filmmakers from certain countries are required to carry visas with them to allow them entry to Ireland. For a full list of countries whose members need a visa to travel to Ireland (see section 2.1 below).  

1.1 Countries whose passport holding citizens do not require a visa to enter Ireland are Andorra, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Barbados, Belgium, Belize, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominica, El Salvador, Estonia, Fiji, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Hong Kong (Special Administrative Region – see section 1.3 below) Hungary, Iceland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kiribati, Latvia, Lesotho, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macau (Special Administrative Region), Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Malta, Mauritius, Mexico, Monaco, Nauru, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Paraguay, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Saint Kitts & Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent & The Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Seychelles, Singapore, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tonga, Trinidad & Tobago, Tuvalu, United Kingdom & Dependent Territories (noted in section 1.2), United States of America, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Vatican City and Venezuela.

1.2 The aforementioned British Dependent Territories are as follows: Anguilla, Bermuda, British Antarctic Territory (South Georgia, South Sandwich Islands), British Indian Ocean Territories (Chagos Archipelago, Peros Banos, Diego Garcia, Danger Island), Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands and Dependencies, Gibraltar, Pitcairn (Henderson, Ducie and Oneno Islands), St. Helena and Dependencies (Ascension Island, Tristan Da Cunha), The Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekila, Turks and Caicos Island and the British Virgin Islands 

1.3 Where Hong Kong Sar is concerned a person in possession of a Hong Kong certificate of identity requires an entry visa in order to gain entry to Ireland.

1.4 Persons who are holders of a British Hong Kong Passport who have a right of abode in Great Britain do not require entry visas. Persons who are holders of a British Hong Kong Passport who have a right of abode in Hong Kong only do not require entry visas but they are subject to full foreign national controls in respect of registration, permission to remain, work permits etc. 

1.5 Visas are not required by persons who are holders of Convention travel documents issued by the following countries: Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.  

1.6 Applicants who are holders of Convention travel documents issued by EEA states should refer to Article 3 of the Irish Immigration Act 2004 (Visas) (No. 2) Order 2009 which states that: 

3. It is hereby declared that the following classes of non-nationals are specified
as classes, the members of which are not required to be in possession of a
valid Irish visa when landing in the State:

(a) Nationals of a state or territorial entity specified in Schedule 1;

(b) Non-nationals who are holders of—

(i) A valid Convention travel document issued by Belgium, Czech
Republic, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Italy,
Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway,
Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovak Republic, Spain, Sweden, or
Switzerland and where the intended purpose of the travel to the
State by the holder of such a travel document is solely for a visit
of up to a maximum period of 3 months,

(ii) A valid permanent residence card issued under Regulation 16 of
the Regulations of 2006, or
Notice of the making of this Statutory Instrument was published in
“Iris Oifigiúil” of 27th November, 2009.

(iii) A valid residence card issued under Regulation 7 of the Regulations
of 2006.

2.1 Transit Visas are required by citizens of the following countries:
Afghanistan, Albania, Cuba, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Ghana, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Moldova, Montenegro, Nigeria, Serbia, Somalia, Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe.

2.2 An Online Visa Application Form is available. All applications for an Irish Visa should be made using this Online Application Form which can be found if you click here.   

3.1 The only exception to this is an application for a Re-entry Visa for individuals already residing in the State. For a re-entry visa application form click here (PDF).