Ireland is a country with a rich history. Moreover, the state has always remained aloof from large-scale political events. This is a country of fiery dances, green and St. Patrick, which has always attracted a lot of attention from tourists and emigrants from around the world. The abundance of attractions, hospitality and the fact that an Irish visa gives you the right to travel without a visa throughout the Schengen area have made it one of the favorite countries among admirers of old Europe.
Benefits of Emigrating to Ireland
Despite the fact that it rains more days in the year in Ireland, the climate here is quite mild. The local population almost never saw wars, which can not be said about other countries. Ireland has a very low crime rate, and the level of education and health, on the contrary, is very high. Also, the advantages of living here include fairly low prices for housing and food, high social protection of the population and a decent level of wages.
Another nice bonus for an expat will be the possibility of obtaining dual citizenship in Ireland. The laws adopted by the authorities of this country in 2017 allow a person not to give up old citizenship. Diplomats do not consider it necessary to notify the consulates of other countries of the acquisition of Irish citizenship by someone. Thus, you can have two passports. In addition, the main state language here is English, and it is not difficult for a modern person to learn it. To become a resident of this country, you must know how to obtain citizenship of Ireland.
How to get Irish citizenship
There are several options for obtaining citizenship:
- Marriage with a citizen of Ireland.
- Obtaining citizenship by birth.
- By blood (if the parents of children born outside the state are Irish).
- Adaptation.
- Naturalization.
A marriage union with a citizen of this country gives the right to obtain Irish citizenship, but only if the couple have lived together for more than three years. When choosing this method, it is better not to abuse the trust of the government and not to enter into fictitious relations, because consular checks are very frequent here.
If such a couple has a child, then he will also receive citizenship of this country, but only if the couple has lived here for more than three or four years. Just giving birth in Ireland does not guarantee citizenship to the newborn. A child is also recognized as a citizen if one of his parents is a citizen of Great Britain or if one of his ancestors lives in one of these two countries (Great Britain or Ireland).
However, acquiring Irish citizenship by ancestors is the most ineffective way, since it is available to a very narrow circle of people or entails additional financial expenses - to compose a family tree.
Adaptation involves the adoption of a child by parents, at least one of whom has Irish citizenship, and then Ireland will also become the birthplace of the baby.
Naturalization
The most convenient and natural way to obtain Irish citizenship is through naturalization. In order to go through the process of naturalization, it is necessary:
- for the last eight years at least four years to be in the country;
- be over eighteen years old;
- have no criminal record and stay in Ireland for twelve months before submitting documents to the consulate.
In addition, a person who wishes to obtain Irish citizenship must take an oath of allegiance to the people of the state.
Another way to obtain citizenship is to obtain a temporary residence permit. To do this, you need to find a job in the Irish company that matches the education. You can start your own business (only it should be profitable), and if successful, after five years you can become a full citizen of the country.
Citizenship Fee
The state fee for obtaining Irish citizenship is 200 euros for minors. For other persons, paperwork will cost 950 euros.
List of documents
The list of documents required for obtaining citizenship includes:
- 4 photos;
- copy of internal passport;
- international passport;
- birth certificate;
- Marriage certificate;
- autobiography (a sample can be found on the official website of the Embassy of Ireland);
- certificate of no criminal record;
- medical certificate on the absence of dangerous diseases and mental disorders.
The entire package of documents must be certified by a notary and translated into English, only after that you can apply for citizenship.
Citizenship Rules
The procedure for obtaining Irish citizenship is quite complicated, close attention is paid to the correctness of filling out documents. People with fairly similar life stories may have different results. In order to avoid such problems, there are quite a few agencies that provide services for the collection and correct filling of documents for citizenship.
In total, to obtain Irish citizenship, you need to collect all the necessary papers and submit to the Irish Embassy. After checking the papers, which usually takes from one to three calendar months, a written response is received. If it is positive, a questionnaire survey with embassy staff will be assigned. And only six months after that, a decision will be made on the issue of citizenship.
This important decision can only be made by the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ireland. If it is accepted in favor of the applicant, a certificate is issued that gives the right to receive an identity card of a citizen of the country. An application for an Irish passport is filed at any passport office located closest to the applicant.