如何入籍爱尔兰?Become an Irish citizen by naturalisation

入籍爱尔兰申请条件·飞出国

  • 申请人年满18周岁(或未满18周岁的已婚申请人)
  • 符合居留、婚姻或其他可申请入籍的情况的要求,例如:
    • 非欧盟、欧洲经济区国家公民: 作出申请之前在爱尔兰合法居留满一整年(整年无出境记录),且在这一整年之前的8年内居留期累计4年——即申请之前的9年里内至少在爱尔兰居留5年;
    • 爱尔兰公民配偶: 婚姻关系持续3年、共同居住至少3年、申请时年满18岁、作出申请之前在爱尔兰居留满一整年且近5年内在爱尔兰居住至少3年、申请时依然为爱尔兰的合法居民
  • 打算在归化入籍后继续生活在爱尔兰
  • 出具无犯罪证明
  • 参加入籍典礼并宣誓对国家、国民忠诚
  • 未满18周岁的子女可随行入籍

关于双重国籍·飞出国

依据爱尔兰法律规定,爱尔兰国籍申请人无需放弃原有国籍。

Become an Irish citizen by naturalisation

You may be eligible to apply for Irish citizenship by naturalisation if you are living in the State or married to an Irish citizen, as well as other reasons explained below.

If your application is successful you will receive a Certificate of Naturalisation at a Citizenship Ceremony, after making a declaration of fidelity to the nation and loyalty to the State.

Important : There is no guarantee your application will be successful even if you meet all conditions required by law. Applications are decided by the Minister for Justice and Equality who has total discretion when granting citizenship.

1. Eligibility

Eligibility for adults

You can apply for Irish citizenship by naturalisation if you:

  • Are of full age (aged 18 or over, or if aged under 18 you are married) when you apply
  • Meet the conditions for residence, marriage or other (as described below)
  • Intend to continue living in the State
  • Are of good character
  • Will attend a citizenship ceremony and make the declaration of fidelity

Use Form 8 to make your application.

In some circumstances the Minister for Justice and Equality may approve an application for citizenship, even if all the above conditions are not met, for someone who:

  • Is of Irish descent or has Irish associations, or
  • Has been resident abroad in the Irish public service, or
  • Has been declared to be a refugee or stateless as defined by law

‘Irish association’ means being related by blood, affinity or adoption to an Irish citizen, including deceased citizens.

Eligibility for minors (children)

A minor (child) is someone aged under 18 who is not married at the time of application. A child cannot apply by themselves. The application must be made by their parent, legal guardian or a person acting on the child’s behalf ‘in loco parentis’.

The different types of application that can be submitted are:

  • If one of the minor’s parents has already been naturalised (use Form 9)
  • If the minor is of Irish descent or has Irish associations (use Form 10)
  • If the minor was born in the State after 1 January 2005, and was not entitled to Irish citizenship at the time of birth, but has since accumulated 5 years’ reckonable residence (use Form 11)

Eligibility for dependant young adults who are non-EU/EEA & non-Swiss citizens

A ‘dependant young adult’ is someone who depends on their parents for accommodation and general living expenses, ie they do not live independently.

You may apply for citizenship as a dependant young adult if you meet the eligibility requirements for an adult application (as above) and you:

  • Are aged 18-23 when you apply
  • Entered the State legally as part of a family unit
  • Are currently attending secondary school in the State, or you went directly from secondary school into third level education in the State
  • Are continuously dependent on your parents, ie you are not financially independent

Use Form 8 to make your application. If you apply, you should use your parents’ calculation of ‘reckonable residence’ in your application (as below).

Dual citizenship

Under Irish law, you are not required to give up citizenship of another country to become an Irish citizen.

However, some countries do not allow dual citizenship, or place restrictions on it. You should check with the embassies of all countries where you already hold citizenship before applying in Ireland.

2. Application based on residence for non-EU/EEA & non-Swiss nationals

To apply for citizenship by naturalisation based on residence, you must prove that you:

  1. Have been - and are now - legally resident in the State, and
  2. Have built up enough ‘reckonable residence’ in the State

A: Legal residence

You must prove that you have been legally resident in the State for at least 5 years out of the last 9 years. This includes 1 year of continuous residence immediately before the date you apply.

You can do this by showing your immigration permission stamps.

B: Reckonable residence

You must show that you built up enough reckonable residence in the State to be granted citizenship, specifically:

  • 1825 or 1826 days of reckonable residence based on your accumulated permission stamps
  • This includes 365 or 366 days (1 year) of continuous residence immediately before the date you apply

Some types of permission stamp cannot be included when adding up your reckonable residence.

How to calculate reckonable residence

Count backwards from the date that you intend to apply for citizenship.

You must show that you have lived in the State legally for at least 1825 or 1826 days over the last 9 years. This includes:

  • 365 days immediately before the date that you apply (or 366 days if it includes 29 February)
  • Plus 1460 days in the 8 years before the period above (plus 1 day for years that include 29 February)

Use the Naturalisation Residency Calculator to calculate your total time in the State

You must include a print-out of the calculator results (showing your personal reckonable residence) when sending in your application form.

Reckonable residence & registration

Make sure you keep your immigration registration up-to-date (with no gaps) during your residence. If not, your application for citizenship could be refused.

Time gaps between stamps or permissions, could mean you were in the State illegally.

Children aged 16 or over must also register and keep their registration up-to-date.

Note : If you had permission to live in the State but you spent long periods of time abroad, you must explain why or your application may be refused.

3. Application based on residence for UK, EU/EEA & Swiss nationals

To apply for citizenship by naturalisation based on residence, you must prove that you have been resident in the State for at least 5 years (1825 or 1826 days) out of the last 9 years

This includes 1 year (365 or 366 days) of continuous residence immediately before the date you apply.

Do not use the residence calculator to prove your residence in Ireland. You cannot use the calculator because (as a UK, EU/EEA or Swiss national) your passport is not stamped with immigration permission stamps.

Instead, you must send us 3 different documents for each year you claim you were resident here. The type of documents you can and cannot use are listed below.

Documents to use as proof of residence

Note : To apply as a UK, EU/EEA & Swiss national, you must have been a UK, EU/EEA or Swiss national for more than 5 years. If not, you must apply as a non-EU/EEA & non-Swiss national.

4. Application based on marriage or civil partnership to an Irish citizen

You can apply for citizenship by naturalisation if you are married to, or in a civil partnership with, an Irish citizen. To apply, you must meet the eligibility and other requirements listed below.

Eligibility

You must:

  • Have been married to, or in a civil partnership with, an Irish citizen for 3 years
  • Have been (and are now) living together in an ongoing marriage/civil partnership of not less than 3 years
  • Be of full age (18 or over) when you apply

Recognition of civil partnerships registered abroad

You should check that your civil partnership can be recognised by the Irish State before you apply for citizenship.

Civil Partnership Orders determine which foreign civil partnerships are recognised. These orders are issued periodically.

Residence

You must:

  • Have resided on the island of Ireland for at least 3 years out of the last 5 years, including 1 year of continuous residence immediately before the date you apply
  • Be now legally resident on the island of Ireland

Documents

Read the full list of required documents on the application form (Form 8)

You must also submit certified translations of these documents if they are not in the English language.

Find out how to make a certified copy/translation of a document

5. Forms & how to apply

To make an application, download and complete the appropriate form.

Each form contains a guide and checklist to help you.

Find the application form you need & download

IMPORTANT : Make sure you use the latest version of each form when applying. If you complete an old form, it will be returned to you and you will have to start again.

Witness & signature

Do not sign the form until it is complete and you are with someone who can act as a witness. Instructions about who can be a witness are on the form.

After the form has been signed and properly witnessed, return it to us together with any supporting documents or other information.

Make sure you read all guidance carefully. If you submit an application that is incorrect or not fully completed, everything will be returned to you and you may have to start again.

6. Fees

Application fee

A fee of €175 applies for each application. There are no exceptions and fees cannot be waived.

We can only accept a bank draft as payment. The bank draft must be:

  • Drawn on an Irish bank
  • Made payable to Secretary General, Department of Justice and Equality

We cannot accept personal cheques, postal orders or cash. Fees cannot be refunded , even if your application is refused.

Certification fee

If your application is successful, you must pay a certification fee to receive your Certificate of Naturalisation:

  • € 950 = Adult
  • € 200 = Child
  • € 200 = Widow/widower of an Irish citizen
  • € 0 = Recognised refugee or stateless person

We can only accept bank drafts drawn on an Irish bank as payment.
Make the draft payable to Secretary General, Department of Justice and Equality.

Fees must be paid by all applicants (except as shown). There are no exceptions and fees cannot be waived or refunded.

Note : If you are outside the State for longer than 6 weeks after you submit your application, you must notify INIS by letter or email to explain why.

7. After you apply

In general, it takes 6 months for a straightforward application to be processed from the date it is received to the date a decision is made. (Processing times can vary depending on circumstances.)

Your passport will be returned to you when initial processing is complete, about 6 weeks after you submit your application.

If you think you will need your passport during the 6 weeks after you apply (eg for travel), postpone your application until you return and then apply.

You can withdraw your application at any time, but you will not get a fee refund.

Note : If you ask for your passport back before initial processing is complete (ie within 6 weeks after you apply), we will put your application on hold and send your passport to you. When ready, you must return your passport to us for initial processing to continue.

Processing

When we receive your application, we will check that you have:

  • Used the correct (most recent) version of the application form
  • Paid the application fee
  • Completed the statutory declarations on each form
  • Submitted all documents as listed in the form’s Guidance Note

If any documents are missing, you may be given up to 28 days to provide them. If you fail to do so, your application may be deemed ineligible or refused.

  • We will also contact An Garda Síochána and the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB)
  • We may contact other government departments or external agencies for information or reports about you, if necessary
  • We may send your passport for official authentication

We may also contact you to ask for more information or documents.

Submission

When processing is complete, we will prepare a submission on your application for decision by the Minister for Justice and Equality.

There is no guarantee your application will be successful even if you meet all conditions required by law. The Minister has absolute discretion for granting citizenship.

8. Decision & next steps

If your application is successful

We will send you a letter with the Minister’s decision.

To become a citizen, you must then attend a Citizenship Ceremony and make a declaration of fidelity to the nation and loyalty to the State. You will be given your Certificate of Naturalisation at the ceremony.

To complete your application for citizenship and prepare for the ceremony, you must:

Citizenship ceremony

A day of Citizenship Ceremonies is held periodically through the year. You will receive an invitation to your Citizenship Ceremony about 4 to 5 weeks before it is scheduled to occur.

Successful applicants who are children (minors) do not attend a Citizenship Ceremony. They will receive their Certificate of Naturalisation by post.

Public notice

A notice will be published in the official journal Iris Óifigiúil stating that you have been granted a Certificate of Naturalisation. This notice will include your:

  • Name
  • Address
  • Date of your Certificate of Naturalisation
  • Whether you are an adult (aged 18 and over) or a minor

These notices are required to be published by law and are mandatory. There are no exemptions.

Passport

After you become an Irish citizen, you can apply for a passport via the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

If your application is refused

We will advise you of the Minister’s decision and the reasons your application was refused.

There is no appeal process and you will not get a refund of any fees.

You can re-apply for citizenship by naturalisation at any time. When doing so, you should pay careful attention to the reasons your previous application was refused.

Loss of citizenship

Citizenship by naturalisation can be revoked in some circumstances, eg if you concealed facts or made misrepresentations in your application.

You can also voluntarily renounce your citizenship.

Note : The information on this page is for guidance only. Read the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Acts for a complete description of citizenship by naturalisation.