You acquire Irish citizenship through birth, descent or naturalisation.
This piece will look at how to become an Irish citizen through naturalisation which is how a foreign national living in Ireland can become an Irish citizen.
All application for Irish citizenship must be approved by the Minister for Justice and Equality.
Are you Eligible for Irish Citizenship?
To become an Irish citizenship through naturalisation you need
- To be at least 18 years of age
- Be a person of good character (an Garda Siochana will provide a report about your background)
- To have lived in Ireland for 1 year prior to your application for naturalisation and, in addition, you must have lived in Ireland for 4 years of the previous 8 years prior to your application. So you need to have lived in Ireland for at least 5 years out of the last 9 years
- To intend to remain in Ireland
- To make declaration of fidelity and loyalty to Ireland and pledge to observe the laws of Ireland
Self Supporting?
You must prove that you can support yourself and your family while living in Ireland. You do this by demonstrating that you have not received any state support in the 3 years prior to your application.
How the Application for Naturalisation is Dealt With
Your application for naturalisation needs to pass an initial processing stage. You should know within 1 week whether you are successful at this stage or not.
If it has passed the initial stage, your application will be processed within about 6 months.
If your application is then approved you will be given a letter setting out the documentation you will require before the certificate of naturalisation is issued to you.
Once this certificate of naturalisation is issued, you are an Irish citizen from the date of the certificate.
Fees
The initial application fee for applying for naturalisation is €175.
If you are successful and a certificate of naturalisation is to be issued the fee at this stage is €950 or €200 for a minor or widow/widower/surviving civil partner of an Irish citizen.
If you need assistance with any aspect of becoming an Irish citizen, please contact us through the form below or call.