Ireland · Citizenship by naturalisation
Naturalisation
Open
Last verified
Open. There is no language test, which is unusual in Europe and a genuine advantage.
No language test, no integration exam, and a common-law legal system in English. On paper, Ireland has the least demanding naturalisation process in Western Europe. The real obstacle comes earlier. Getting a reckonable immigration permission in the first place is now genuinely hard for non-EEA families.
The facts
- Minimum
- €175
- Total landed cost
- EUR 175 application fee plus a certification fee of up to EUR 950 on approval
- Route type
- By residence
- Timeline
- 1–2.5 years (Processing has historically been slow. The Department has been working through a large backlog.)
- Physical presence
- 1 year of continuous reckonable residence immediately before the application, plus 4 further years of reckonable residence in the preceding 8 — 5 years out of the last 9
- Family
- Spouses of Irish citizens qualify after 3 years of marriage and 3 years of reckonable residenceChildren can be included in certain circumstances
- Permanent residency
- Long-term residence becomes available after 5 years on eligible stamps
- Citizenship
- 5 years reckonable residence out of the last 9
- Language test
- None. Ireland imposes no language requirement for naturalisation.
- Dual citizenship
- Permitted
- Requirements
- 5 years reckonable residence in the last 9, including 1 continuous year immediately before applyinggood characterintention to continue residing in Irelandno language or integration test
What can go wrong
- Reckonable is the word that decides everything here. Student time does not count, and Stamp 0 time is generally not reckonable either. Check the Immigration Service Delivery residency calculator against your actual stamp history before you assume the clock is running.
- The 1-year continuous residence immediately before the application is strict. Absences in that final year can reset it.
- Processing times are long and have historically been unpredictable.
- Naturalisation makes you an Irish citizen. It does not make you Irish-domiciled. The non-dom remittance basis can survive naturalisation. But the longer you live in Ireland, and the deeper your ties, the harder a foreign domicile claim becomes to defend.