As a lawyer who has advised private clients on both Canadian and Irish immigration and citizenship for more than 8 years, it felt particularly poignant to receive Irish citizenship by naturalization in December 2024. I joined a group of approximately 6,000 other applicants at the Gleneagle INEC Arena in Killarney, Kerry for the citizenship ceremony, marking the culmination of a long journey for myself and my fellow newly conferred Irish citizens.
In this article, I'll outline the process of applying for Irish citizenship by naturalization, to include recent improvements made by the Department of Justice (the "Department"), together with interesting statistics relating to Irish citizenship and passport applications. As a new Irish citizen, I'm happy to share my experience and offer my insights to help streamline your application to make Ireland your official new home.
Eligibility to Apply
To be eligible for Irish citizenship through naturalisation, an adult applicant applying, must meet the relevant conditions of residence, intend to reside in Ireland after they become a citizen, be of good character, and be willing to attend a citizenship ceremony where they will need to make a declaration of fidelity to the Irish state.
For the residency requirements, an adult applicant must have had a period of one year's continuous residence in Ireland immediately before the date of the application and, during the eight years immediately preceding that period, a total residence in Ireland amounting to four years (either consecutive or non-consecutive). For the period of one year's continuous residence, an applicant can be absent from Ireland for up to 70 days, with an additional 30-day absence permissible in exceptional cases at the Minister for Justice's (the "Minister") discretion. The recent legislative amendments regarding permissible absences from Ireland whilst accruing "reckonable residence" for Irish citizenship has reduced uncertainty for applicants. As an example, in my case, where I had been outside Ireland for a few weeks while on maternity leave in 2022, to avoid any issues occurring on this point, I chose to wait a few extra months before submitting my citizenship application.
Finally, before applying for Irish citizenship, you should check any prohibition on holding other citizenships in conjunction with your current citizenship.
Proof of Residency in Ireland
As part of the application process, an applicant must show proof of residency for each year of residence claimed. This involves submitting specified document types (where each document has a different score value) in accordance with the Department's "citizenship scorecard system" until an applicant reaches a required score of 150 points per year. The document types are outlined by the Department in a "Citizenship Guidance Document" and include:
- Bank statements.
- Utility bills.
- Letters from the Residential Tenancies Board or from a hospital.
- Official correspondence from local or national government regarding local property tax or social welfare payments
An applicant must provide one "Type A" document (worth 100 points) and one "Type B" document (worth 50 points) for each year of residence, where the applicant's name, home address, and date must be clearly shown. In my case, I included a signed rental agreement, an employment details summary document, and internet bills showing my address for each year of residence. Applicants should take their time to collate these documents by each year, to make it easier to review the application as this is where errors can occur which will cause processing delays.
Proof of Identity
An applicant must also show proof of identity which again operates in accordance with the Department's "citizenship scorecard system", although it is much more straightforward. The identity documents can include an applicant's passport, Irish Residence Permit ("IRP") card and driving licence, all of which must be valid.
Applying Online
As of 2023, citizenship applications are submitted online via the Immigration Service Delivery (ISD) Portal, being the portal that applicants also use to renew their IRP cards. Documents are uploaded online and categorized by type for easy reference. In all instances, original documents are not required, although certain documents will need to be certified. This allows an applicant to retain their original documents in case they need to travel in and out of Ireland.
There is also an initial application fee of €175 which is also paid via the ISD Portal.
Garda e-Vetting Check
As part of the online application process, an applicant must detail all offences, if any, including convictions, regardless of whether they occurred in Ireland, or elsewhere, or when they occurred. Once the online application is submitted, adult applicants must undergo Garda e-vetting and/or other police vetting in another jurisdiction, as deemed necessary. The information provided in the e-vetting report will be cross-referenced with the citizenship application. The Department sends the e-vetting notification by email (so keep an eye on your inbox and spam folder).
Other requests for further information may also come through at any point during the process, including requests for further documents or information. Once the application has been approved, the applicant must pay a certification fee of €950 and this can also be paid through the portal.
The Ceremony
Where an applicant's citizenship application is successful, the Department will send an email to them confirming this and inviting them to attend a citizenship ceremony, with specified dates and locations being provided. An applicant must opt for a date and location and must bring certain documents to the ceremony, including a printed copy of the email invitation, current passport, IRP card or travel document, and a printed copy of the declaration of fidelity (to be signed at the ceremony in front of Department staff).
At the ceremony, applicants collectively take an oath of fidelity to the Irish nation, pledging to respect Ireland's rights, freedoms, and laws. A judge presides over the ceremony, and generally there are a few welcome speeches to celebrate Ireland's newest citizens.
In my own case, my ceremony was scheduled for 5pm on a Monday in Killarney, Kerry. As a Dublin resident, I decided to take a couple days off and treat the ceremony as an occasion to celebrate and reflect. The train to Killarney was packed with other citizenship ceremony attendees of all ages, and there was a feeling of nervousness and excitement. We were greeted in Killarney that morning by a lot of smiling faces offering directions and were provided with bus transport directly to the ceremony venue; a bit of a relief I'm sure for the young family of 4 that I was sitting next to on the train.
Citizenship Certificate
After the Citizenship ceremony, individuals can expect to receive their Naturalization Certificates by post; in my case, mine arrived by post approximately 5 weeks later. While attending the citizenship ceremony does in fact make an individual automatically an Irish citizen, there is still a separate process to apply for a physical Irish passport.
The passport process takes approximately 8 weeks, and recently naturalized applicants living in Ireland are required to submit documents including but not limited to:
- The identity verification form.
- Original Naturalization Certificate.
- Full original civil birth certificate.
- Proof of name and proof of address documentation.
- Original passport from another country.
- Photocopy of Public Services card (also known as a PPS card) or certified copy of driver's licence.
Recent Improvements & Overall Processing Times
Over the past 12 months, the Department has made significant improvements to the citizenship by naturalisation process resulting in 30,000 decisions being made in 2024, as compared to 20,000 decisions made in 2023. Similarly, in 2024, over 1 million passports were issued and as of March 2025, the Passport Service issued over 175,000 passports. The main improvement was moving the process online, but also included streamlining the supporting documents process.
While the official processing time for citizenship applications is currently posted as 19 months, my experience was quicker. I applied in Spring 2024 and became a citizen on 2 December 2024. More complicated cases, of course, require more documents and letters of explanation, and could result in longer processing times.
Applying for citizenship was one of the most significant steps I've taken in my life. Several friends asked me if I "feel" any different, and while it's early days, I do feel a growing sense of ownership and responsibility for this new country I call home.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
