Obtaining Irish citizenship via ancestry
May 9, 2022 12:52 PM Subscribe
As you may know Ireland allows people who were born in the US to Irish citizens to become Irish citizens themselves. I was wondering if anyone could share their personal experiences with this process.
Imagine that you're talking to someone at a party or something, and they say something like, my dad was born in N. Ireland but became a US citizen as an adult, and now with everything going on, you know...
So you talk to them a little more and you find out that this person has a big blank place in their mind that looks like this:
1. They look at the website and it seems like they meet the criteria to be able to participate in this process.
2. Rustling up their parents' various documents (???) and inputting them into some website
3. ?????
4. Profit? Where "profit" = they actually move to Ireland and start a life there?
What about their spouse, who has no connection to Ireland at all? What about getting a job? How does it all work?
Interested in stories that have a beginning, middle, and end along these lines.
Imagine that you're talking to someone at a party or something, and they say something like, my dad was born in N. Ireland but became a US citizen as an adult, and now with everything going on, you know...
So you talk to them a little more and you find out that this person has a big blank place in their mind that looks like this:
1. They look at the website and it seems like they meet the criteria to be able to participate in this process.
2. Rustling up their parents' various documents (???) and inputting them into some website
3. ?????
4. Profit? Where "profit" = they actually move to Ireland and start a life there?
What about their spouse, who has no connection to Ireland at all? What about getting a job? How does it all work?
Interested in stories that have a beginning, middle, and end along these lines.
If the person's father was born on the island of Ireland before 2005 and was an Irish citizen at the time of the person's birth (i.e. which I'm fairly sure means did not renounce it. I don't think they actually need to have had the passport then), then the person is automatically an Irish citizen and can apply for a passport online at https://www.dfa.ie/passportonline/
They will probably need to provide a birth certificate for their father and some other documentation.
posted by knapah at 1:19 PM on May 9, 2022 [4 favorites]
They will probably need to provide a birth certificate for their father and some other documentation.
posted by knapah at 1:19 PM on May 9, 2022 [4 favorites]
I went through the process of obtaining Irish derivative citizenship (in my case, via my grandfather) a few years ago. In my case it took about 18 months from application to completion. Getting all the paperwork was a bit of a pain, as you might imagine. If your connection to Ireland passes through a living relative, you'll probably need to have that relative request the relevant paperwork (official copies birth/marriage certificates)—I don't think you can request those for other living people yourself, although maybe that varies by state.
posted by adamrice at 1:24 PM on May 9, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by adamrice at 1:24 PM on May 9, 2022 [1 favorite]
After 30 years living in the Republic, I got on the Foreign Birth Register in December 2019 exactly a year after I submitted all the paperwork. I vindicated the right through my maternal Scottish granny, who was born in Limerick but only stayed for two years in the 1890s. My paternal grandfather who served the Free State from 1922-1947 wouldn't work for the purpose because no birth cert could be turned up. It took a while to acquire copies of three generations of birth, marriage and death certs from two different jurisdictions. I can well imagine that the lag time has increased, as indicated by DarlingBri, through Brexit and other demand. FBR is cheaper than citizenship by naturalization and is quicker than 5 years even including getting all your certs in a row.
My son was born in the Republic before the racist referendum of 11 June 2004 that denied citizenship by right of birth on the island, limiting the right to the children of Irish citizens. So it was straightforward for his two children, born in England since then and still domiciled there to get Irish passports.
posted by BobTheScientist at 1:50 PM on May 9, 2022 [2 favorites]
My son was born in the Republic before the racist referendum of 11 June 2004 that denied citizenship by right of birth on the island, limiting the right to the children of Irish citizens. So it was straightforward for his two children, born in England since then and still domiciled there to get Irish passports.
posted by BobTheScientist at 1:50 PM on May 9, 2022 [2 favorites]
I got on the FBR a few years ago. It took a looooong time to gather documents as my mother and grandmother are dead. That was the most arduous part, as far as I was concerned. Getting everything notarized/signed was harder, too, as my local police station had absolutely no idea what I was talking about and had no desire to help. I ended up getting my application photos signed and verified by the head of the University Police where I work. As I remember, you can have a number of different individuals sign the photo and verify your identity-- people like religious leaders, lawyers, etc. They will call to talk to this person-- they did call the Chief. My documentation (grandmother's birth certificate, mom's, mine, etc.) came back to me in the mail very quickly once I obtained the letter letting me know I was now on the FBR. That is an important piece of paper-- don't lose it.
Sending in the documentation and paying was easy and mostly painless. It is expensive.
Repeat signing and doing the runaround for passport photos. It does not appear to be so, but you CAN have a notary do this. I think for the passport part of this, I had to send in a bunch of documentation of my residence here in the States-- electric bills and the like. The passport came very quickly (they all go to Ireland now, I believe). I remember Fed Ex brought the passport to my home and I had to be there with an ID to accept.
posted by oflinkey at 2:16 PM on May 9, 2022 [1 favorite]
Sending in the documentation and paying was easy and mostly painless. It is expensive.
Repeat signing and doing the runaround for passport photos. It does not appear to be so, but you CAN have a notary do this. I think for the passport part of this, I had to send in a bunch of documentation of my residence here in the States-- electric bills and the like. The passport came very quickly (they all go to Ireland now, I believe). I remember Fed Ex brought the passport to my home and I had to be there with an ID to accept.
posted by oflinkey at 2:16 PM on May 9, 2022 [1 favorite]
Because of Brexit, many, many people in the UK have applied for Irish passports, so that they still have access to the privileges of being in the EU. Hence, the backlog. My old work friend did this for herself and her son. No stories really, but it's nice to be able to choose the shortest queue at the airport customs by choosing which passport you want to use.
posted by Bee'sWing at 3:20 PM on May 9, 2022
posted by Bee'sWing at 3:20 PM on May 9, 2022
What if it was my great grandmother who was born in Ireland? She moved to the US and her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren (me) were all born in the US and never claimed Irish citizenship. And they are all dead. I'm out of luck, aren't I?
posted by CathyG at 8:55 PM on May 9, 2022
posted by CathyG at 8:55 PM on May 9, 2022
I can state from personal experience that knapah has it right for someone whose father was born on the island of Ireland prior to 2005.
I was born in the US. My father was born in Northern Ireland and not only did he not have an Irish passport then, he never had one at all (he only ever held a British passport), but as he was entitled to Irish citizenship, I've been an Irish citizen since birth. When I applied for my first passport in 2009, the only document I had to provide to prove this (discounting those proving my own identity, of course) was his full original civil birth certificate.
posted by Strutter Cane - United Planets Stilt Patrol at 1:34 AM on May 10, 2022 [4 favorites]
I was born in the US. My father was born in Northern Ireland and not only did he not have an Irish passport then, he never had one at all (he only ever held a British passport), but as he was entitled to Irish citizenship, I've been an Irish citizen since birth. When I applied for my first passport in 2009, the only document I had to provide to prove this (discounting those proving my own identity, of course) was his full original civil birth certificate.
posted by Strutter Cane - United Planets Stilt Patrol at 1:34 AM on May 10, 2022 [4 favorites]
What if it was my great grandmother who was born in Ireland? She moved to the US and her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren (me) were all born in the US and never claimed Irish citizenship. And they are all dead. I'm out of luck, aren't I?
Have a look at this website and answer the questions at the bottom. It's possible, but very conditional and definitely not guaranteed.
posted by knapah at 5:57 AM on May 10, 2022 [1 favorite]
Have a look at this website and answer the questions at the bottom. It's possible, but very conditional and definitely not guaranteed.
posted by knapah at 5:57 AM on May 10, 2022 [1 favorite]
5. In case you don't get around to moving to Ireland in the timeframe you first imagined, keep your passport up to date. Waiting too long after expiration means resubmitting/re-applying with paperwork by mail, rather than a simple online renewal.
posted by brachiopod at 11:37 AM on May 10, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by brachiopod at 11:37 AM on May 10, 2022 [1 favorite]
My grandparents were born in Ireland and I'm entitled to register my birth on the foreign births register and so claim citizenship. One of my siblings has done this, you need to collect a lot of birth, marriage and death certificates. I may get around to it at some point.
However, if your parent was born in Ireland and was an Irish citizen at the time of your birth then you already are an Irish citizen. You can just apply for an Irish passport in the same way that you might apply for a passport in your other nationality. A couple of friends have done this and found it very straightforward. You will need to collect some birth/marriage/death certificates for this.
In terms of profiting, not only can you move to Ireland as an Irish citizen, but you have rights within the EU and broadly speaking can move to any EU country to look for work, or to retire. A spouse of an EU citizen also has similar rights. Similarly in some ways, by virtue of the Common Travel Agreement, an Irish citizen has the right to live and work (and vote in many elections) in the UK. The main difference in this case is that their spouse would need a family visa to join them and these have income restrictions and are not cheap. Even if you don't want to move to Europe, if you visit you don't need to get a Schengen visa, although you would be advised to take both passports with you to avoid having issues on entry in either place.
posted by plonkee at 4:42 PM on May 10, 2022 [2 favorites]
However, if your parent was born in Ireland and was an Irish citizen at the time of your birth then you already are an Irish citizen. You can just apply for an Irish passport in the same way that you might apply for a passport in your other nationality. A couple of friends have done this and found it very straightforward. You will need to collect some birth/marriage/death certificates for this.
In terms of profiting, not only can you move to Ireland as an Irish citizen, but you have rights within the EU and broadly speaking can move to any EU country to look for work, or to retire. A spouse of an EU citizen also has similar rights. Similarly in some ways, by virtue of the Common Travel Agreement, an Irish citizen has the right to live and work (and vote in many elections) in the UK. The main difference in this case is that their spouse would need a family visa to join them and these have income restrictions and are not cheap. Even if you don't want to move to Europe, if you visit you don't need to get a Schengen visa, although you would be advised to take both passports with you to avoid having issues on entry in either place.
posted by plonkee at 4:42 PM on May 10, 2022 [2 favorites]
This thread is closed to new comments.
What about their spouse, who has no connection to Ireland at all? What about getting a job? How does it all work?
So I am that spouse, and can offer some insight. You literally just get on a plane and move here; if you're from the US you don't even need a travel visa. There is no application process because the spouses of Irish citizens are legally entitled to lrish residency. Once you get here you have like 10 days or something to register as an resident at the local garda station. You do this in person and they give you what's called a Stamp 4 Visa. With this you can legally work here, get public healthcare, and it says you cannot avail of public welfare but you absolutely can.
After 5 years, you can apply for citizenship yourself, and with your shiny new EU passport, live anywhere in the EU you'd like. Huzzah!
posted by DarlingBri at 1:09 PM on May 9, 2022 [17 favorites]