Overstaying VISA for just Two Days

October 21, 2010 1:05 AM

I'm about to overstay my Holiday Visa in Ireland for just two days. How much trouble am I going to encounter?

The Visa is until October 30th, and my flight leaves on November 1st at 2pm, back to the United States.

I've tried to find a similar situation via magical googles, but no luck.

posted by gcbv to society & culture (14 answers total)

This page says:

NOTE: Failure to observe the conditions of your visa, or to overstay will have implications for any future visa applications you make, or may have implications for your reference

So at the very least you may have issues visiting Ireland again.
posted by EndsOfInvention at 1:24 AM on October 21, 2010

Well, your ethnic and religious background may have an impact on the extent of the negative consequences.
posted by bardophile at 2:33 AM on October 21, 2010 [3 favorites]

I'd be surprised if you got in much trouble on the way out. For future travel to Ireland, you'll find out if it's going to be held against you the next time you apply for a visa. Very few countries state a specific policy on short overstays, for obvious reasons.

Unless you need to be in Ireland on Oct 31 and Nov 1, I would pay the rebooking fee and move your flight forward.
posted by caek at 3:30 AM on October 21, 2010 [1 favorite]

Or contact the relevant authority in Ireland and ask if an official extension can be arranged. May or may not be possible, and the later you leave it the less likely it'll work according to what I hear.
posted by No-sword at 4:25 AM on October 21, 2010 [1 favorite]

I would be unbelievably surprised if there was a single sliver of a repercussion, but like someone upthread said, your ethnic/religious background changes everything unfortunately. If you're white, I wouldn't give it a second of thought, unless this kind of small risk really bothers you.
posted by thegreatfleecircus at 4:34 AM on October 21, 2010

I am white, and I cannot afford to change the date earlier, and also don't have the ability to get my ride to come on any other day.

It was an honest mistake, in that I thought I originally came into Ireland on August 1st, then to realize that it was actually July 30th after I had bought my return ticket.

Some folks around here think that I will have no problem, but I wanted to see if anyone had direct experience and/or knowledge.
posted by gcbv at 4:40 AM on October 21, 2010

Irish people are really good but Irish immigration authorities are equally notorious. So if I were you, I would at least pay a quick visit to their office in Dublin. If you are not staying in Dublin, send a fax or call them up.
posted by zaxour at 4:50 AM on October 21, 2010

Are you on an actual holiday visa that you had to apply for before arriving in Ireland, or on the visa equivalent that's issued to Americans (among others) when they land? If it's the latter, then you're really unlikely to have any long-term repercussions -- they're looking for long overstays or attempts to re-enter after only a short time out of the country, and your situation isn't too different from someone who inadvertently overstays because of a flight cancellation. If it's the former, then it might be slightly more problematic, because there's more of a paper trail, but either way you should still give the relevant authorities a call and explain your situation.
posted by holgate at 6:12 AM on October 21, 2010

Just a warning: I have a friend that was barred for seven years from re-entering an EU country under identical circumstances. Same situation almost exactly. So yes, take care of this formally, rather than risking it.

It also sounds very much like you just want to accumulate a critical mass of 'it's OK' replies so that you can do nothing. Sadly, when it comes to immigration, your poor planning when you purchased the tickets won't mean anything. Nor will people telling you it's OK here. Get this sorted out now.
posted by yellowcandy at 8:32 AM on October 21, 2010 [2 favorites]

It's the latter. And it is a matter of a mistake, rather than a month or two of deliberate overstaying.
posted by gcbv at 8:33 AM on October 21, 2010

I don't know the exact situation for Ireland, but at least in the US and many EU countries, overstaying your visa means being barred from re-entry.So, short term, yep, nothing will happen, you will go home and life goes on. But if you want to go back to Ireland again, you will have a problem. Are you willing to give up on ever going back again?
posted by Joh at 8:50 AM on October 21, 2010

You say you can't afford to rebook, but you should realize that rebooking your flight may only cost a $50-100 rebooking fee. And if this screws up your ride, consider public transport. Not clear if the problem with your ride is in Ireland or back home, but unless you live somewhere extremely remote, public transport is cheap and easy compared to the possible consequences. We're talking about immigration law here. Your options are: (1) change your plans or (2) accept you may not be able to visit Ireland again (and possibly other EU countries if Ireland joins Schengen). Option (2) will not be solved on Metafilter. Talk to Irish immigration now if that's what you want to do.
posted by caek at 8:54 AM on October 21, 2010

You have plenty of time to get this sorted out with a one-week extension or something. Do that, and get it in writing.
posted by cyndigo at 10:07 AM on October 21, 2010

Thanks everyone for your help.

Yellowcandy: I'm sure subconsciously I might have been looking for that critical mass, but I was actually just shooting to see if anyone had the same situation in Ireland and knew what the outcome would be.

I honestly can't afford even 50-100 dollars at this point, so that is why rebooking is a genuine issue.

I am going to call Ireland Immigration tomorrow in their narrow window of phone help and see what can be done.

Again, thank you all!
posted by gcbv at 10:20 AM on October 21, 2010