Ireland - Passport & Nationality - EEA Residency Visa (EEA member states & Switzerland)
Ireland is a member of the European Union, a group of countries within Western Europe. A passport holder of any EU country is entitled to enter Ireland to live and work freely. Time spent in Ireland counts towards nationality, so the candidate can obtain Irish citizenship over time, on the basis of continuous residency in Ireland.
Ireland also gives these residency rights to four further countries;
- Iceland
- Liechtenstein
- Norway
- Switzerland
In order to apply for EU Treaty Rights, you must satisfy the following criteria:
Your EEA family member must be a national of the European Union (EU), of one of the other EEA member states (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway) or of Switzerland.
If you plan to stay for a period of more than three months, your EEA family member must either:
- Be engaged in economic activity (employed or self employed),
- Have sufficient resources and sickness insurance to ensure that you do not become a burden on the social services of Ireland or
- Be enrolled as a student or vocational trainee.