Moving from UK to Ireland with non EU spouse

Hi,

My wife is currently in the UK and has recently got her second 2.5 year visa, with the aim of applying for Indefinite Leave to Remain towards the end of 2022.

Now it looks like I might need to move to the Republic of Ireland for personal business reasons.

Does anyone know where that leaves my wife's visa status? As a UK citizen in Ireland am I able to apply for a visa for her to live in Ireland? Does her UK visa have any validity in Ireland in the short or long term?

Thanks,
Simon.

Read these:
http://www.inis.gov.ie/en/INIS/Pages/jo ... in-ireland
http://www.inis.gov.ie/en/INIS/policy-d ... ission.pdf

Your wife's UK visa or immigration status in the UK is not valid in Ireland.

Wait until your wife gets ILR. Then, assuming that you are a UK citizen, she can apply directly for naturalisation. Once she is a UK citizen, she can live freely in the UK and in Ireland.

Hi,

Yes I am a UK citizen. You say "once she is a UK citizen" - she doesn't intend to become a UK citizen, just apply for ILR - does this give the same right to live in Ireland?

If we have to move before that, I assume we have to start the process of visa application for her again in Ireland - is it similar to the UK?

Thanks,
Simon

ILR is not a valid permission in the Rep. of Ireland. So yes she will need a brand new visa application before she can come into Ireland, regardless of her nationality.

If she is a visa-required national, she will need to apply for a visa called Visa - Join Family (UK national).
If she is a non visa-required national, she will need to apply for a preclearance document called Preclearance – Join Family (UK National).

Either way, the application process is quite similar with just a few small differences. The website is apparently completely different from the UK visa applications (I personally prefer the UK website's look-and-feel), but the questions and documents required are pretty much the same.

Thanks!