Children passport application

Help! I am looking for your advice on how easy it will be for me to get an Irish passport for my 2 young children. I am their father and an Irish citizen/passport holder. I understand that if the mother is Irish then they will automatically be entitled. Their mother is a uk passport holder so this will not apply. Is it more difficult for fathers to apply on their behalf? They both already hold uk passports.
Cheers, Al

Some useful info...
if your children are already Irish citizens then you can just apply for passports. Read below especially the bold type...

http://www.citizensinformation.ie/categ ... or_descent

Citizenship through birth in Ireland. If you were born in Ireland and your parent(s) were Irish citizens, then you are also an Irish citizen.

Under the provisions of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 2004, children born of foreign national parents on or after 1 January 2005 are not automatically entitled to Irish citizenship.

Foreign national parents of those children (that is, children born in Ireland on or after 1 January 2005) must prove that they have a genuine link to Ireland. This will be evidenced by being resident legally in Ireland for at least three out of the previous four years immediately before the birth of the child. On proof of a genuine link to Ireland their child will be entitled to Irish citizenship. There are further details about the entitlement of children born in Ireland on or after 1 January 2005 to Irish citizenship (pdf).

If either of your parents was an Irish citizen at the time of your birth, then you are automatically an Irish citizen, irrespective of your place of birth (unless it was one of the special conditions relating to birth outside Ireland).
So, if you were born outside Ireland to an Irish citizen who was himself or herself born in Ireland, then you are an Irish citizen.

If your parent derived Irish citizenship in another manner, e.g., through marriage, adoption or naturalisation, further information can be obtained from your nearest Irish embassy or consulate.

If the parent through whom you derive Irish citizenship was deceased at the time of your birth, but would have been an Irish citizen if alive at that time, you are also an Irish citizen. Also, you derive citizenship through an Irish parent whether or not your parents were married to each other at the time of your birth.

If you were born outside Ireland to an Irish citizen who was himself or herself born outside Ireland and if any of your grandparents was born in Ireland, then you are entitled to become an Irish citizen. However before you can claim Irish citizenship, you must have your birth registered in the Foreign Births Register, which is maintained by the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs. (See "How to apply"). If you live abroad, you must apply to have your birth registered through your nearest Irish embassy or consular office. If you are entitled to register, your Irish citizenship is effective from the date of registration - not from the date when you were born.

"As of 2005, new restrictions have been in place, excluding entitlement to Irish citizenship from anyone born on the island of Ireland who does not have at least one parent who is an Irish citizen or a British citizen, or one parent who was legally resident on the island of Ireland for at least 3 years prior to the child's birth. Ireland and the UK have agreed that a person born in Northern Ireland will not be considered an Irish citizen until he performs an action that can normally only be done by an Irish citizen, such as applying for an Irish passport. Claiming an Irish passport does not eliminate that person's British citizenship or his ability to also hold a British passport if he wishes."
source wikpedia

al-ga-ga wrote:Help! I am looking for your advice on how easy it will be for me to get an Irish passport for my 2 young children. I am their father and an Irish citizen/passport holder. I understand that if the mother is Irish then they will automatically be entitled. Their mother is a uk passport holder so this will not apply. Is it more difficult for fathers to apply on their behalf? They both already hold uk passports.
Cheers, Al

Both parents have equal rights to pass on Irish citizenship.

You will get more meaningful answer on the process if you answer:

- where were the children born; and
- how and when did you get your Irish citizenship.

cheers fellas - that's a relief. How much is a child application?

My kids were born in the UK. I was born in Ireland and have a passport.

some more info...

http://www.inis.gov.ie/en/INIS/Pages/WP07000162 and click on the link

Citizenship through descent

If either of your parents was an Irish citizen at the time of your birth, you are an Irish citizen, irrespective of your place of birth (unless one of the special conditions relating to birth outside Ireland applies; these are described below). If the parent through whom you derive Irish citizenship was not alive at the time of your birth, but would have been an Irish citizen if alive at that time, you are also an Irish citizen. You derive citizenship through an Irish parent whether or not your parents were married to each other at the time of your birth.

If you were born in Ireland to an Irish citizen parent, then you are an Irish citizen by descent and also entitled to be an Irish citizen because you were born in Ireland (see Citizenship through birth in Ireland above).

If you were born outside Ireland to an Irish citizen who was himself or herself born in Ireland, then you are an Irish citizen.

If you were born outside Ireland to an Irish citizen who was himself or herself born outside Ireland, and any of your grandparents was born in Ireland, then you are entitled to become an Irish citizen, and can do so by having your birth registered in the Foreign Births Register maintained by the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs. You can do this by applying to your nearest Irish embassy or consular office. A list of these is available on the website of the Department of Foreign Affairs at www.irlgov.ie/iveagh. If you are entitled to register, your Irish citizenship is effective from the date of registration.

If you are of the third or subsequent generation born abroad to an Irish citizen (in other words, one of your parents is an Irish citizen but none of your parents or grandparents was born in Ireland), you may be entitled to become an Irish citizen by having your birth registered in the Foreign Births Register; this depends on whether the parent through whom you derive Irish citizenship had himself or herself become an Irish citizen by being registered in the Foreign Births Register before you were born. If you are entitled to register, your Irish citizenship is effective from the date of registration. The Irish citizenship of successive generations may be maintained in this way by each generation ensuring registration in the Foreign Births Register before the birth of the next generation.
The following table may help to explain the situation:


If you are: then you are:
A born in the island of Ireland entitled to Irish citizenship or an Irish citizen.
B a child of A, born outside the island of Ireland an Irish citizen.
C a child of B and a grandchild of A, born outside the island of Ireland entitled to Irish citizenship, but you must first register in Foreign Births Register.
D a child of C and a great-grandchild of A, born outside the island of Ireland entitled to Irish citizenship, by having your birth registered in the Foreign Births Register, but only if your parent C had registered by the time of your birth.


When seeking to register in the Foreign Births Register, you will need to produce relevant documentation (birth and marriage certificates and other relevant records for yourself and those through whom you trace your Irish ancestry) to confirm your citizenship.

Passports for Children.
The Passport Office recommends that parents obtain individual passports for their children.
Since 1 October 2004, all children, regardless of age, must obtain an individual passport in their own name.

In line with best international practice, the Passport Office ceased the practice of including children on their parents' passports since 1 October 2004. This is intended to increase the security of international travel for children and reduce the risk of kidnapping and child trafficking.

Parents’ passports issued before 1 October on which children have been included remain valid and do not need to be replaced.

Children who are included on a parent's passport issued before 1 October 2004, may continue to travel to most countries up to their 16th birthday along with that parent providing the passport is still valid. There are, however, some exceptions including the Czech Republic which requires persons aged 15 and over to carry their own passport and Estonia which requires all persons aged 7 and over to carry their own passport. Additionally, since 26 October 2004, all persons, irrespective of age, require an individual passport for entry into the United States .

If in doubt, parents should check with the Embassy or Consulate of the country concerned before they travel.

The current passport fee structure is as follows -
Up to age 3 3 year passport Fee €15
Aged 3 to 17 5 year passport Fee €25

http://ireland.embassyhomepage.com/iris ... london.htm

al-ga-ga wrote:My kids were born in the UK. I was born in Ireland and have a passport.

Assuming you mean your children were not born in Northern Ireland.

In that case, your children are automatically Irish citizens (by descent).
Just apply for them to be granted Irish passports.

You should be aware that their own future children will not automatically
be Irish citizens, but under current law, will be eligible for registration as such.

If children were born in Northern Ireland, then they are Irish citizens
by birth.

As for yourself, have you considered becoming a naturalised British
citizen as well? (assuming you are living in the UK for 3+ years as
an Irish citizen).