Schengen visa needed for ireland?

Aplogies if this has already been asked as the search I did didn't seem to give me the information I wanted.

My husband is here on a two year settlement visa from pakistan. Can he travel to Ireland (just for a long weekend break) on his current passport and visa or will he need to apply for a schengen visa?

It has been asked before, B C, but I haven't been able to dig it up using the search facility, either...

IIRC, the answer is that the "Common Travel Area" arrangements apply only to British and Irish nationals. I think a couple of non-Brit/non-Irish people said that they had got away with it, but others pointed out that the Irish authorities were likely to check passports on arrival at Dublin airport and turn people back if they needed a visa and didn't have one...

So you mean that officially you would need to apply for a schengen visa to travel to ireland - although it is possible to enter the country without one but there's no guarantee that you will get away with it?

Also, which I'm on the subject of schengen visas....is there such a thing as a getting a multiple entry schengen visa that will allow you to travel anytime to the countries in the agreement, or would you have to apply before each trip?

Brit Chick wrote:So you mean that officially you would need to apply for a schengen visa to travel to ireland - although it is possible to enter the country without one but there's no guarantee that you will get away with it?

Also, which I'm on the subject of schengen visas....is there such a thing as a getting a multiple entry schengen visa that will allow you to travel anytime to the countries in the agreement, or would you have to apply before each trip?

Such a 'multiple entry' schengen visa does exist (I got a 6 month one through work which allowed access for business and holiday visits) However they are quite hard to come by (from talking to friends who have applied for schengen visas for holidays) A few years back I beleive multiple entry visas were the norm, but these days visas only seem to be issued for the visit you are going for.

Brit Chick wrote:So you mean that officially you would need to apply for a schengen visa to travel to ireland - although it is possible to enter the country without one but there's no guarantee that you will get away with it?

The Republic of Ireland is not part of Schengen, so you'd need an Irish visa, not a Schengen one.

Brit Chick,

The Republic of Ireland is not party to the Schengen Agreement. Your spouse must apply for a category 'C' visitors visa from the Irish Consulate in London. As the spouse of an EU national the visa will be granted free of charge subject to provision of your British passport and marriage certificate. The Irish authorities though will require proof of his financial status and self employment/ employment details which is unusual for these (EU) type of applications. Technically you can complain to the European Court of Justice about this but most people don't bother due to the time factor and expense.

As per Paul's comments there is often heresay on the forum that one can travel to ROI on their UK visa under the Common Travel Area regime. This is a fallacy - the scheme is restricted to British and Irish Citizens who are both visa and passport exempt. If you turn up at the relevent Port of Entry e.g. Dublin Airport without an Irish visa and you need one you will rightly get a refusal to enter.

good luck

Thanks for the advice guys, looks like I will apply for the category C visa instead then.

One last question......can I do it all by post or do my husband and I both have to go to the irish embassy in london to apply in person? Will we get the decision the same day?

Just ring up the embassy directly and speak to them ? Details here

And be glad !...This is one embassy with a standard landline for enquiry(especially visa related) when compared to the majority on 09 premium rate and other money making telephone numbers.

Brit Chick wrote:Thanks for the advice guys, looks like I will apply for the category C visa instead then.

One last question......can I do it all by post or do my husband and I both have to go to the irish embassy in london to apply in person? Will we get the decision the same day?

My husband (who is in the UK on a spouse visa) got a C Visitor visa for Ireland back in the summer. You may have to phone a few times and wait for ages for someone to answer the phone (as I did). Visa section: 020 7225 7700. When I finally got through to the Irish Embassy it all sounded very easy. Was asked if we were travelling together (which we were) and was told my husband just needed to go along to the Embassy between 10am -12pm Monday to Friday (I didn't have to attend with him and he didn't have to make an appointment - they just recommended him arriving 10am to make sure he was seen that day). I was told he needed to take the application form, 3 photos, his passport, my passport and our marriage certificate with him. They told him then and there that his application was fine and he was given a slip to bring with him when he went to collect his passport 5 days later. There was no fee. Staff were fine, just asked the purpose of the visit (attending a wedding) and that was it. Not asked for proof of finances / hotel reservations / letter from employer etc.

You can download the application form by clicking here:
http://foreignaffairs.gov.ie/services/visa/visaapp.pdf

I know of non-British/Irish citizens who travelled to Ireland with a UK drivers licence, and got through with no problem. I wouldnt chance it though!