Naturalization with Irish spouse traveling between US-IE

Dougal · Post by **Dougal** » Mon Oct 28, 2013 10:45 pm

Hi there,

I'm an American citizen married to an Irish citizen and we both currently live in the US. Would citizenship through naturalization be possible if my wife (born Irish citizen) only lives with me part time in Ireland while I (non-EU) live there full time during the required 3 out of five years for naturalization?

Thanks

CalvinKlien · Post by **CalvinKlien** » Tue Oct 29, 2013 12:00 pm

Yes, you can make the application after three years of ur marriage but DOJ would looking for your economic activities or your spouse economic activities in Ireland, you need to provide job letters, proof of address that you both are living together and have kids (if any). Also ur wife need to make a declaration that u are both living together and have intention to live in IRELAND for the rest of ur life....

So, living in the US could be bit tricky to apply for ur naturalization....

Dougal · Post by **Dougal** » Tue Oct 29, 2013 3:14 pm

CalvinKlien wrote:Yes, you can make the application after three years of ur marriage but DOJ would looking for your economic activities or your spouse economic activities in Ireland, you need to provide job letters, proof of address that you both are living together and have kids (if any). Also ur wife need to make a declaration that u are both living together and have intention to live in IRELAND for the rest of ur life....

So, living in the US could be bit tricky to apply for ur naturalization....

Would they check my wife's passport to see how much time she spent out of the country during my 3 (out of 5) years there? Or is just a matter of having the same billing address and her declaration?

CalvinKlien · Post by **CalvinKlien** » Tue Oct 29, 2013 3:34 pm

The Naturalization department never request original passport neither from the applicant nor from the spouse.

You need to have proof of address (same as ur spouse). job letters, Bank statament, P60's, payslips, 175 Euros application fee, declarion from ur wife.

Here is the link to the application form. If you go- through the form, it will give you a very good idea, what is required in the application:

http://www.inis.gov.ie/en/INIS/Form%208 ... 202013.pdf

Brigid from Ireland · Post by **Brigid from Ireland** » Tue Oct 29, 2013 7:13 pm

I think it would succeed, so long as you had proof that you (the US citizen) were in Ireland and so long as your wife was here sometimes. Children (if any) would need to be enrolled in school in Ireland also.

The easiest way to show that you are in Ireland is to register as self employed and declare a small income here (both spouses can do this). Then if your wife needed to travel to the US on a regular basis to visit family or for business purposes there would be no problem with that. You would definitely need to do your tax in Ireland and keep proof of address in the form of ESB/phone bills (ESB usage is proof that you are living in Ireland).

You and she should be careful NOT to claim means tested social welfare for her if she is out of the country - this would cause trouble as it would be noticed, but there should be no problem with her travelling to the US often and you staying in Ireland 80% of the year. You can claim social welfare benefits (not assistance) if entitled with no difficulty as these are payable worldwide.

Dougal · Post by **Dougal** » Wed Oct 30, 2013 5:22 pm

Thanks CalvinKlien and Brigid. It seems like even if she were to end up spending most of the year away for work, based on the necesary documents alone it would probably go unnoticed. My only concern is being that we are fairly young (late 20s) they might be extra scrupulous. But nevertheless, Ireland would be considered her main address, and she has her own investments in Irish banks that she would be claiming on our taxes.

Thank you very much for your insight.

Dougal · Post by **Dougal** » Thu Oct 31, 2013 6:48 am

Does a having solicitor general help make this whole process go more smoothly?

CalvinKlien · Post by **CalvinKlien** » Thu Oct 31, 2013 9:01 am

Dougal, i wouldn't recommend a solicitor, its a very straight forward application process. Solicitors are just a rip off and they are never there for you when you need them. I have processed my application through a solicitor but would you believe i do every thing for her (including the cover letters) and than she only post it. WHY DID I PAID HER FOR ?

So, no solicitor...

Dougal · Post by **Dougal** » Thu Oct 31, 2013 5:46 pm

CalvinKlien wrote:Dougal, i wouldn't recommend a solicitor, its a very straight forward application process. Solicitors are just a rip off and they are never there for you when you need them. I have processed my application through a solicitor but would you believe i do every thing for her (including the cover letters) and than she only post it. WHY DID I PAID HER FOR ?

So, no solicitor...

Ok, gotcha. Thanks again!

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Naturalization with Irish spouse traveling between US-IE

Naturalization with Irish spouse traveling between US-IE