Return to Ireland with Non EU spouse

[seamoose]

Hello if possible I'd like some advise on settling back in Ireland with my Canadian wife.

I grew up in the North of Ireland and have 2 passports. ROI & UK. I lived for the past 16 years in Canada with my Canadian spouse, (When we got married I was travelling in under a UK passport so our marriage documents reflect that.) Over the past 9 months I have moved back to NI from Canada to work & look after my sick father, who has now passed away.
It is now my hope to relocate to the Republic & to have my Canadian wife to join me. My plan is to fly into Dublin with my wife & declare our intentions of staying, seek accommodation in the Republic & begin the application.

My wife should be eligible via the route of either
A - As the spouse of an Irish Citizen, or
B - As the spouse UK citizen via EU treaty Rights.

My current understanding is that if we apply

A - As the spouse of an Irish Citizen - It would be with form RES5, that the application may take 12 months and she's not entitled to work during that period.

B - As the spouse UK citizen via EU treaty Rights- The application would use form EU1 “Application for a Residence Card” that the application may take up to 6 months. Also that she would be entitled to work right away (but may have difficulty proving that until she is in receipt of the card itself.)

Has anyone any experience in these possible routes? My wife is not keen on the thought of not being able to work for an extended period of time. We are curious if she applies as the spouse of an Irish citizen, can we apply for a work permit at the same time or will she have to wait until a decision on her application is made?


Also is it possible or advisable to begin either of these processes from outside the country?

Thanks for any help.

[max307]

Given the fact that your spouse is Canadian (no visa required to Ireland) and you hold an Irish passport the application for Stamp 4 is actually very straightforward.

Enter the state normally as in on holidays - through Dublin airport I assume - and within 90 days you and your Canadian spouse need to attend your local GNIB registration office with the following documentation:

• Your original marriage/civil partnership certificate
• Your spouse original Canadian passport
• Your Irish original passport
• Evidence of your joint address

http://inis.gov.ie/en/INIS/Pages/WP07000024 (see section A under 1. How do I apply?)

Your wife will be issued Stamp 4 on the spot on her passport and given an Irish Residence Permit (IRP) that will allow her to work and reside in Ireland. I heard there is delay these days getting the card so they post it to you by regular mail a few days later, back in the day if attending the GNIB office in Dublin you were given the card that same day.

http://inis.gov.ie/en/INIS/Pages/registration-updates

If you are going to live in Dublin then book an appointment for registration at the GNIB office, ensure you book well in advance because the daily appointments are limited. If you are going to live somewhere else in Ireland reach out to your local Garda station.

https://burghquayregistrationoffice.inis.gov.ie/

[jul1]

Given the fact that your spouse is Canadian (no visa required to Ireland) and you hold an Irish passport the application for Stamp 4 is actually very straightforward.

Enter the state normally as in on holidays - through Dublin airport I assume - and within 90 days you and your Canadian spouse need to attend your local GNIB registration office with the following documentation:

• Your original marriage/civil partnership certificate
• Your spouse original Canadian passport
• Your Irish original passport
• Evidence of your joint address

http://inis.gov.ie/en/INIS/Pages/WP07000024 (see section A under 1. How do I apply?)

Your wife will be issued Stamp 4 on the spot on her passport and given an Irish Residence Permit (IRP) that will allow her to work and reside in Ireland. I heard there is delay these days getting the card so they post it to you by regular mail a few days later, back in the day if attending the GNIB office in Dublin you were given the card that same day.

http://inis.gov.ie/en/INIS/Pages/registration-updates

If you are going to live in Dublin then book an appointment for registration at the GNIB office, ensure you book well in advance because the daily appointments are limited. If you are going to live somewhere else in Ireland reach out to your local Garda station.

https://burghquayregistrationoffice.inis.gov.ie/

Well, im not so sure about that it will be that easy, though dont take my word for it, as i have experience with the eu treaty right part of it, but there is a general financial requirement, in the link u shared:

http://inis.gov.ie/en/INIS/Pages/WP07000024


17. Financial resources for family reunification (nuclear family
and de facto partners)
.....

Where Sponsor is Irish Citizen
17.2 An Irish citizen, in order to sponsor an immediate family member, must
not have been totally or predominantly reliant on benefits from the Irish
State for a continuous period in excess of 2 years immediately prior to
the application and must over the three year period prior to application
have earned a cumulative gross income over and above any State
benefits of not less than €40k.


From this it seems to me that an Irish citizen cannot just live in another country for long period of times and suddenly return with a non eea spouse, but correct me if im wrong.

In the UK its like this for sure, i was reading loads stories about it, like when british citizen moved to Australia, got married, got children there, and now want to relocate to UK with the family, first the british has to go back, make at least 17k gbp/ year, prove that income for 6 months, than start the process, so they have spend considerably long months separately from the family.... i know in Ireland the rules are different but the result is kinda similar...

[seamoose]

Given the fact that your spouse is Canadian (no visa required to Ireland) and you hold an Irish passport the application for Stamp 4 is actually very straightforward.

Enter the state normally as in on holidays - through Dublin airport I assume - and within 90 days you and your Canadian spouse need to attend your local GNIB registration office with the following documentation:

• Your original marriage/civil partnership certificate
• Your spouse original Canadian passport
• Your Irish original passport
• Evidence of your joint address

http://inis.gov.ie/en/INIS/Pages/WP07000024 (see section A under 1. How do I apply?)

Your wife will be issued Stamp 4 on the spot on her passport and given an Irish Residence Permit (IRP) that will allow her to work and reside in Ireland.

Regarding the info at http://inis.gov.ie/en/INIS/Pages/WP07000024

Thanks for your response @max307 and I hope the route is a simple and painless as you have stated, Im a bit confused as to how they have broken up the info & requirments on that page.

I see that in the first question the requirements are less strict if we have legally entered the country within the last 90 days. (you kindly copied those requirements int your post).

However further down the pages there are a few articles that concern me, or seem to make the process look more daunting..

3. How long will it take to process the application?
-- Applications are dealt with in chronological order of receipt and decisions are reached on a case by case basis. ...

4. Can I enter employment while my application is in process?
-- No. An applicant has no entitlement to enter employment during the application process without the requirement of a Work Permit issued by the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation.

Regarding the the Stamp 4 is that a temporary status she will get while waiting on her immigration application(FORM EU1) to be reviewed? Apologies for being so confused but I feel like Im chasing my tail when I read some of these legal documents.

[max307]

@seamoose I can confirm that’s the case for spouses/civil partners of Irish citizens which are non visa required nationals to Ireland (US, Canadians, Australians, etc.) for personal experience and also from others experience here in the forum.

I know the link I provided from the INIS website can be confusing. Basically there are 2 ways to apply - A or B - and your wife falls into A. If your wife was a visa required national to Ireland, didn’t have permission to remain in Ireland or you were to apply under EU Treaty Rights (EU1 form) then you will need to apply by post and as per others here the process is a lengthy one because the backlog of applications they currently have in the system.

Stamp 4 is the name of the immigration stamp she will get on her passport and basically is a stamp that will enable her to work and live in Ireland. Once your application is approved she will get besides the stamp in her passport an actual physical card that looks like this (see link below) but will read Stamp 4 instead of Stamp 1G, the first stamp and card are issued for 1 year, then once that one expires another 2 years and then 3 years but by then if you still living in Ireland she should be able to apply for Irish citizenship and once approved Irish passport.

https://www.google.com/search?q=irish+r ... LbBVYEVOfM:

***If you are applying for residence based on the marriage/civil partnership to an Irish citizen then you do not need to use form EU1 or any other form, just follow the process I explained before and present yourself with your wife and the documents at the nearest GNIB registration office, again if you are planning to live in Dublin an appointment is needed to register and you can book an appointment using the website I linked in my previous post. If in doubt feel free to browse the forum, there are loads of other posts from Canadians moving to Ireland with their Irish spouses and do not worry about asking questions I know it’s a very confusing matter!