Spouse Visa
The non-EU spouse of an Irish citizen can apply for a visa or residence permit to enter or reside in Ireland with his or her partner on a long term basis. Irish citizens do have a strong entitlement to having their legally married spouse/civil partner live with them in the state. But this right is not absolute though, and we will explain to you why.
Based on the INIS policy on Family Reunification, there are financial thresholds that have to be met for the application to be approved. For instance, the Irish citizen sponsor must have earned a cumulative income of more than 40,000 euros in the preceding 3 years prior to the application and must have not accessed any form of social welfare payment during that time.
The following are documents that you will need to bring to apply for a spouse visa:
- The original civil partnership or marriage certificate
- Your original passport
- The original passport of your spouse/civil partner
- Proof of your joint address in Ireland, and
- A registration fee of 300 euros
If the application is successful, you will be granted Stamp 4 permission to reside in Ireland for a period of one year, but can be renewed by basically visiting GNIB together with your Irish spouse. The spouse/civil partner is allowed to live and work in the country during this period. Always ensure that you renew your permission before it expires.
We have extensive experience when it comes to lodging initial applications for residence permits and visas for spouses of Irish citizens, guiding and supporting them throughout the entire process. In the event of a divorce or separation from their Irish spouses, we are able to help our clients apply for an independent Stamp 4 residency (retention applications). Get in touch with us and let’s bring your partner to Ireland.