Ireland Residency Program – The Irish Golden Visa

How to get permanent residence in Ireland

To get permanent residence in Ireland, you must first hold a temporary residence permit for 5 years. You must also prove that you earn enough money to be self-sufficient. You can also qualify for citizenship after 5 years but you will need to physically be present in Ireland for at least 1,825 or 1,826 days over the last 9 years.

That said, you need to gain temporary residence in Ireland first. If you are able to find employment in Ireland, you will be able to apply for a residence permit. Otherwise, the easiest way if you are a business person is to either apply as an entrepreneur or as an investor.

Ireland Immigrant Entrepreneur Residence Program

For high-potential start-ups in the innovation economy, applicants must have secured funding of a minimum of EUR 50,000 from one or a combination of the following sources: their own resources, a business loan, business angel/venture capital funding, or a grant from an Irish State Agency.

The scheme is not intended for retail, personal services, catering or other businesses of this nature. While each application will have to be considered on its own merits, the types of businesses intended for this programme are those that are part of the innovation economy, in areas of high potential growth in the future. The state agencies will play a key role in evaluating the suitability of proposed business proposals for the programme.

The application process can take 6–8 months. If you get approved you will receive a 2-year temporary residence permit. You can renew it after 2 years with a 3-year permit. Even if your business doesn’t succeed and you are sent off the entrepreneur programme you can easily get a work permit after that.

Ireland Immigrant Investor Residence Programme

The Ireland IIP is a residence-by-investment programme. It is for people with a net worth above EUR 2M. It offers 4 investment options:

EUR 1,000,000 in investment funds to be held for at least 3 years which have been approved for the purposes of the Immigrant Investor Programme by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service. All funds have to be invested in Ireland and must represent equity stakes in Irish registered companies that are not quoted on any stock exchange. Secondly, the funds and fund managers will have to be regulated by the Central Bank to conduct business in Ireland. Thirdly, only fund managers with an established record of managing regulated funds will be accepted to manage funds in Ireland.

EUR 500,000 endowment in a project of public benefit in the arts, sports, health, cultural or educational field. The endowment should be regarded as a philanthropic contribution with a clear public benefit. Investors will receive no financial return or recoupment of the principal.

EUR 1,000,000 enterprise investment to be held for at least 3 years, either a single Irish enterprise or spread over a number of enterprises for a minimum of 3 years. The enterprise may be a start-up established by the investor or an existing business registered in Ireland. The enterprise must be registered and headquartered in Ireland and the investment must support the creation or maintenance of employment

EUR 1,000,000 investment in an Irish Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) that is listed on the Irish Stock Exchange. The investment may be spread across a number of different Irish REITs. A REIT is a listed company used to hold rental investment properties. It is a globally recognised standard for investment in rental property assets. After 3 years, 50% of the investment can be withdrawn, with the remaining 50% to be withdrawn on the 4th and 5th year equally.

You can deduct EUR 50,000 from the investment for education. The application process can take 3–4 months. If you get approved you will receive a 2-year temporary residence permit. You can renew it after 2 years with a 3-year permit.

If you are interested in Citizenship or Residency by investment

Click to the Global Residence Index homepage to learn more.