The Common Travel Area in place between the UK and Ireland means that not much has changed for Britons living or coming to live in Ireland after the Brexit transition period. UK nationals continue to be able to reside and work in Ireland without formal Irish immigration permission, similar to EU nationals. However, one aspect of the Irish-UK immigration regime has significantly changed. A non-UK, non-EU national who is the dependant of or married to, in a civil partnership with, or in a defacto relationship with a UK national living or working in Ireland must now seek a specific visa or pre-clearance from the Department of Justice to reside with their UK family member in Ireland.
Before 31 December 2020, non-EU nationals that fell into this category could come to Ireland and seek permission to remain and work in Ireland under EU Treaty Rights after arrival in Ireland. However, since 1 January 2021, pre-clearance must be sought before travelling to Ireland in order to comply with new immigration policies in place.
Further details of the preclearance and visa scheme, and process to be followed, can be found on the Department of Justice website here.
We recently prepared two short videos examining the changes to immigration laws and processes in Ireland and the UK from 1 January 2021:
- UK and Irish nationals and the Common Travel Area
- European Economic Area (EEA) nationals and non-EEA nationals
Additionally, for those UK nationals already living in Ireland
with their non-EU national family members before 31 December 2020,
there are new formalities to comply with in relation to updating
the Irish Residence Permit of the non-EU national. Full details can
be found here.
Our Employment and Corporate Immigration team is here to help with
any legal questions you have about your workforce's immigration
status after 31 December 2020. For further information, and to
ensure you are kept up to date on the Irish corporate immigration
regime, please contact our Corporate Immigration Team.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
