A traveller may require either a visa, or preclearance approval, before travelling to Ireland. Whether you require a visa, or preclearance approval, depends on the nationality stated on your travel document and your reason for travel to Ireland.

Visa required and non-visa required nationalities are outlined on the Irish Immigration website. 

To check whether you need a visa, or preclearance approval, please visit the Irish Immigration homepage, and complete a travel path, appropriate to your reason for travel. This is found under 'I would like to come to Ireland'. 

The visa process can be briefly summarised as follows: 

• Create your online application form on AVATS
• Print and sign your completed form;
• If resident in India or Nepal, arrange your visa appointment with Visa Facilitation Service (VFS)
• Compile your supporting documentation, as outlined under 'Types of visas and documentation' below;
• Submit your documents, depending on your country of residence:
  • India and Nepal: Submit at your VFS appointment, where your biometric will also be captured;
  • Bangladesh: Submit at your VFS Kolkata appointment, or post the documents to the Embassy of Ireland, in New Delhi, as per the instructions on your printed AVATS form;
  • Sri Lanka: Submit to the Irish Honorary Consulate in Colombo
  • Maldives: post your documents to the Embassy of Ireland, in New Delhi, as per the instructions on your printed AVATS form;
• Pay your visa fee, either directly to VFS when booking your appointment or via a bank draft, in Indian rupees (₹ INR) and made out to the Embassy of Ireland;
• Await the visa outcome, which will be processed in line with our stated processing times; as outlined below.

Visa fees

• Current single entry visa fee: INR ₹5,300
• Current multiple entry visa fee: INR ₹9,000
• Current transit visa fee: INR ₹2,225

If submitting your application through VFS, you will also be subject to service charges and additional charges if you avail of add-on services, such as VFS Check and Verify. 

Some visa applicants are exempted from paying visa fees. Visit the Irish Immigration website for further information on fee exemptions. 

If you wish to avail of an exemption you must provide documentary evidence that you are eligible. It is important to note that an exemption from visa fees, does not exempt an applicant from VFS service charges, if submitting your application at a VFS appointment.

Biometrics 

If you are resident in India or Nepal, you are required to provide biometrics at your VFS appointment. For information on what is captured, and who is exempt from providing their biometrics, please visit the Irish Immigration biometrics information.

VFS 'Check and Verify' and 'In-depth Verification' services 

We would encourage all long stay applicants (employment, study, join family), who are applying through VFS, to avail of either VFS Check and Verify Service, for Indian resident applicants, or Nepal In depth Verification, for Nepalese resident applicants.

All documents submitted must be original, legible, verifiable and in English, or Irish. Certified translations must also be provided for any documentation not in English or Irish. 

Please note, your application may not be accepted if your current passport is damaged. Passports that are significantly water-damaged, or have pages detatching from the passport binding, should be replaced prior to submittin your application.

Supplementary forms and checklists 

The documents you are required to submit, in support of your application, depend on the application category. Please click on the checklist below to view the category-secific list of required documents. Some links may refer to the Irish Immigration website, where a list of required documents will be available.

You must also download, complete and submit a category-secific Supplementary Application Form with your application, which can also be found in the table below: 

For primary information on the immigration rules for studying in Ireland, please visit the Irish Immigration website.

Student information leaflet

Persons resident in India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka or the Maldives, who have an eligible offer from an Irish Higher Education Insitution, and who wish to apply for a student visa, should read the Student Information Leaflet and Checklist‌. The information sheet provides an overview of student visa policy, required documents and how to make your application. 

VFS 'Check and Verify' and 'In-depth Verification' services 

As per the How to apply section, we highly recommend that students avail of VFS' Check and Verify or In-depth Verification services, if they are applying for their visa through a VFS appointment.

Student applications from Nepal

• Applicants using education loans submitted from Nabil Bank, Nepal Investment Bank or Everest Bank financing the full course of studies will be assessed more positively;
• It is recommended that any 'source of income' submitted in support of the application be accompanied by a 'Certificate of Tax' payment issued by the Inland Revenue Office for a minimum of two years preceding the application.
• Financial documents must be from regulated institutions, licensed by Nepal Rastra bank (Central Bank of Nepal).

• Lost, or expired, Irish Residence Permits; 
• Returning resident minors, under the age of 16, who could not obtain a re-entry visa before departing from Ireland; and 
• Returning to Ireland to avail of the Third Level Graduate Scheme (stamp 1G) 

Lost, or expired, Irish Residence Permits

In the event that you have lost your Irish Residence Permit (IRP), or it has expired while outside of Ireland and you wish to return, you must apply for a new entry visa to Ireland. 

The application category you apply for, and the documents you submit in support of your application, will depend on your reason for residence in Ireland; which will form the basis of your application for an IRP when your return. Therefore: 

• If you are returning to Ireland as a worker: You must apply for an appropriate Employment visa, and provide appropriate* documents, guided by the employment visa checklist. You should also provide a copy of your previous IRP, if possible;
• If you are returning to Ireland as a student: You must apply for a Study visa, and provide appropriate* documents, guided by the student visa checklist. You should also provide a copy of your previous IRP, if possible;
• If you are returning to Ireland as a dependent family member: You must apply for an appropriate Join family visa, and provide appropriate* documents, guided by the join family visa checklist. You should also provide a copy of your previous IRP, if possible.

* in the event that you cannot provide a document from the applicable checklist – for example an employment permit if you have since moved to stamp 4 permissions in Ireland – then simply outline the missing documents, and a reason as to why you cannot provide them, in your letter of application.

Returning resident minors, under the age of 16, who could not obtain a re-entry visa before departing from Ireland

Re-entry visa requirements for children under 16 have been suspended with immediate effect and until further notice. Children under 16 who are currently residing in the State and who wish to re-enter the State, must be accompanied by their parent or legal guardian who holds an in date permission to reside in the State.

The adult accompanying the child must also provide appropriate documentation to prove they are the legal parent or guardian of the child in question. For more information please visit the Irish Immigration website.

Persons seeking to travel under this policy should first consult their airline to confirm that boarding will be allowed. Where an airline is unwilling to board a minor without a visa, or cannot confirm that boarding will be possible, it is advised that the minor applies for a new entry visa, which will be processed free of charge. The minor applicant should apply as per the rules outlined for a dependent family member above.

Returning to Ireland to avail of the Third Level Graduate Scheme (stamp 1G) 

If you completed your studies in Ireland and wish to avail of the Third Level Graduate Scheme, but left Ireland before you could register for your stamp 1G permission, then you must first obtain a Graduate Scheme Permission letter from the Irish Immigration Service before you can apply for a visa to return. 

Once the letter of approval has been issued, you should apply for an Employment visa, and provide:

• Your Graduate Scheme Permission letter;
• A copy of your education award; and
• A letter from your higher education institution stating the details of the course you graduated from and the award that you achieved.

The above rules apply to persons who just recently completed their studies under stamp 2 conditions, and to persons who have already completed 12 months on stamp 1G permissions, but are eligible to return to Ireland to avail of another 12 months permission.

Check our latest visa processing times, and published lists of visa outcomes.

In the event that your visa application is refused, the reasons for refusal will be outlined in your refusal letter. If you are granted the rights to appeal the decision, this too will be outlined in the refusal letter, alongside directions on how and when to appeal. 

Appeals must be submitted by post to the Embassy of Ireland, New Delhi. If you are resident in Sri Lanka you can also submit your appeal, by post, to the Honorary Consul in Colombo.

Upon receiving your visa, you should check the information to ensure there are no issues prior to travelling. 

Number of entries 

The number of entries to Ireland you can seek depends on what is stated on the particular visa. The number of entries will either show 01, indicating a single entry, or Multi, indicating more than one entry.

Visa validity 

The visa is valid for travel between the validity dates stated on the visa. The last day on which the visa is valid for travel to Ireland is the visa expiry date. Beware of time zone changes if travelling on the visa expiry date.

Please note that validity dates only refer to the dates on which you can travel to Ireland, these dates do not refer to the length of time you can then stay in Ireland, that is dictated by the Duration of stay. You can enter on the expiry date of the visa and be granted permission to stay beyond that date, up to a maximum of 90 days.

Duration of stay 

The duration of stay may be pre-defined by the Duration of stay section of your visa, however, if listed as XX, then the length of time you can remain is Ireland will be decided by the immigration officer at the Irish border. Once permitted entry into Ireland, then immigraiton officer will stamp your passport with an exit date. You must leave Ireland by this date. Failure to do so may result in future visa refusal.

If you have been issued with a short stay ('C') visa, your duration of stay will be a maximum of 90 days. If you have been issued with a long stay ('D') visa you must register for residency, within 90 days of entry. More information on registering for residency is available on the Irish Immigration website.

Further information

For further information on Irish visas please visit IrishImmigration.ie.

Visa applicants should be wary of unscrupulous agents who offer a guaranteed visa at inflated prices. Visa fees are listed above, in the event that an agent is seeking much higher rates of payment, then it is likely that the agent is a fraudster.

If you are resident in India, you must attend a VFS centre, in-person, to provide your biometrics. If you do not do this, but are provided with an apparent visa by an agent, then the document is forgery. If you are resident in Nepal, while not required to provide biometrics, you should attend VFS, in-person, to submit your documents.

There is no requirement to utilise the services of a third-party agent. The most secure way of obtaining a visa is to follow the process, as outlined above, in-person and without the assistance of a third-party agent.

Fake Irish employment permits

Our Embassy has seen an increase in fake Irish employment permits/visas, which are being issued by fraudulent agents. A copy of a fake permit is available to download below. If you have been issued with a permit similar to this, then it is fake.

View an example of a Fake Irish Employment Permit‌. 

Reporting fraud

The Embassy of Ireland has no role in the investigation, or prosecution, of fraud. If you are the victim of fraud you should report it to your local police station. 

Please click on the following links to view:

• Frequently asked questions for visiting Ireland.
• Frequently asked questions for working in Ireland.
• Frequently asked questions for joining a family member in Ireland.
• Frequently asked questions for studying in Ireland.