Entitlement to Citizenship

The Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform is responsible for determining entitlement to citizenship in accordance with the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Acts, 1956 to 2004.

Every person born on the island of Ireland before 1 January, 2005 is entitled to be an Irish citizen.

The citizenship of a person born on the island of Ireland on or after 1 January, 2005 depends on the citizenship of the person's parents at the time of the person's birth or the residency history of one of the parents prior to the birth. An information notice explaining the changes that have taken effect since 01 January 2005 is available from the website of the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform.

Under the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Acts, 1956 to 2004, a person who was born outside Ireland is automatically an Irish citizen by descent if one of that person's parents was an Irish citizen who was born in Ireland.