Spouse/Civil Partner Family Visa

If you want to join your spouse or civil partner in Ireland for more than three months and you’re from a visa required country, then you must apply for a long stay Join Family visa. Our immigration solicitors can confirm your eligibility to an Irish spousal visa and help you through the application process.

Call us on 01 901 1355, email info@rnlsolicitors.ie or fill in the Free Online Enquiry Form. You can also request a call back and we will contact you at a convenient time.

We can be contacted outside of Irish office working hours and can communicate with you via phone, email and WhatsApp.

Spousal/civil partner visa Ireland

You could be allowed to join your spouse or civil partner in Ireland under the country’s family reunification scheme. Your spouse or civil partner must be lawfully residing in the State and must act as your ‘sponsor’. A sponsor can be:

• An Irish citizen
• An EEA/Swiss citizen
• A non-EU/EEA national, residing lawfully in Ireland through an employment permit
• A foreign national living in Ireland on a Stamp 4 or Stamp 5 permission
• A researcher under a Hosting Agreement
• A PhD student, studying in an Irish accredited program
• A minister of religion who holds an immigration Stamp 3

The sponsor must have an annual salary of at least €30,000. Category B sponsors must have earned at least €30,000 gross income over the two-year period before the application. This figure is higher if the couple have children.

Ultimately, the Visa Officer must be satisfied that neither the sponsor nor the applicant will be a burden on the State. The sponsor must, therefore, have enough money to support both themselves and their spouse/civil partner.

Spouse or civil partner has been granted refugee status in Ireland

The rules are slightly different if your spouse or civil partner has been granted refugee status in Ireland. In these cases, the sponsor who is residing in Ireland must apply for Family Reunification. If this is approved, the applicant can apply for a long stay D Join Family visa.

When can you apply for a spousal visa?

Sponsors are placed into one of two categories:

Category A sponsors include:

• Irish/EEA citizens
• Critical Skills Employment Permit Holders
• Investors
• Business Permit Holders
• Entrepreneurs
• Researchers under a Hosting Agreement
• Intra Corporate Transferees
• Scholarship students under an approved Scholarship Program
• PhD students
• Full time non-locum doctors

Those who are hoping to join a category A sponsor in Ireland can apply for a Join Family visa immediately.

Category B sponsors include:

• Non-Critical Employment Permit Holders
• All Stamp 4 holders not covered by other more favourable arrangements
• Ministers of religion

Those who are hoping to join a category B sponsor in Ireland must wait for 12 months before applying for a Join Family visa.

What if I’m not from a visa required country?

You only have to apply for a Join Family visa if you are from a visa required country. You can check whether you need a visa on the Immigration Service Delivery website.

If you are not from a visa required country, then you can travel to Ireland to be with your spouse or civil partner. However, if you are not from the EEA or Switzerland, then you must declare your intention to seek residency in Ireland based on your marriage or civil partnership at the point of entry. Supporting documentation (such as your marriage certificate) is required. You must then apply for residency permission within 90 days of arriving in Ireland.

If you are not from the EEA or Switzerland but your spouse/civil partner is, then you can accompany them to Ireland under EU Treaty Rights. You’ll need to apply for a ‘Residence Card of a Family Member of a Union Citizen’.

Speak to our Irish immigration solicitors

If you need a Join Family visa to accompany your spouse or civil partner to Ireland, we can help. Understandably, the thought of being separated from your husband or wife due to immigration reasons is distressing. That is why we do everything in our power to get your visa application processed as quickly as possible.

Speak to us if:

• You want to know more about the eligibility requirements for a spousal visa (known technically as a Join Family visa)
• You want help applying for your Join Family visa
• Your visa application has been rejected

We can be contacted outside of Irish office working hours and can communicate with you via phone, email and WhatsApp.

Call us on 01 901 1355, email info@rnlsolicitors.ie or fill in the Free Online Enquiry Form. You can also request a call back and we will contact you at a convenient time.

Spousal visa Ireland – quick facts:

Is there a spousal visa for Ireland?

There is no specific visa for spouses and civil partners. Anyone from a visa required country wanting to join a spouse or civil partner who is legally residing in Ireland must get a Join Family visa. This is a type of long stay visa.

Do I need a spousal visa if I’m married to an Irish national?

Irish nationals do not have an automatic right to bring spouses and civil partners to live with them in Ireland. If you are a non-EEA/non-Swiss citizen and your spouse or civil partner is an Irish citizen, you will have to get immigration permission to join them in Ireland. Those from visa required countries must get a Join Family visa before travelling to the country. You must then apply for residency permission under the Spouse/Civil Partner of an Irish National Scheme once you are in Ireland.

Can you work on a spousal visa in Ireland?

You are automatically eligible to work if your sponsor is an Irish citizen or the holder of a Critical Skills Employment Permit. Otherwise, you must apply for an employment permit.

Is my visa still valid if I get a divorce or separate?

If your relationship breaks down, then your spousal visa may no longer be valid. However, you may be able to continue to live in Ireland if you meet the qualifying criteria in your own right.

Do I need a visa if I’m eligible under EU Treaty Rights?

Non-EEA citizens can join their EEA/Swiss spouses in Ireland under EU Treaty Rights (although this is not applicable to Irish citizens in Ireland). You still need apply for a Join Family visa and a residence card if you are from a visa required country. You need to get a visa before you travel to Ireland. If you are not from a visa required country, then you only need to apply for a residence card.

What documents are required for a spousal visa Ireland?

You need to provide various documents as part of your Join Family visa application, including:

• Two recent colour passport sized photographs
• Current passport and a full copy of all previous passports
• A signed letter of application
• Information regarding the sponsor’s status/eligibility to sponsor
• Evidence of your marriage or civil partnership
• Evidence of the sponsor’s earnings
• Evidence of dependency (if required)
• Proof of medical/travel insurance

Do you want to join your spouse or civil partner in Ireland?

Call us on 01 901 1355, email info@rnlsolicitors.ie or fill in the Free Online Enquiry Form. You can also request a call back and we will contact you at a convenient time.