Irish Citizenship Through Marriage for Canadian Citizens

Being in a civil partnership with an Irish citizen does not automatically give you the right to become an Irish citizen; the citizenship is granted on the basis that the individual meets the requirements of good behaviour, has a familial link to the Irish State, and also meets other criteria.

These requirements are:

• You must be at least 18 years of age.
• You must be married or in a recognized civil partnership with an Irish citizen.
• Your marriage/civil partnership must be valid under Irish law.
• You must pass the 3 years reckonable residence within the last 5 years of your application which includes 1 year of continuous residence in Ireland immediately before the date of application.
• You and your Partner must be cohabiting together as a married couple or as civil partners.
• You must be able to prove you are of ‘good character.’
• You must have plans to continue living in Ireland and make a declaration of fidelity to the nation and loyalty to the State.
• You must have kept your registration and immigration permission up-to-date with no gaps.

Good Character Test

When applying for Irish citizenship through marriage, you must be able to pass the good character test.

The good character test ensures that you have no ‘undesirable’ immigration or criminal history before applying for citizenship. If there is an act of deception during or after the application, the Irish State can reject the application or revoke the citizenship if it has been granted.

Also, if the Irish State deems your marriage to be fraudulent, meaning you entered into it for immigration advantages, the application will be rejected.

If you give any false information in your application, intentionally or innocently, these actions can be used against you, affecting your citizenship application being refused.

There are documents you need to present and submit when applying for Irish citizenship through marriage; these documents will help prove your eligibility for Irish citizenship through marriage:

• Birth certificate and original passport to prove your identity and nationality
• Civil partnership or marriage certificate to prove your partnership is legally binding to an Irish national and that it is recognized in Irish law
• The birth certificate or naturalization certification of the Irish citizen to verify the identity of the Irish partner.
• Evidence that you and your civil partner are cohabiting together, including a sworn affidavit, a portfolio of payslips, and bank statements that demonstrate regular payments of utility bills.
• Proof that you are of good character.
• Proof that you have been living on the island of Ireland for at least 3 years to pass the ‘reckonable residence’ requirement.

These documents help prove your identity and satisfy the immigration officer that the marriage or partnership is genuine.

When applying, you will need to fill out Form 8, gather the supporting documentation and send them to the Immigration Service Delivery (ISD) along with the fees.

Also, you are required to make a statutory declaration, which is a written statement swearing your details are true and witnessed by an authorised person. Such an individual can be a solicitor, commissioner for oaths, peace commissioner or notary public. Both you and your Irish spouse must make a statutory declaration.

Your application will be assessed by the Minister for Justice and scored based on your identification and residence history. Each piece of evidence you submit to prove your identity and residence in Ireland may score some points. You must get at least 150 points in this area to qualify.

If your application is successful, you will be invited to attend a citizenship ceremony to declare your fidelity and loyalty to the Irish state, and declare that you will observe Irish laws and respect its democratic values.