Ireland De Facto Partner Visa: Expert Guide for UK Applicants

According to Irish immigration law, unmarried partner visa holders visa permits holders to work in Ireland without requiring an employment permit or employment visa. Holders can establish and operate a business in Ireland and have access to social welfare benefits and public funds.

All time and years spent in Ireland living under this visa can be used as reckonable evidence towards naturalization and citizenship in Ireland.

The cost of an application is €60 for a single-entry visa and €100 for a multi-entry visa.

Along with the summary sheet, you will need to provide evidence as follows:

• Your current passport
• Two-colour passport-size photographs
• A signed letter of application that outlines your reasons for travelling to Ireland. You will also need to include full details of your de facto partner in your application including suitable accommodation to live in
• Evidence that demonstrates the relationship between you and your partner. This might include a civil partnership certificate or evidence of common ownership of property
• A full account of your relationship history. This includes information of when and where you met as evidenced by, for example, correspondence by telephone or email, visas, entry/exit stamps on the passport of your partner, photographs
• The financial requirement discusses how the sponsor is willing to bear complete financial responsibility for the de facto partner
• The specific required documentation will be somewhat dependent on your particular circumstances, and you may need to provide additional information.
• A police clearance certificate

To apply for a de facto partner visa from the UK, you must be able to prove that you are in a genuine relationship with your partner living in Ireland and you both are committed to this partnership. Proof of cohabitation as well as a detailed relationship history supported by documentary evidence are a must.

To prove that you fulfil the cohabitation requirement, you must be able to provide supporting evidence such as:

• Joint property documents (e.g., lease or mortgage papers in both your names)
• Joint tenancy agreements
• Utility bills or such other official correspondence in both your names to the same residential address
• Proof of financial interdependence (e.g., joint bank statements, joint assets or loans, etc.)

Any overseas cohabitation period will count for the purpose of a de facto partner visa if you can provide documentary evidence thereof.

Your detailed relationship history must include information like when you met, when you began the relationship, how your relationship developed, and when you moved in together. The letter of application should be detailed and personal, with all information recorded in a chronological order.

Dated documentary evidence (such as photos, flight records, correspondence, social media posts, etc.) must be provided in support of your claimed relationship history.

The financial information which you will need to include in your application includes:

• Statements of your bank accounts that cover a six-month period immediately prior to your application to show you have enough money to support yourself
• Statements of your de facto partner’s bank accounts which cover the six-month period prior to your application
• If your partner is a resident in Ireland, you will need to provide their P60s for the 3 years immediately prior to the date of your application and their 3 most recent consecutive payslips. (rules  vary for people in self-employment)
• Cash savings alone are not accepted as sufficient evidence of ongoing financial support.

Even if you receive preclearance (and a visa, if applicable), you are not automatically permitted entry clearance into Ireland per immigration rules. When you land in Ireland you need to report to immigration officials, and they will decide whether or not to grant you valid permission to enter Ireland, based on the information you provide.

You will need to inform the immigration officer that you intend to apply for residency in Ireland based on the grounds of your relationship with your Irish resident partner.

The following documents will need to be provided to immigration officials:

• A valid passport
• Your immigration preclearance letter
• Your visa (if required)
• If you need to apply for a visa to travel to Ireland, you ought to bring photocopies of important documents which were included in your application forms, such as evidence of your relationship and financial information.
• Information about your de facto partner

All de facto partners that are permitted into Ireland are given Residency permission, or permission to remain. This is a status held by legally entitled people who can live and work in Ireland for more than 90 days.

If you wish to stay in Ireland for more than 90 days, you must apply for residency permission through an immigration authority, upon entry into Ireland. The registration involves formally requesting permission to live and work in Ireland.

For this registration, you will need to provide the following information at the immigration office:

• Your original passport
• Your partner’s original passport
• Your preclearance certificate
• Evidence of your joint Irish address with your de facto partner
• You will also need to pay a registration fee of €300 when you apply for residency permission.
• You must plan to live with your partner for the foreseeable future in Ireland
• Be able to evidence through a bank statement that both civil partners can financially support themselves financially, without any help from public funds.
• Show that you are of good character and will live in compliance with Irish law.

If the application is successful, you will be granted Stamp 4 permission, which allows you to live and work in Ireland without a separate employment permit. Stamp 4 is initially granted for one year and must be renewed annually and should not be confused with the UK concepts of indefinite leave to remain or settled status.

Your visa refusal letter from ISD will explicitly mention the refusal reason(s) and whether you are eligible to appeal. The common refusal reasons for a de facto partner visa include:

• Sponsor’s inability to meet the financial threshold (or their failure to submit sufficient financial evidence)
• Sponsor’s inability to meet the other eligibility criteria
• Lack of sufficient evidence to prove the genuineness of relationship and/or cohabitation history
• Incomplete, inconsistent, or inadequate documentary evidence
• Serious criminal convictions (such as violent or drug-related offenses)
• Previous adverse immigration record, etc.

ISD may not allow you to appeal the refusal decision in certain scenarios (e.g., you submitted false or misleading information in your original application).

If you are permitted to appeal the refusal decision, you must do so within eight weeks from the visa decision date. ISD will appoint another immigration officer, who was not involved in your initial application or the refusal decision, to review your case. They will consider both the information from your initial application as well as any further information you provide.

In your appeal application, you must specifically address the refusal reason(s) and provide additional evidence if required. The appeal process itself is free of charge. However, as you are required to submit appeals by post only (emails or faxes aren’t acceptable), you must pay the correct postage for large packages (if any).

If your appeal is approved, ISD will send you a preclearance letter (if you are a visa-exempt national), or the relevant consular office will place a Long Stay ‘D’ visa in your passport (if you are a visa-required national). If your appeal is refused, you cannot appeal again.

Consulting a specialist Irish immigration lawyer at appeal stage is strongly recommended, as they can help strengthen your case and increase the chances of receiving a favourable decision. Since you cannot appeal again, call us at +44 (0) 333 305 9375 to get it right the first time, or to explore what other options you may have including submitting a fresh application.

A de facto partner visa applies to applicants who are in a genuine, continuing and mutually committed relationship. It is similar to a marriage or civil partnership in practice but not in law.

The partners must be living together (unless there are compelling reasons for not doing so) and intend to continue living together in Ireland if they are granted a visa. They must not otherwise be related by family.

You do not require a marriage or civil partnership certificate to apply for a de facto partner visa. However, you must show documentary evidence of cohabitation for at least two years prior to the date of your visa application. Visiting each other from time to time isn’t sufficient to prove that you have a genuine de facto partnership.

If you weren’t, you must be able to prove that there were compelling reason(s) for this (e.g., you were working or studying in different places). ISD considers each application on its individual merits, and pays due attention to humanitarian reasons where applicable.

A spouse visa is for those who are legally married to their partners in Ireland. Your marriage must be recognised under Irish law, and you will have to submit a marriage certificate (including a certified translated version if the original is not in English). Both the de facto partner visa and the spouse visa routes lead to Stamp 4 permission in Ireland on arrival.

You may consider getting married before applying for a join family visa as it may simplify the application process and required documentation. However, it removes the flexibility of the de facto partnerships. You must thoroughly consider what works best in your circumstances.

You can apply for citizenship by naturalisation after lawfully living in Ireland on Stamp 4 permission for at least five years out of nine years prior to your application. This must include at least one year of continuous residence immediately before your application date.

You will also have to meet all other requirements as specified by ISD, such as:

• Be 18 or more
• Meet the reckonable residence requirement
• Be able to submit proof of residency in Ireland for every year of residency claimed
• Be of ‘good character’
• Intend in good faith to continue residing in Ireland after naturalisation
• Be willing to attend a citizenship ceremony, if your citizenship application is approved, and make the declaration of fidelity and loyalty to Ireland

If you are a British citizen with Irish ancestry, you may also be able to claim Irish citizenship by descent. If you have an Irish-born grandparent or parent, you may apply for Irish citizenship by descent independent of the de facto partner route.

After becoming an Irish citizen through descent or by naturalisation, you may hold both your UK and Irish passports as both countries permit dual nationality. You will not have to renounce your British citizenship to become an Irish national.

The Total Law team offers professional legal advice that can help couples and partners successfully obtain the correct visas. The Total Law team can support you with the entire application, provide advice on the best possible route, and even work with you on how to complete your application as best as possible.

Our team does our best to support you and keep the process stress-free. We are open to support you seven days a week, either by phone call or online chat. Contact us today to get started.