New Form 8 Application Form
The Immigration Service Delivery have released a further version of the Form 8 Application by a person of full age for naturalisation as an Irish Citizen (CTZ3) application form.
The new application form Version 7.1 May 2023 was released on the 23rd of May. This is the fourth update to the application form in 2023.
It is important to submit the correct version of the Form 8 application form when applying for Irish Citizenship and all applications for Irish Citizenship should now be submitted on version 7.1 May 23 of the form. Applications which are submitted on any of the previous versions of the application form will be returned to the applicant requiring them to submit a new application on the correct form.
The updated application form is available to download on the Immigration Service Delivery website here.
Guidance Document and Supporting documentation
In conjunction with the new application form, the Citizenship Unit have released a Citizenship Guidance document which further explains the identity documentation and residency proofs required to support a citizenship application.
Identity Documentation
The requirement for an Applicant to establish their identity is unchanged. Applicants continue to establish identity by submitting identity documents with a predetermined point value until they reach a score of 150 points. A certified copy of the biodata page of an in date home country passport is worth 150 points, with other identity documents being assigned a lower points score, for example a valid IRP card is worth 70 points and a Certified Copy Drivers licence is worth 10 points.
Residency Proofs
Residency proofs are now divided into Type A and Type B documentation.
Applicants must submit one Type A document per year (worth 100 points) and these documents are listed as Employment Detail Summaries, P60s, Department of Social Protection Annual Contributions or Bank Statements.
Applicants must then submit one Type B document per year (worth 50 points), and these are listed as Credit Card Statements, Rent Agreements, Annual Mortgage Statements, Phone Bills, Utility Bills, Medical Practitioner Employment History.
Police Clearance
Where a person has been outside of Ireland for more than 6 months or longer, a police clearance certificate must be submitted from the country that they were in.
Affidavit where a person is unable to meet 150 points per year of residency
Where a person is unable to reach the 150 points per year of residency, an affidavit must now be submitted explaining why the 150 points cannot be reached.
New E-vetting Invitation Process
Invitations to complete the E-Vetting Process are now being sent to applicants by email. Previously applicants for Irish citizenship would receive an E-Vetting Invitation Form by post which they would complete and return to the Citizenship Division in hard copy. Last week however the ISD began to send the E-Vetting Invitation by email.
Applicants must set up an online account on the ISD portal and once registered chose the E-Vetting Invitation option to complete the process.
Once the e-vetting invitation has been completed, applicants will receive an email thanking them for submitting the completed E-Vetting Invitation and providing them with an acknowledgment number for the submission. They are also advised that once a member of the Citizenship Division has reviewed their submission that they will receive a further email which will contain further information in relation to completing the E-Vetting application.
When completing the Form 8 application form, it is very important that an active email address is listed at Question 3.4 as this is the address that the E-Vetting Invitation will be sent to.
A number of clients have reported that the E-Vetting Invitation went into their junk email boxes so applicants who are waiting to receive the invitation should check their junk inbox to ensure that the email is not sitting in this, thereby causing a delay to their application.
Sinnott Solicitors Dublin and Cork have a specialist team of Immigration Solicitors and Immigration Consultants located in both of offices who are experts on Irish citizenship and all Irish immigration matters. Should you have any queries with respect to any of the information contained in this article or any other immigration matters, do not hesitate to contact our immigration department in Dublin or Cork today on 014062862 or info@sinnott.ie.
