The Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan has announced that effective from the 10th of March 2025 citizens of Eswatini, Lesotho and Nauru are required to an obtain entry visa before travelling to the Republic of Ireland.

Temporary transitional arrangements will be implemented where persons have already booked their travel however the arrangements must have been made before the 10th of March 2025 and only apply to travel to the State until the 31st of March 2025.

What do the changes mean

Prior to the 10th of March 2025 citizens of Eswatini, Lesotho and Nauru were not required to hold an entry visa to travel to the Republic of Ireland. As non-visa required nationals, they would simply travel to the State and at the border seek permission to enter based on their specific intentions, for example entry to visit, entry to reside with a family member, entry for the purpose of study.

They are now visa required nationals and must apply for an entry visa prior to travelling.

A transit visa is also required if travelling through Ireland to another country.

Temporary transitional arrangements 

Emergency travel will be allowed in the following situations until the 31st of March 2025 where travel was booked before the 10th of March 2025:

  • A critical medical case involving a family member being seriously ill or undergoing medical treatment. Evidence from the relevant medical institution must be provided.
  • Visiting for a significant family event – a birth, wedding, or funeral. Suitable evidence must be provided.
  • Taking up a place obtained in a third-level institution on an undergraduate or post-graduate degree course. Evidence must be provided from the relevant institution.
  • Taking up employment and holding an Employment Permit for Ireland. Evidence of the permit issued by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment must be provided.
  • Travelling for business. Confirmation of the arrangements for the visit from the business in question must be provided.

Travellers falling within the above categories should email becomingvisarequired@justice.ie with the subject line “Visa Required – Emergency Travel Requested”.

Business Impact

Employees who are nationals of the above countries and who have been granted employment permits by the Department of Enterprise Trade and Employment will now be required to apply for Employment Visas to enter the State after the grant of an employment permit, thereby delaying proposed employment commencement dates. To date nationals of these countries would simply travel to Ireland to take up employment once they are issued with an employment permit from the Department of Enterprise Trade and Employment.

They will however now need to apply for an Employment Visa after the grant of the Employment Permit in order to enter the State.

Similarly business travellers from Eswatini, Lesotho and Nauru will  need to apply for a business visa to enter the State for business purposes, with current processing times  for business visas taking approximately 6-8 weeks in the South Africa Visa Office.

Students

Students from Eswatini, Lesotho and Nauru are now required to apply for Long Stay D Visa’s (Study) prior to commencing a course of studies in Ireland. The financial threshold will be much higher with the requirement to show immediate access to at least €10,000 for one academic year and ready access to €10,000 for each subsequent year of study, in addition to course fees for each additional year. This will have an impact on the number of third level students from these countries choosing to study in Ireland in circumstances where financial criteria for students from non-visa required countries.

Family Reunification

Families will be subjected to the financial thresholds set out in the Policy Document on Non-EEA Family Reunification. For example spouses of Irish citizens will need to show minimum earnings of €40,000 in the three years prior to an application.

Spouses of non-EU nationals will need to show earnings of €30,000  net per annum for each of the previous two years where there are no children, and if there are children the minimum financial thresholds of the Working Family Payment Supplement must be reached.

These are merely a handful of examples of the implications of the addition of these countries to the visa required list.

With offices in Dublin and Cork, Sinnott Solicitors have a specialist team of Immigration Solicitors and Immigration Consultants who are experts on EU treaty rights 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 Cork or Dublin today on 014062862 or info@sinnott.ie.