Foreign Birth Register FAQs

You are eligible to apply for citizenship via the FBR if you were born outside of Ireland and meet one of the following criteria:

• You have a grandparent who was born on the island of Ireland.
• One of your parents was an Irish citizen at the exact time of your birth, even if that parent was not born in Ireland (e.g., they became a citizen through naturalisation or the FBR before you were born).

You cannot apply directly based on a great-grandparent. You are only eligible if your parent registered their own citizenship on the FBR before you were born. If your parent was not on the FBR at the time of your birth, the chain of citizenship is broken, and you do not qualify.

No. You must provide official, original state-issued civil certificates (long-form birth, marriage, and death certificates) for yourself, the relevant Irish parent, and the relevant Irish grandparent. The only document you should submit as a photocopy is your current photographic ID (like a passport or driver's license), but it must be explicitly certified as a "true copy" by your witness.

Yes, the Department of Foreign Affairs will return all of your original certificates. At the end of the process, they are mailed back to you via tracked, recorded mail that requires a signature upon delivery. You do not need to provide your own prepaid return envelope.

Once you complete the online application, you must print it out and sign it in the physical presence of an approved professional witness (e.g., a police officer, lawyer, or doctor). This witness must:

• Sign and date the application form.
• Sign and date the back of two (out of your four) passport photographs.
• Certify your photocopied ID as a true copy.
• Apply their official professional stamp to the form. If they do not have a stamp, they must securely attach their professional business card.

Approved witnesses include professionals such as:

• Garda Síochána / Police Officer
• School Principal / Vice Principal / Teacher / School Secretary / Pre-school Manager / Montessori Teacher / Lecturer
• Member of Clergy
• Medical Doctor
• Nurse
• Physiotherapist
• Speech Therapist
• Pharmacist
• Dentist
• Lawyer
• Notary Public / Commissioner for Oaths
• Peace Commissioner
• Bank Manager / Assistant Bank Manager or Credit Union Manager or Assistant Manager
• Accountant
• Elected Public Representative
• Vet
• Chartered Engineer

Due to a massive surge in applications over recent years and the complex nature of verifying historical lineage, standard FBR applications currently take approximately 12 months to process from the date your physical documents arrive in Ireland.

Generally, no. Applications are processed strictly in the order the supporting documents are received. The only exceptions are for extreme, time-sensitive situations—most commonly, expectant parents who need to be registered before their child's birth (so the child can inherit citizenship) or cases involving statelessness.

The FBR registration fee covers both the processing of your application and the issue of your certificate. Payment is made online at the time you submit your application. ^[1]

• Adults (18 and over): €270 registration + certificate, plus a non-refundable €8 postage and handling fee — €278 total.
• Minors (under 18): €145 registration + certificate, plus a non-refundable €8 postage and handling fee — €153 total.

Once you have received your FBR certificate and are ready to apply for your passport, the fees depend on how you apply. Passport Online is the quickest and most cost-effective method.^[2]

• Adult 10-year passport (Passport Online): €75. An additional €15 postal fee applies if you reside outside Ireland.
• Child 5-year passport (Passport Online): €20, plus a €5 fee to cover return of documents. A single €15 postal fee applies for children resident outside Ireland.
• Adult passport via An Post: €80, plus An Post's handling and delivery fee (€9.50 for a single application).