UK students can study and reside in Ireland without any restrictions due to Common Travel Area.

If you’re using a passport to enter Ireland, it should be valid and in date. You should also check your air or sea carrier’s terms and conditions of travel. For journeys on the island of Ireland, British and Irish citizens do not require any travel documents when crossing the land border.

EU/EEA students have the right to stay and study in Ireland. You will not need to register with the local immigration officer nor apply for a Residence card.

Hong Kong (SAR) Identity Document Holders do not need a visa to travel to Ireland for long or short stays.

Non-EU/EEA students will need to apply for a Visa C which allows you to travel to Ireland for up to 90 days. You can complete the following activities:

• Tourism
• Short–term studying

The following activities can be conducted under this visa:

• Do work (paid or unpaid)

Student can check if they require a visa by clicking here.

Gather Your Documents

• Students who are required to apply for Visa C, will need to gather the following documents:
• Application Form sheets
• Application letter
• Holiday, vacation or study plan
• Type or write a description of your planned holiday, vacation or study trip to Ireland. Please include details of where you will stay.
• Accommodation
• Proof you have reserved a place on the course.
• Travel & medical insurance
• Proof of fee payment
• Passport
• Travel to Ireland from a different country (For example – not your home country or a country where you are a legal resident), or
• Travel from Ireland to a different country.
• Photographs
• Include 2 passport-sized colour photographs of the visa applicant. On the back of each photo:
• Finance plan
• You must show that you have enough finance (money) to support yourself in Ireland.
• 3 most recent payslips
• Your most recent tax return document, for example in Ireland, an employment detail summary from Revenue
• A letter from their employer that confirms they are employed.
• You must also include your own personal bank statement, following the same rules as described above.
• Work
• If you have a job at home, you must show that you have an obligation to return to it.

A full list of documents can be found here.

Students from Non - EU/EEA countries are required to apply for a Long-Term study visa.

Gather Your Documents

• Application Form
• Application letter
• Two colour passport sized photographs not more than 6 months old
• Your current passport and a full copy of all previous passports
• Evidence that you have enrolled on a privately funded course
• Evidence accounting for any gaps in your educational history
• Evidence of fee payment to college
• Evidence that you have the academic ability to follow your chosen course
• Evidence of your level of English (or Irish)
• Finances
• Private Medical Insurance
• Previous Visa Refusals
• Summary of finances for study visa application
• *Translations done outside the EEA or Switzerland must also be attested/apostilled as genuine, by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the country in which the translation occurs.

A full list of documents can be found here

*If you submit a document that is not in English or Irish, you must also supply a full translation. Each translated document must contain:

• Confirmation from the translator that it is an accurate translation of the original document
• The date of the translation
• The translator’s full name and signature
• The translator’s contact details.

How to Apply

• You must apply online for a visa.
• First, complete the online application process. The online system will then create a Application Form
• Follow the instructions on the Application Form. The Application Form will contain information on how to submit your supporting documentation
• You must print, sign and date the Application Form and submit it with your supporting documents.

Source: https://www.irishimmigration.ie/coming-to-study-in-ireland/what-are-my-study-visa-options/how-to-apply-for-long-term-study-visa/

UK/EU Students do not need any further documentarian to work in Ireland. However, may be asked to produce a valid passport/National ID Card. 

Non-EU Students can complete an Unpaid Internship for a maximum of 90 days with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment.

You should apply for a Short-Stay C Visa and you should select “Internship” in the reason for travel. Furthermore Students should type “Unpaid” as an answer to the question regrading “Employment Permit/Atypical”.  This visa can also be used for a Training Visa.

You cannot complete the following activities:

• Undertake other unpaid work
• Undertake any paid work

Source: https://www.irishimmigration.ie/

Source: https://www.irishimmigration.ie/coming-to-work-in-ireland/

Gather Your Documents

*If documents are not written in English or Irish, the documents must be fully translated. Please see mandatory details to be included in translated documents here. Documents issued outside of the EU/EEA must be attested/apostilled as genuine by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

How to Apply

Students will initially be given a permit and will need to take an additional step of applying for an Internship Visa is required. The application process for an obnline application  https://www.visas.inis.gov.ie/avats/OnlineHome.aspx.

Source: https://enterprise.gov.ie/en/what-we-do/workplace-and-skills/employment-permits/permit-types/internship-employment-permit/

If you are from a non-EEA/non-Swiss country, you need a permission before coming to work in Ireland.

Before coming to work in Ireland for more than 90 days, you must have a contract of employment and you must apply for the relevant work permission to the Department of Justice, the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (DETE) or the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA).

Once your permission has been granted and if you are visa required, you must apply for a long stay visa (D) before traveling to Ireland.

Students going to Ireland may be eligible to apply for employment under The Internship Permit or Exchange Agreement Employment Permit. You should email the consulate for confirmation on which permit would be best suited to your needs.

You or your employer can apply for an Internship Employment Permit and the Employment Permit is issued to the foreign national, and a certified copy sent to the employer, which permits his or her employment in the State by the employer in the occupation and location/s specified on the permit.

Source: https://epos.enterprise.gov.ie/#/app/findFormAssistant

Gather Your Documents

Student who wish to apply for a Work Permit should gather the following documents:

• Two colour passport sized photographs not more than 6 months old
• Your current passport and a full copy of all previous passports
• A signed letter of application that includes:
• Accommodation details
• Finances
• Documentary evidence from your university
• Link to host company or organisation
• Garda vetting
• Medical or travel Insurance
• Evidence of your obligations to return to your country of permanent residence
• Visa Refusals, or other immigration Issues (including deportation, overstaying)
• Criminal Convictions

A full list of documentation can be found here.

*If documents are not written in English or Irish, the documents must be fully translated. Please see mandatory details to be included in translated documents here. Documents issued outside of the EU/EEA must be attested/apostilled as genuine by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

How to Apply

Students should gather all documentation, place them in a strong padded envelope and send via post to their local application office.

Some application requires biometric information, therefore students are urged to contact their local application centre for further information regarding their Visa Process.

Upon Arrival

An Employment Permit is not a Residence Permission. To be lawfully resident in the State, it is a requirement that all non-EEA nationals in possession of an Employment Permit must register with the Garda National Immigration Bureau. It is in the best interest of the persons concerned to register as soon as possible following arrival.

Source: https://enterprise.gov.ie/en/what-we-do/workplace-and-skills/employment-permits/permit-types/internship-employment-permit/