Live and work in Ireland and the European Union
Irish citizenship carries EU citizenship rights, subject to the applicable rules.
Irish citizenship family-line screening
Turn your Irish family history into a dated, document-backed case map
Irish citizenship may already exist, may depend on Foreign Birth Registration, or may require a discretionary review. The relationship alone does not decide the route.
Review my Irish family line
The screening identifies possible routes and evidence gaps. It is not an official decision or a promise of approval.
What an Irish citizenship route may change
The practical benefits matter only after citizenship or registration is established through the correct route.
Request Irish citizenship evidence and a passport
A passport is a downstream document. First establish whether citizenship already exists or must begin through registration or a grant.
Preserve a route for a future child
For many foreign-born families, the transmitting parent must already be an Irish citizen before the child's birth.
Organize one family evidence file
Long-form civil records, citizenship instruments, and exact effective dates are more useful than an unsourced family tree.
No benefit is promised by completing this screening. The competent Irish authority decides citizenship and registration matters.
Irish descent routes turn on the parent and the timing
Build the case birth by birth and registration by registration.
A grandparent born on the island can support a common FBR route. A great-grandparent alone does not create the same entitlement.
Island-born ancestor
Starting fact
Was the person born in the Republic of Ireland or Northern Ireland, and under which law?
Evidence to locate: Long-form birth record and identity, marriage, death, or name-change records.
Foreign-born parent
Transmission point
Was this parent already an Irish citizen when the applicant was born?
Evidence to locate: Island-birth record, FBR certificate, naturalization certificate, adoption order, or historical instrument.
Applicant
Route classification
Does the case concern citizenship from birth, FBR, discretionary naturalization, or an evidence gap?
Evidence to locate: Applicant's long-form birth record and the complete timed chain.
Children
Future transmission
Was the parent a citizen before each child's birth?
Evidence to locate: Citizenship effective date compared with every child's birth date.
Four rules to apply before ordering every document
Start with the legal route and decisive dates, then build the evidence packet.
- A child born abroad may be Irish from birth when the transmitting parent was Irish and born on the island.
- A foreign-born child of a foreign-born Irish parent normally needs Foreign Birth Registration unless a statutory exception applies.
- For post-1 July 1986 FBR cases, citizenship starts on registration, not on application or at birth.
- Irish descent or associations may support a discretionary section 16 review, but ancestry alone is not an entitlement.
- Reacquisition is route-specific: CTZ1/Form 1 is limited to an island-born former citizen who made a declaration of alienage; a foreign-born former citizen must establish a fresh descent/FBR route or seek naturalization.
Ireland citizenship guides
Read the focused guide that matches the question in your family.
Parents and automatic citizenship
Grandparents and Foreign Birth Registration
Great-grandparents and older chains
Documents and difficult parentage
Cases this screening can organize
The output is a route and evidence triage, not a citizenship decision.
Parent born on the island
The applicant may need proof of citizenship from birth rather than FBR. Parentage and status at birth still require evidence.
Irish-born grandparent
The common FBR route requires a complete civil chain and the transmitting parent's status at the applicant's birth.
Foreign-born Irish parent
The exact FBR, naturalization, adoption, or historical effective date can decide the next generation.
Great-grandparent or more distant connection
A timed intermediate registration may preserve a route. Otherwise only a discretionary association review may remain.
Former Irish citizen
The reacquisition path depends on birthplace and how citizenship ended. CTZ1/Form 1 does not apply to every former citizen.
Incomplete or conflicting records
Archive leads, name differences, adoption, and parentage decisions need to be separated from application-grade proof.
How the review works
The first useful step is a chronology, not a promise.
- 01
Map the people
Identify the applicant, claimed transmitting parent, and closest Irish ancestor.
- 02
Fix the dates
Compare births with FBR, naturalization, adoption, loss, and other citizenship-effective dates.
- 03
Inventory the evidence
Separate official civil and citizenship records from family trees and archive leads.
- 04
Choose the next review
Identify a potential proof route, FBR route, evidence gap, discretionary review, or specialist issue.
Scope and limits
Immileads can organize submitted facts and, where appropriate, match the case with an independent specialist.
The review can organize
- The family and citizenship-event chronology.
- Potential route categories and missing evidence.
- Documents and discrepancies that may need specialist review.
What is not promised
- An official finding that the applicant is an Irish citizen.
- Acceptance of an FBR, naturalization, passport, or other application.
- A processing time, expedited decision, or complete document list before route review.
Frequently asked questions
Read the full Ireland FAQ for additional questions.
Can I apply through an Irish grandparent?
A foreign-born grandchild of a person born on the island commonly uses Foreign Birth Registration. The complete parent-child chain and the transmitting parent's status at your birth still need proof.
Does an Irish great-grandparent create an FBR route?
Not by itself. The intermediate foreign-born generation generally had to become an Irish citizen before the next foreign birth. A separate discretionary section 16 review may exist, but ancestry alone is insufficient.
Does Northern Ireland count?
Yes. The relevant legislation and DFA guidance use the island of Ireland, which includes Northern Ireland.
What if my parent registered after I was born?
For a post-1 July 1986 FBR registration, citizenship starts on registration. A later registration normally does not retroactively transmit through that parent to an already-born child.
Is an Irish birth certificate enough?
It proves a civil event, not every citizenship fact or later transmission. Births on the island on or after 1 January 2005 require additional citizenship analysis.
Does this screening decide my citizenship?
No. It organizes possible routes, evidence gaps, and manual-review issues. The competent Irish authority makes the decision.