Glossary of immigration terms

Written permission from the Minister for Justice and Equality to a non-EEA national to allow you to become established and engage in business in Ireland. Business permission usually lasts for 1 year initially.
A visa-required national will still need a visa as well as the business permission.
If you hold a business permission, you will have residence stamp number 1 endorsed on your passport.

A document which non-EEA nationals (and certain Bulgarians and Romanians) must have in order to be allowed to work in Ireland. This term originally referred to work permits, working visas and work authorisations.
Since 1 February 2007 there are 3 categories of employment permit: Green Cards, work permits, and intra-company transfer (pdf).
If you hold a Green Card or a work permit, you will have residence stamp number 1 endorsed on your passport.

A citizen of the European Union. The members of the EU are: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom.

No residence stamp is placed on the passport of an EU national on arrival in Ireland.
An EU national (apart from certain Bulgarian and Romanian nationals) does not need an employment permit or business permission to work in Ireland.

A new type of employment permit for occupations in Ireland where there are skills shortages. Skills relate to a restricted list of occupations in the annual salary range from €30,000 to €60,000 and for occupations in the annual salary range above €60,000. Since 1 February 2007 it replaced the working visa and work authorisation. If you hold a Green Card permit you will have residence stamp number 1 endorsed on your passport.

A card issued by the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) to all legally resident non-EEA nationals who stay in Ireland for more than 3 months. Possession of this Certificate of Registration verifies that the person has registered with their local immigration registration officer.

The card is a credit-card sized document. It includes the person’s photo, the number of the relevant residence stamp (see below), date of expiry and the GNIB reference number.

Sometimes called a GNIB card or a residence permit,the card may also be called a Green Book. It was also known as an Aliens Book.

There are several different versions of the GNIB card, depending on the person’s status. These different types of card are described below. There is a fee of €150 for the card (with exceptions).

Immigration officers are appointed under statute by the Minister for Justice and Equality. Their functions include interviewing those arriving in the State to establish whether they are foreign nationals, and if so, whether they have the correct documents and whether they should be given permission to land or be in the State. This permission generally takes the form of a stamp on the passport. It is usually known as a residence stamp or it may be a landing stamp only.

A member of the Garda Síochána who is responsible for the registration of non-EEA nationals who stay in Ireland for more than 3 months.

In the Dublin metropolitan region this function resides with the GNIB at Burgh Quay. Outside this area, the local immigration registration officer is the Superintendent at the local Garda district headquarters. In certain districts, there are local arrangements. For example, people who live in the catchment areas of Blessington Garda Station, Co. Wicklow and Maynooth Garda Station, Co. Kildare can register at these local stations.

The type of GNIB card issued to a non-EEA national family member of an EU citizen who has lived in the State for 5 years. The card will record the fact that the family member’s permission to remain is residence stamp no. 4 EU-FAM. Even if the holder is a visa-required national, they will not need a re-entry visa when returning to Ireland after a stay abroad. Application form EU 3 is used to apply for this type of GNIB card. There is no fee.

Application form EU 2 is used apply for this certificate. There is no fee.

A a non-EEA national dependant (or partner) of an EU citizen who is not a qualifying family member (see below). They have completed an application form EU1 and have been approved as a permitted family member by the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) under the European Communities (Free Movement of Persons) Regulations 2006 and 2008.

A permitted family member will receive residence stamp no. 4 EU-FAM and will not need an employment permit or business permission to work in Ireland.

A person who has been invited to Ireland by the government, usually in response to a humanitarian crisis and at the request of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. In general, they have the same rights as Convention refugees.

A Programme refugee will have residence stamp no. 4 on their passport and will not need an employment permit or business permission to work in Ireland.

The non-EEA national spouse, civil partner or dependent relative of an EU citizen who has exercised the right to move to and live in Ireland under the European Communities (Free Movement of Persons) Regulations 2006 and 2008.

A person who has been approved by INIS as a qualifying family member and has completed an application form EU1 will receive residence stamp no. 4 EU-FAM and will not need an employment permit or business permission to work in Ireland. The certificate of registration card will be 4 EU-FAM (which is the residence card of a family member of a EU citizen)

A type of GNIB card that is issued to a non-EEA citizen who is a qualifying family member or permitted family member of an EU citizen under the European Communities (Free Movement of Persons) Regulations 2006.

Form EU 1 is used to apply for this card. There is no fee.

The type of GNIB card issued to non-EEA national dependants of citizens of Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein and Switzerland under the European Communities (Aliens) Regulations 1977 and the European Communities (Right of Residence for Non-Economically Active Persons) Regulations 1997.

Formerly issued to non-EEA dependants of citizens of all the EEA and Switzerland, it is no longer issued to non-EEA dependants of EU citizens, who qualify for residence cards.

The holder of a residence document will receive residence stamp no. 4 EU-FAM and will not need an employment permit or business permission to work in Ireland. EU 1 form is now used to apply for this as well. There is no fee.

An endorsement placed on the passport of a non-EEA national permitting them to remain in Ireland. It specifies the duration for which the person is permitted to remain and the conditions under which they may remain (for example, whether they are allowed to work or not). This stamp must be kept up to date at all times.

The different types of stamp are explained below.

Issued to a non-EEA national who is permitted to remain in Ireland for a specific, temporary and limited purpose (pdf) on condition that they do not receive State benefits and have private medical insurance.

Issued to the following categories of people, all of whom do not need an employment permit to work in Ireland.

• *Spouses, civil partners and dependants of Irish nationals
• *Family members of EEA nationals
• *People who have permission to remain on the basis of parentage of an Irish child
• *Convention and Programme refugees
• *Former asylum-seekers granted leave to remain
• Non-EEA nationals on intra-company transfer
• Non-EEA nationals who have working visas or work authorisations

In addition, people in the category marked * do not need a business permission.

Issued to non-EEA national family members of EU citizens who have exercised their right to move to and live in Ireland under the European Communities (Free Movement of Persons) Regulations 2006 and 2008.

People holding this stamp are permitted to work without needing an employment permit or business permission, and they can apply for a residence card under the Regulations.

Issued to non-EEA nationals who have lived in Ireland for at least 8 years and who have been permitted by the Minister for Justice and Equality to remain in Ireland without condition as to time.

People holding this stamp do not need an employment permit or business permission.

Can be placed on the foreign passport of an Irish citizen who has dual citizenship, and who wants their entitlement to remain in Ireland to be endorsed on their foreign passport.

This stamp certifies that the holder of the passport is permitted to remain in Ireland without condition.

An Irish visa is a certificate stating that the foreign national identified in it is permitted by the government to be present at the frontier of the state for the purpose of seeking permission to enter the state. A visa is valid only if affixed to a passport or travel document.

The granting of a visa only a form of pre-clearance. A visa merely permits a person to travel to the state during the validity period of the visa. The visa does not grant permission to enter or reside in the State. This permission is given by the immigration officer at the point of entry, who has the authority to grant or deny such admission. Applicants’ passports should be valid for at least 6 months after the intended date of departure from Ireland following visits.

A type of permission to work given to non-EEA nationals who do not require a visa to enter Ireland, and who have been offered employment in a specific category where skill shortages are particularly acute. Since 1 February 2007, the work authorisation scheme has been replaced by the Green Card permit.

Work authorisations were issued by an Irish embassy or consulate abroad. They last for 2 years and could be renewed by an immigration registration officer. They relate to a particular employment sector, but the holder may change employers within that sector.

If you hold a work authorisation, you will have residence stamp number 4 endorsed on your passport.

A type of permission to work given to non-EEA nationals who require a visa to enter Ireland, and have been offered employment in a category of employment where skill shortages are particularly acute. Since 1 February 2007 the working visa has been replaced by the Green Card permit.

Working visas were issued by an Irish embassy or consulate abroad. They last for 2 years and could be renewed by an immigration registration officer. They relate to a particular employment sector, but the holder may change employers within that sector.
If you hold a working visa, you will have residence stamp number 4 endorsed on your passport.