Getting Irish nationality for children?

[garnett]

My wife and I are British, and I'm trying to see if we can insulate our children from Brexit.

My wife's grandfather was Irish which I think makes her eligible for Irish nationality.

I'm struggling to find info about whether we can then get the same for our children. I suspect we may have to live in Ireland for a period of time before this can happen.

Does anyone have any experience or information of this?

 

[garnett]

No.

Citizenship through descent ends at grandchildren. It does not pass on to great-grandchildren.

https://www.citizensinformation.ie/...ish_citizenship_through_birth_or_descent.html

Your kids can only become Irish through naturalisation if you yourself are naturalised, in which case you and the kids need to live in Ireland for 5 years. First you apply for citizenship and then afterwards apply for the kids to be naturalised.

https://www.citizensinformation.ie/..._an_irish_citizen_through_naturalisation.html

SOURCE:

I got Irish citizenship through my mother last February, so have been through the process.

Your wife will have to apply first to the Irish Foreign Births Registry to get proof of her grandfathers citizenship ~10 months and then apply for the passport ~2months. She'll need his birth certificate.

Thanks.

So it's the case that my wife's new Irish nationality won't itself confer similar opportunities to her children and grandchildren that her grandfather's nationality does? Because she's not living in Ireland?

Makes sense.

 

[garnett]

the way i read it is that only the children born after your wife become irish would be able to claim irish citizenship

https://www.dfa.ie/citizenship/born-abroad/

So we just need to relocate to Ireland for 5 years. Yes, that's my interpretation too.



Not so straight forward.

 

[garnett]

Well if you really believe that Brexit would be some horrendous disaster and you want the kids to have Irish citizenship then moving to Ireland seems like a reasonable move no?

Agreed - if someone believes Brexit will be an horrendous disaster, yes.

 

[garnett]

It's only a benefit if they actually want to work in the EU, and even if they do want to work in the EU there are routes for people to take. Look how many immigrants from outside the EU are living and working in Germany.

Cheaper university courses (with the benefit of learning another language at the same time) is one of the main things on the radar.