European Union Passport holders and South African family members (EU/EEA)- Information on the process

European Union Passport holders and South African family members (EU/EEA)- Information on the processImmigration information for South Africans moving, immigrating, visiting or working in the Republic of Ireland

What this section will explain is what needs to be done for a European Passport holder who wants to move to the Republic of Ireland, with their South African passport holding families, EU treaty Freedom of Movement laws.

NOTE: As from 31 January 2020, British passport holders are no longer EU citizens as Brexit (UK leaving the European Union) has happened. The Withdrawal Agreement ended 11pm 31st December 2020 and a new policy was released from the Irish Immigration service which covers Non-EEA dependants joining their UK National Sponsor in Ireland

   Some family members have either or both: British and South African Passports

NOTE:  With an Irish passport moving to the Republic of Ireland you will be moving under domestic Irish law, not EU law as you are “coming home” or “returning Irish” not moving to a foreign country, even if you have never set foot in Ireland and applied for your passport via birth or registration.

   Some family members have either or both: Irish and South African Passports

 


 

What country's passports qualify under this?

European Union (EU) counties:

There are 27 countries in the European Union: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden

European Economic Area (EEA) & Switzerland:

The EEA is composed of all EU members states as well as the following: Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway. Switzerland is not part of the EEA, but has an agreement that extends the single market to include it.

Immigration Information for South Africans moving to the Republic of Ireland, European union and south african passport holders


 

An EU/EEA citizen may reside in the State for a period that is longer than 3 months if he or she:

 

  • is in employment or in self-employment in the State
  • has sufficient resources for himself or herself and his or her family members not to become an unreasonable burden on the social assistance system of the State, and has comprehensive sickness insurance in respect of himself or herself and his or her family members
  • is enrolled in an educational establishment accredited or financed by the State for the principal purpose of following a course of study here and has comprehensive sickness insurance in respect of himself or herself and his or her family members and has sufficient resources for himself or herself and his or her family members not to become an unreasonable burden on the social assistance system of the State

 As long as the EU/EEA member is doing one of the above, they can bring their Non-EEA members with them to Ireland and are considered to be "exercising EU Treaty rights"

 


 

EU Treaty Process for an EU/EEA member to bring their Non-EEA/EU dependants to Ireland

 

The EU/EEA passport holder brings their SA dependants to Ireland. There is no Irish or EU/EEA paperwork to be filled out before leaving South Africa and for that matter no paperwork submitted at landing in Ireland, it is all done from within Ireland.

SA passport holding members do not need visas. This is because Ireland and South Africa have a special agreement that allows South Africans to enter Ireland visa free.

This entry however is subject to having the correct paperwork at entry. You should inform the BMU officer at the airport/point of entry into Ireland of your intention to apply for residency based on your marriage/civil partnership with an EU/EEA citizen.

You should bring the required documentation and at point of entry Border Management Unit (BMU) will issue up to 90 days stamp in the South African Passports. This is NOT a holiday visa stamp, it's captured as an EU treaty entry. Holiday stamps are different.

  


How the application is done once in Ireland, and how long it takes to process

 

The EU/EEA passport holder has 90 days from arrival into Ireland to prove the following for their SA dependants to stay:

  • They need to be Employed/ Self-employed/ Studying/ Self Sufficient
  • They need to prove their address
  • They need to prove their identity
  • They need to prove their relationship to their dependants

 See link below on Proofs needed and link below on who is a dependant.

 

Once you have sent off all documents to EU Treaty Division with all the appropriate proofs required, you might get communication by mail from them if they want additional documents, otherwise, roughly 12 weeks from application you should receive a letter communicating your SA dependants have been given temporary permission to stay. This is often referred to as the Temp Stamp or Temp Stamp4EUFAM stage.

 

While your application is being processed:

You may be provided with an immigration stamp that will be valid for the period of the residence application process.

This will enable you to remain in Ireland during this period.

Please note that receipt of this endorsement is not an acknowledgement of an entitlement to a residence card or document.

This will be determined in due course when your application is either approved or refused.

 

  • Applications need to be submitted before the 90 days Entry stamp expires.

 

  • If you have submitted the documents and if the South African member’s 90-day stamps are due to expire before this application is approved, contact them ahead of time on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or see your local Garda Immigration, but if they have your documents and you have the receipt proof that you posted the documents registered mail, you just sit tight and wait for the response.

 

  • Once they receive a letter to approve their further stay, they are now able to get their Temporary Residence cards at Garda Immigration and may now begin seeking employment themselves.

 

  • If the EU/EEA passport holder continues to do what is required of them, your SA members will be given their 5-year residency stamp, known as the Stamp4EUFAM and will receive their IRP (Irish Residency permit, previously known as GNIB card.) This is approximately 6-12 months after application.

 

  • If the EU/EEA passport holder continues to do what is required for 5 years, and they remain in the country for the calculable amount of time each year, and they have proof of all of that, they and their dependants can then naturalise as Irish citizens.

 

  • It is imperative to keep the EU Treaty division up to date of any changes in the circumstances of the EU/EEA citizen, such as change of address, change of employment or when changing from employed to self sufficient or studying etc.

 

At both Temp stamp and 5-year residence stamp approval, the EU/EEA passport holder and all their applied for dependants, must appear together with proof of addresses and passports and make appointment to see their local Garda Immigration.

Some of the Garda also require proof of the basis on which the application was approved, such as a letter from the company through whom the EU/EEA is employed confirming that they EU/EEA is currently employed there. 

Make certain you read the letter from EU Treaty Division clearly as it will tell you any additional documents you need to bring with you.

  • If you are living in Dublin you need to make an appointment to go to the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service Registration Office, Dublin, on Office at 13/14 Burgh Quay, Dublin 2.
  • If you are living outside Dublin, you should go together to your Garda District Headquarters. The letter will instruct you which office to report to. 

 A copy of the letter that you received is sent to the office that they instruct you to go to. Often they only receive their letter a week to 10 days after you receive yours. While you will be very excited and want to go immediately, it is best to wait a few days. They will not issue your stamps unless they have their copy in hand. 

Some offices require that you book an appointment, others don't, but only have specific opening hours. Contact the office that is indicated on the letter beforehand to confirm when you can go. 

See link below on Registering with Garda Immigration once you have that letter of approval

See link below for the step by step guide of the EU Treaty process and the Mock-ups of the EU treaty forms

 



What must the EU/EEA passport holder do,

for their South African Passport holders to remain in Ireland?

 

The EU/EEA passport holder will have 4 routes of the EU treaty process to choose from. They need to do one of the following for their SA dependants to remain in Ireland:

1) Be Employed in an Irish registered business OR

2) Be Self-employed in an Irish registered business, OR

3) Be Studying in Ireland from an approved list of study courses OR

4) Be Self-sufficient (this one being more complicated to prove, more on this below).

5) Note: There is a section on the EU form for Involuntary Unemployed, this is a scenario where the EU/EEA member has been living for 2 years prior to the arrival of the dependants and who was employed but has now lost their job. This is not for the EU/EEA member who has recently arrived in Ireland and is not yet employed.

 

The EU/EEA member needs to continue doing

one of the 4 'routes' for their SA dependants to get each of these stamps

 

1) The Entry stamp is UP TO 90days and is the period in which the EU/EEA member needs to do what's required and submit the paperwork for their dependants BEFORE this stamp date expires.   

2) Temp Stamp or better termed Temp Stamp4EUFAM, approx. 6-12 weeks after application.

3) 5 Year IRP (Irish Residence permit) known as Stamp4EUFam at approx. 6-12 months after application

4) To get the extended residency permit, 6 months before the Stamp4EUFam expires at 5 years, at the point at which the SA passport holder can submit their Naturalisation documents to become an Irish Citizen.

   For a deeper look into the 4 Routes of the EU Treaty process

 


As above, the EU/EEA passport holder has 90 days to prove the following for their SA dependants to stay:

  • They need to be Employed/ Self-employed/ Studying/ Self Sufficient and have proof of this
  • They need to prove their address
  • They need to prove their identity
  • They need to prove their relationship to their dependants (spouse and children)

   For a deeper look at the Proofs needed for EU Treaty process

 


Immigration Information for South Africans moving to the Republic of Ireland, European union and south african passport holders

Who under EU treaty are eligible to be Dependants?

 

Under the EU treaty law, dependants are members of the EU/EEA’s family, or their spouse’s family, who the EU/EEA is financially and emotionally responsible for.

   For a deeper look at Dependants under the EU Treaty process

 


 

Dual Passport holders 

 

South Africans who hold Irish, British or EU passports, if you were born in South Africa, or you took up citizenship of South Africa by naturalisation or other means, you need to have a South African passport in order to leave the airports in South Africa. 

A good check to see your status, is to open your South African Identification Document (ID BOOK), if it says South African Citizen on the front page where your details are, you need to apply for a South African passport.

If you open your foreign passport and you see where you were born, it will show this when you pass through South African passport control, and they will ask you for your SA passport.

Apply at your local Home Affairs. 

Dual Nationals depending on how and at what age you obtained your other citizenship, other than South African, may need permission to have that second passport. Please confirm this at your local Home Affairs office.

 

"Please note that in terms of the South African Citizenship Amendment Act of 2004 it is now an offence for a major South African citizen to enter the RSA or depart making use of the passport of another country. Essentially, the Amendment Act provides that a South African citizen, who has dual nationality, can freely use his or her foreign passport outside South Africa. However, they must use their South African passport to enter or to depart from South Africa." Citizenship Act 2004 download.pdf here

 

See below link on SA retention of citizenship

 


Travel to the UK and the EU

 

Whilst an EU passport holder can travel to the UK (up to 90 days) and EU for them is visa free, it is not as simple for their non-EU family members

Travelling to the Uk (including Northern Ireland) your non-EU members will need UK standard visitor visas.

Travelling to the EU depends at what stage of the EU Treaty process you are at when you want to travel to the EU

If you are travelling before the 5-year card (so your temp stamp that says Stamp4) or travelling without the EU member, the South African passport holders need a visitor visa/ Schengen visa to travel to that country.

Once your SA family members have their 5-year IRP card, travel to the EU countries when they travel WITH the EU member, is visa-free for the SA members.

So, if you all go to France together, show your 5-year IRP card that has on it the words Stamp4EUFAM, those SA passport holders do not need visas.

Will an Irish visa allow me to travel to Northern Ireland?

  • No. If you wish to travel to Northern Ireland, you will require a UK visa.
  • Northern Ireland consists of Counties Antrim, Armagh, Derry, Down, Fermanagh and Tyrone.
  • If you intend to also visit Northern Ireland and return to the Republic, you must obtain a UK visa.

Many flights go via the UK, however, please note any South African only passport holder will need to be in possession of a FULL UK STANDARD VISITOR visa if you fly from UK to Ireland.

Even though you are inside the airport, you actually pass through an international terminal into a domestic terminal and are therefore considered inside the UK.

This does not apply if YOU hold a UK/Irish or EU passport, but if for example your spouse or child does not hold a UK/Irish or EU passport THEY will need a UK Standard visitor visa.

 


 

Important links:

 

  #MapMyMove- Our coaching Services - Confused or lost and need some direction, book a session with us to help untangle the confusion and work out your route of immigration

   Freedom of Movement - The rights of EU Citizens to bring Non-EU dependants with them to EU countries

   EU/EEA country or Switzerland coming to Ireland - Irish Immigration website on EU Treaty process

   The Directive 2004/38/EC, Freedom of Movement, EU Treaty - The Directive

   First time registration - How to register once your temp stamp and 5 year stamp have been approved

   EU Treaty FAQ

   Terms and Conditions of the Non-EU members Residency Stamps - what are they allowed to do in the state?

   South African Home Affairs - On Passports & Travel Documents

  Do my family members need an entry visa to come with me or join me after I am in Ireland?

 

How the EU treaty process works:

   4 routes of the EU Treaty - Choosing between the 4 types of the EU Treaty application: Employed, Self-emplyed, Self-Sufficient or Study

   For a deeper look at the Proofs needed for EU Treaty

   For a deeper look at Dependants under the EU Treaty - Who qualifies as your dependant and what proof do you need?

   Summary of the EU Directive (EU Treaty) - The EU law that covers this move and a print off for your travel for airlines and airport staff

   Starting a Business in Ireland - For the EU member or their spouse/partner to go self-employed

 

How to do the paperwork for the EU treaty process:

  Mock-up of the EUTR1 form- Qualifying Members - How to fill in the form

  Mock-up of the EUTR1A form- Permitted Members - How to fill in the form

 

What to do, when, on the EU Treaty Process

   EU treaty step by step once you are in Ireland - A summary of the Steps as they play out from day1 to 5 years later

   Register at Garda Immigration -  How to register at Garda Immigration and Renewals of Residency stamps

 

 

Special Dependancy Applications under the EU treaty process:

   Bringing non EU parents with under EU Treaty - Specific information on who and what proof is required for an elderly relative

   De Facto (unmarried) Partners and proofs required under EU Treaty - Paperwork needed to prove 2 year relationship and living together for non-married couples

 

Change of Circumstances once you are in Ireland:

   Change of Circumstances - The "what if" the relationship status or some changes with the EU member

 

 Permanent Residence and Naturalisation:

   Permanent Residence and Naturalisation - How this works and how to prepare yourself from day 1 for five years time

 

British Sponsor exercising EU Treaty rights in Ireland, Prior to Brexit.

Their Dependants fall under EU Treaty

  British sponsor was Exercising EU treaty rights PRIOR to Brexit 31st Dec 2020

   Admin before the move

   Admin once you're in Ireland

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