Ireland announces 5-year Multi Entry Short-Stay Visa

Last updated on 26 April 2022

The Minister for Justice Helen McEntee has today announced the extension of the 5-year multi entry short-stay visa option to all visa required countries.

Announcing the change Minister McEntee said:

“The availability of 5-year multi entry short stay visas to eligible applicants from all visa required countries is a very positive measure. It will enable people who visit Ireland regularly, for business or family reasons in particular, to make one application, which when granted, will then cover travel over a five year period.

“This will make travelling to Ireland a more convenient and attractive option at a time when travel worldwide is resuming and our tourism industry, in particular, is reopening following the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.”

Up to now, Ireland has offered 1 year, 2 year and 3 year multi-entry visas, with the option of a 5 year multi-entry visa only available to Chinese passport holders (introduced in 2019). This eligibility has now been extended to all visa required countries.

In general, multi entry visas are only issued to an applicant who has shown a compliant Irish travel history. With the new changes being announced by the Minister today, people who have frequent travel to the UK, Schengen zone, USA, Canada, Australia or New Zealand, and have observed the conditions of those visas will also be able to apply for the option of a multi-year visa (of any duration from 1 to 5 years), even if they have no previous Irish travel history.

A multi entry visa may also be approved for some business travellers, under certain conditions, who have no previous travel history to Ireland.

A multi entry visa permits the holder to travel to Ireland on a number of occasions during the dates shown on the visa.

The standard single entry visa option also remains available.

As with all visa applications, the granting of a multi-entry visa is at the discretion of the relevant Visa Officer.

Prior to this announcement, the majority of short stay visa applicants could apply only for a maximum of a 3 year multi entry visa.

For Chinese nationals a 5 year multi entry has been available since 1 July 2019.

For a person with no previous travel history to Ireland, a multi entry visa may be approved in circumstances where the person:

needs to travel regularly to Ireland on short visits for business meetings
while in Ireland on business, needs to travel to another country, returning to Ireland for further meetings, or onward travel, or
is travelling to and from another country, via Ireland