Information If you come to stay in Ireland for more than three months, and you are not a citizen of the European Union (EU), the European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland, you must register your presence in Ireland with An Garda Síochána (the Irish police force). The EEA or European Economic Area consists of the 27 EU member states, Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein.
Section 9 of the Immigration Act 2004 sets out the legal requirement for non-EEA nationals to register in Ireland when staying here for more than 3 months. In practice, this means that you are obliged to register with your local immigration registration officer following your arrival in Ireland. Registering with immigration officials means appearing in person before the Garda National Immigration Bureau (if you are in Dublin) or the District Headquarters in other Garda Districts. When you present yourself before the registration officer you must provide certain information and evidence about your status (see Rules below).
Any changes you wish to make to the length of your stay or status must also be reported to immigration officials. You must also notify the registration officer if you plan to move to another Garda District, and report to the registration officer of that new district within 2 days of arriving to live there.
What is the purpose of registration? The purpose of registration of non-EEA nationals is for border control reasons. The Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) also carries out deportations, border control and investigations related to illegal immigration and trafficking in human beings. The GNIB has specialist units dealing in each area.
What happens after I register? Following registration with immigration officials, you will be issued with an "Immigration Certificate of Registration". The amount of time it takes to issue your Certificate usually depends on which office you attend and how you pay for your Certificate. The Registration Certificate is the size of a credit card and includes your name, address, photograph and your residence details. It is sometimes called a "GNIB card" as it is issued by the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB). Asylum seekers receive a different type of certificate - a Temporary Residence Certificate. That Certificate is issued by the Refugee Applications Commissioner.
Registration Certificates are not identity cards. They are however evidence that a person is legally resident in Ireland and you must show evidence of this, if requested by the Gardaí
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Rules Do all non-EEA nationals have to register? No. Certain groups of people do not need to register. For example, children under 16 who are non-EEA dependants of EU nationals and seafarers whose ship remains at port in the State and who do not land in the State for discharge. If however you are a spouse or dependant of an EU national, and you are entitled to stay in Ireland under the European Communities (Free Movement of Persons) (No. 2) Regulations 2006 (pdf), you will still need to register and obtain an Immigration Certificate of Registration. Your certificate will have a special stamp indicating your residence status under these Regulations. This will exempt you from a visa requirement on travelling into the State. In other words, this eliminates the requirement for a re-entry visa in these cases.
This provision extends to all family members, including children under 16 years. An improvement introduced by the Regulations is that a new registration category for family members of Union citizens has been created.
In order to register, you should go to your local immigration registration office and ask for the registration officer as soon as possible following your arrival in Ireland. Within the Dublin District the registration office is the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB), and outside Dublin it is the local Garda District Headquarters. See "Where to apply" for details of addresses.
You will need to provide the following information about yourself:
If you are in government service, you will be asked to state the service concerned, the nature and duration of your service, your rank and appointments held.
The registration officer may also ask you to provide fingerprints, and may ask for further details.
Rates There is a fee of €100 for the certificate, but you do not have to pay a fee if you are:
A Programme refugee A Convention refugee A person who has been reunified with such a refugee under Section 18 of the Refugee Act 1996 Under the age of 18 at the time of registration The spouse of an Irish citizen A dependant of an EU national and you qualify for a residence card under EU Directive 38/04. Information on payment methods is set out under "How to apply" below.
How to apply Call into your local immigration registration office which is the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) if you live in Dublin and your Garda District Headquarters if you live outside Dublin. The registration officer will take your details and check your documents. If you are obliged to pay the fee, the registration officer will usually issue you with a special bank giro form. You should take this form to a bank and pay the fee.
In 5 immigration registration offices, you can choose to pay by credit or debit card instead of bank giro. These offices are:
Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB), 13/14 Burgh Quay, Dublin 2 Garda Station, Anglesea Street, Cork Garda Station, Mill Street, Galway Garda Station, Henry Street, Limerick Garda Station, Fr Connolly Way, Drogheda, Co. Louth
If you have applied at any of these offices, you can collect your card as soon as the payment goes through and the card has been printed.
If you have applied at any other immigration registration office, you will have to call back later to collect the certificate, as it will be printed in the GNIB and sent out to the local office.
Detailed information on payment methods for Registration Certificates (pdf) is available.
Where to apply Contact your local Garda District Headquarters (if living outside Dublin)
Garda National Immigration Bureau 13/14 Burgh Quay Dublin 2 IRELAND
Opening Hours:Mon to Thurs inclusive: 8am to 10pm
The above information has been kindly provided by http://www.citizensinformation.ie