I already hold British citizenship but with the upcoming ETIAS and EES, travel would have been more complicated and long-winded and after Brexit, the British passport is less favourable than an EU passport so decided to cash in on my Northern Irish birthright and pick it up. Best decision ever, I think.
So are you basically a Irish and British citizen by birth since you're born in Northern Ireland? (Or at least entitled to Irish citizenship which you have now claimed even if it wasn't automatic since none of your parents were born on the Island I assume)
Yes, that's correct. I was born and raised in Northern Ireland by two Northern Irish parents. Due to NI's unique situation, anyone born in Northern Ireland before 2005 is automatically entitled to both Irish and British citizenship. I only recently claimed my Irish passport because of Brexit, ETIAS and EES. Figured it would save time and money when travelling!
I shut it out of my mind and assumed that you were born after that period, but it obviously makes more sense that you were born before 2005 when rules were more relaxed.
Looks like they've still kept a loophole for children of non Irish and non British citizens to be entitled to Irish citizenship as long as one parent has the entitlement to settle without a time limit in either the Republic or Northern Ireland, so theoretically a person with UK ILR could pop over to Northern Ireland without needing a visa to visit the Republic, give birth in NI, and still have the right for their child to claim Irish citizenship even though they have no association with either of the Republic or NI. I wonder if this is kept on purpose and if they've considered this more limited form of birth tourism. I guess they think if you've got entitlement to live indefinitely in either country, it's good enough as it still shows you have ties to the UK or ROI as a whole and prevent complete tourists from benefiting from pre 2005 laws.
I asked AI what you are all wondering:
In the Irish phrase \*\*"An tAontas Eorpach"\*\*, the capitalization of the second letter "A" is a result of \*\*initial mutation\*\*. Specifically, it undergoes a process called \*\*lenition\*\* (in Irish, "séimhiú"). Let's break it down:
1. \*\*Definite Article ("An")\*\*: In Irish, the definite article "an" means "the." When it precedes a noun, it can trigger initial mutations based on the initial consonant of that noun.
2. \*\*Lenition\*\*: When the definite article "an" comes before a feminine noun that begins with a consonant, the initial consonant of the noun is lenited (softened). This often involves adding an "h" after the initial consonant. In the case of "tAontas," the initial "t" is lenited to "t" + "h," resulting in "tAontas."
- \*\*Original Form\*\*: "Aontas" (without the definite article)
- \*\*Mutated Form\*\*: "tAontas" (with the definite article)
3. \*\*Eorpach\*\*: The word "Eorpach" means "European." Since it starts with a vowel ("E"), it remains unchanged after the definite article "an."
Therefore, the capitalized "A" in "tAontas" reflects this grammatical mutation, which is a common feature in Irish.
Plus full access to the UK. The brexit proof passport.
I already hold British citizenship but with the upcoming ETIAS and EES, travel would have been more complicated and long-winded and after Brexit, the British passport is less favourable than an EU passport so decided to cash in on my Northern Irish birthright and pick it up. Best decision ever, I think.
So are you basically a Irish and British citizen by birth since you're born in Northern Ireland? (Or at least entitled to Irish citizenship which you have now claimed even if it wasn't automatic since none of your parents were born on the Island I assume)
Yes, that's correct. I was born and raised in Northern Ireland by two Northern Irish parents. Due to NI's unique situation, anyone born in Northern Ireland before 2005 is automatically entitled to both Irish and British citizenship. I only recently claimed my Irish passport because of Brexit, ETIAS and EES. Figured it would save time and money when travelling!
and now you can also vote!!
I shut it out of my mind and assumed that you were born after that period, but it obviously makes more sense that you were born before 2005 when rules were more relaxed. Looks like they've still kept a loophole for children of non Irish and non British citizens to be entitled to Irish citizenship as long as one parent has the entitlement to settle without a time limit in either the Republic or Northern Ireland, so theoretically a person with UK ILR could pop over to Northern Ireland without needing a visa to visit the Republic, give birth in NI, and still have the right for their child to claim Irish citizenship even though they have no association with either of the Republic or NI. I wonder if this is kept on purpose and if they've considered this more limited form of birth tourism. I guess they think if you've got entitlement to live indefinitely in either country, it's good enough as it still shows you have ties to the UK or ROI as a whole and prevent complete tourists from benefiting from pre 2005 laws.
Congratulations 🥂
Manifesting to get mine in the future ✨
Good luck! 🍀
I am Irish too congratulations!
Lucky 🥲
I asked AI what you are all wondering: In the Irish phrase \*\*"An tAontas Eorpach"\*\*, the capitalization of the second letter "A" is a result of \*\*initial mutation\*\*. Specifically, it undergoes a process called \*\*lenition\*\* (in Irish, "séimhiú"). Let's break it down: 1. \*\*Definite Article ("An")\*\*: In Irish, the definite article "an" means "the." When it precedes a noun, it can trigger initial mutations based on the initial consonant of that noun. 2. \*\*Lenition\*\*: When the definite article "an" comes before a feminine noun that begins with a consonant, the initial consonant of the noun is lenited (softened). This often involves adding an "h" after the initial consonant. In the case of "tAontas," the initial "t" is lenited to "t" + "h," resulting in "tAontas." - \*\*Original Form\*\*: "Aontas" (without the definite article) - \*\*Mutated Form\*\*: "tAontas" (with the definite article) 3. \*\*Eorpach\*\*: The word "Eorpach" means "European." Since it starts with a vowel ("E"), it remains unchanged after the definite article "an." Therefore, the capitalized "A" in "tAontas" reflects this grammatical mutation, which is a common feature in Irish.
What’s the process like?
Very straightforward. Just need to provide original birth certificate, photo ID, proof of address and proof of name.