Hi Gretta,

I think this email I received will help you and put a smile on your face. I have the same kind of situation I am Irish but living in the UK for over ten years now. I got my wife to the UK (Northern Ireland) just on Saturday actually, 24th November 2012. She came on an EU Family Permit obtained through my Irish passport and UK residency. I was hoping to bring my wife into the Republic as it takes only 3 years there for a spouse of an Irish citizen to obtain citizenship.
Today I received the following email when I enquired if my wife Patricia could cross the border into the Republic;

Dear Mr Crampton

I refer to your email.

Yes, your wife would be permitted to enter the Republic by holding EU
membership as your spouse.

She will be required to register with her local immigration office within
90 days of arrival into the State. You will need to attend with her and
bring both your original passports and original marriage certificate. She
would be issued with a certificate of registration card stamp 4 and have
her passport endorsed to reflect same. This will enable her to work legally
within the State without the need of a work permit. If she doesn't
register within 90 days then she would become an illegal here. She would
be required to make an application to the SIN Unit at the below address -
submitting both your original passports and original marriage certificate.
She would not be permitted to work while her application was pending, but
would not be deported from the State.

http://www.inis.gov.ie/en/INIS/Pages...%20information
(immigration website)

http://www.inis.gov.ie/en/INIS/Pages/WP07000024 (Spouse of Irish National
website link)


The second part of your query is relevant to a citizenship matter. You will
need to contact the citizenship division directly regarding same. Below
are the relevant contact details:

In writing:

Citizenship Division,
Department of Justice & Equality,
Dundrum Road,
Tipperary Town.
Co. Tipperary.

By telephone:


Telephone (within Ireland)
062 - 32500
Lo-call 1890 252 854
(helpline available 10:00am - 12:30pm Tuesdays and Thursdays only)


Website contact page for Citizenship Division -
http://www.inis.gov.ie/en/INIS/Pages/WP11000020


Paula Cummins
Spouse of Irish National Unit
Immigration Services Section
Irish Naturalisation & Immigration Service
13 - 14 Burgh Quay
Dublin 2