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Ireland Entrepreneur Visa: The Ultimate Guide

Global Citizen

September 20, 2024

Ireland may be a small country, but its economic performance certainly stands out. 

The Emerald Isle punches well above its weight as one of Europe’s wealthiest nations by per capita GDP. 

This is largely due to the country’s business-friendly environment – something many start-up founders would love to take advantage of.

Consequently, Ireland offers a special visa targeted directly at ambitious founders who want to do business in Ireland.

The Ireland Start-up Entrepreneur Program allows experienced businesspeople with an innovative business plan to obtain long-term residence in Ireland. 

This in-depth analysis focuses on Ireland’s Start-up Entrepreneur Programme (STEP) and will guide you through the main requirements, costs, steps and benefits of this immigration program. 

If you’re in the early stages of building an innovative tech business, this could be an excellent route to take.

Do note that, as of 2024, the Start-up Entrepreneur Programme will accept applications from Russian or Belarussian citizens.

Pros of the Ireland Entrepreneur Visa 

Pros of the Ireland Entrepreneur Visa 
The Ireland Start-up Entrepreneur Program requires an innovative business idea.
  • Access to a business-friendly environment: Ireland is one of Europe’s most business-friendly countries, with many mega-tech companies choosing it as their EU base. As a start-up founder, it’s the ideal base to launch and grow your business.
  • Convenient visa option: If you compare Ireland’s Start-up Entrepreneur Programme to the same option in the UK, Ireland’s is more accessible. 
  • Travel advantages: Unlike the UK, Ireland is a committed member of the European Union, which gives significant benefits in the form of free movement around the EU. However, even with Brexit, because of the common travel area, those with Irish passports can also travel freely between Ireland and the UK. 
  • EU residency: By becoming an Irish resident, you and your family enjoy European residency status. You will also have the same rights to education as the Irish citizens and access to a world-class healthcare system. After five years of residence, participants under the program will be eligible for long-term residence in the country.
  • Road to EU citizenship: Ireland provides the opportunity to obtain European Union citizenship if you secure an Irish passport. 
  • Tax benefits for businesses: Ireland signed comprehensive tax treaties with 72 countries, including the US and all European Union countries, and has a low corporate tax rate of 12.5%. 
  • Suitable for families: You may include your spouse and dependents. They will be granted residence in Ireland for two years, which will be renewable for a further three years. 

Eligibility Requirements

To be eligible, your business plan must be a high-potential start-up. You must introduce a new or innovative product or service and have €50,000 in available funds for the business. 

This could be an entirely new business or an existing one which you plan to relocate to Ireland. 

The funds must come from one or a combination of the following sources – your own funds, a business loan, angel investors, venture capital funding or a grant from the Irish State Agency. 

In addition to the minimum investment, there is a government application fee of €350 per person and an incorporation fee of around €100. Professional fees will also apply.

Ireland Entrepreneur Visa Application Process

Ireland Entrepreneur Visa Application Process
The Start-Up program is open to those with either an entirely new business or an existing business.

You must apply for this visa as the principal applicant. You can bring your spouse, along with your children aged under 18.

You have to submit a business plan, which will be assessed by the evaluation committee. If the business is already operating and will be relocating to Ireland, then the most recently audited accounts will also need to be submitted.

Evidence of the €50,000 funding being available will also be needed, as well as evidence that the money can be transferred to Ireland if the application is successful. 

If your business plan is approved, you’ll have to prove that you’re a person of good character. Once these steps have been passed, you will be invited to apply for residency in Ireland for you and your family. 

The process is divided into five main steps over a period of six to eight months. 

Step 1: This initial phase is about establishing that you are qualified to apply to the program. 

Step 2: Next, you must collect all documents required by the government, draft the business plan and complete the application form. 

Step 3: You will make an appointment to submit your application to an independent evaluation committee. The committee will review your proposal and, if approved, recommend it to the government. 

Step 4: Once your investment proposal is approved by the evaluation committee, you’ll be invited to apply for your residence permission.

When you’ve provided evidence that you’ve transferred the funds identified in your application to a business bank account in Ireland, you’ll be granted the residence permission. 

Step 5: To maintain your residence permit, you’re required to establish the business as outlined in your application. 

Business Plan Requirements 

Business Plan Requirements 
Applicants are required to transfer funding to a business bank account in Ireland. 

Let’s look at what kind of business or business plan you need to make your application a success.

Under this option, your business has to be called what’s known as a high-potential start-up. 

This means, in very broad terms, a viable business or business plan which has the potential to introduce something new or innovative on an international level. 

It can’t have anything to do with retail, catering or providing a personal service, for example. 

It must be a business offering something new and innovative that has the potential to succeed in introducing a product or service to international markets.

This could be a business in tech, the medtech sector or the fintech space, for example. 

The business must be capable of creating ten jobs in Ireland within three to four years of starting up.

This doesn’t mean you actually have to create ten jobs, but it must be viable that the business plan could produce ten jobs in Ireland. 

The business must be capable of achieving €1 million in sales within three to four years of starting up.

It doesn’t mean the business must achieve this, but when you submit your initial application, you’ve got to show that it has this potential.

This all amounts to instilling confidence in the committee that’s assessing your application. Your business plan must be less than six years old and demonstrate high growth potential. 

It could be a couple of years old and relocating to Ireland or one that hasn’t yet been started. It cannot be a subsidiary of a foreign business.

Your business will have to be headquartered in Ireland, which will be the substantive centre of your operations. 

The business plan must show you have a management team with enough experience to adequately support the business. As the applicant, you’ll also need to be the main founder or decision-maker in the business.

Is Residence and Citizenship Possible through Ireland’s STEP Visa?

Is Residence and Citizenship Possible through Ireland’s STEP Visa
An Irish start up entrepreneur may obtain residency and potential citizenship.

If your application is approved, you’re granted a residence permit for two years. Unless your business goes insolvent, you can apply at the two-year point for a renewal of your Irish residency permission. 

You may renew and extend your residency for a further three years if the conditions are maintained.

This combined five-year period triggers another examination of the viability and success of your business by the evaluation committee.

If the business is viable after five years, you can apply for a permanent residence permit, which is renewable every five years. 

This also sets you on the path to Irish citizenship by naturalisation. To qualify, you’ll need to have been in Ireland for at least 1,460 days in the previous eight years. 

There is recognition that there will also be interests abroad in relation to your start-up and your enterprise. 

If you have to engage in international travel and be out of the country, that’s not problematic in principle.

If you plan to apply for citizenship at the end of the process, you must have been in the country for the full 12 months in your fifth year of continuous residence. 

An interesting feature of the Irish citizenship path is that, unlike in the UK, there’s currently no English language requirement. 

Benefits of the Ireland Entrepreneur Visa

Benefits of the Ireland Entrepreneur Visa
Form 8833 Expat Taxes

If you compare Ireland’s Start-up Entrepreneur Programme to, for example, its UK equivalent, the Irish route is far more accessible.

The entrepreneur route in the UK requires your idea to be approved by an endorsing body. 

Unlike Britain, Ireland is a committed member of the European Union, which gives significant benefits in the form of free movement around the EU. Ireland is now one of the only two English-speaking countries in Europe. 

However, even with Brexit, because of the common travel area, those with Irish passports can also travel freely between Ireland and the UK. 

By becoming an Irish resident, you and your family enjoy European residency status for life. 

You will also have the same rights to education as the Irish citizens and access to a world-class healthcare system. 

Ireland provides the opportunity to obtain European Union citizenship if you apply and obtain an Irish passport. 

Ireland signed comprehensive tax treaties with 72 countries, including the US and all European Union countries, and has a low corporate tax rate of 12.5%. 

Another benefit is that you may include your spouse and dependents. They will be granted residence in Ireland for two years, which will be renewable for a further three years. 

After five years of residence, participants under the program will be eligible for long-term residence in the country. 

Ireland Entrepreneur Visa: FAQs

Ireland Entrepreneur Visa FAQs
The Irish start-up entrepreneur Visa will earn you Irish and EU residency.
Do I need to speak English to apply?

There are no official regulations stating that you’ll need to speak English to qualify for the programme. While it’s not a hard and fast requirement, Ireland is an English-speaking country, so you will need to know English to operate a successful business here anyway. 

Is this a citizenship program? 

Ireland’s Start-up Entrepreneur Visa will earn you Irish residency rather than citizenship. Nevertheless, after five years of permanent residence, citizenship is possible. 

What are the benefits of Ireland’s Entrepreneur Visa?

It’s a great opportunity to plant a flag in a business-friendly, tax-friendly country. Ireland is also a wonderful place to live, with a high quality of life and easy access to the UK and Europe. 

What kind of businesses are suitable for this scheme?

Your business needs to be a high-potential start-up that’s capable of creating ten jobs in Ireland. The program is primarily looking for people in tech and other innovative sectors.

Is there a target in terms of sales?

You must demonstrate through your business plan that your start-up is capable of achieving €1 million in sales within the first three to four years. 

Are the sales and job creation targets mandatory?

It’s not mandatory to create ten jobs or make €1 million, but your business must have the potential in order to be approved. Your business plan is central to your success or failure in applying. 

Is the Ireland Entrepreneur Visa Right for You?

Is the Ireland Entrepreneur Visa Right for You
The start-up visa is ideal for innovative entrepreneurs looking to set up a business in Ireland.

If you’re looking to start an innovative new business in Ireland, this option is an attractive one. 

You will, however, need to craft a detailed, comprehensive business plan that lays out how your business will meet certain objectives.  

Ireland requires this start-up to be innovative and that the applicants have some experience. It’s an ideal visa option for ambitious start-up founders looking to set up a business in Ireland, a country where you can expand your business and lifestyle horizons.

If you’re interested in discovering its undoubted potential, we can help – because it will take some planning.

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