Market intelligence for international student recruitment from ICEF
7th Aug 2019

Ireland moves to online visa renewals for Dublin-based students

The Irish government has announced a new online system that will allow some non-EU students to renew their visas online. The online renewal option will only be available to students based in the greater Dublin area who have completed their first year of post-secondary studies in Ireland.

The move was announced on 29 July by Minister for Justice and Equality Charlie Flanagan, and the new system will be in effect as of 26 August 2019.

“Ireland is home to universities and colleges of global standing,” said Minister Flanagan. “Increasing numbers of international students choose to come to study in Ireland every year. I am pleased to be able to make their interactions with the immigration services more accessible and user-friendly.”

The online system will relieve Dublin-based students of the current requirement for an in-person meeting with local officials. The move will also, as the Minister points out, “free up in-person appointments for other customers.”

International students in Ireland, but outside of Dublin, will still be obliged to visit their nearest Garda District Office for an in-person renewal meeting. But the shift to online visa renewals this month is expected to smooth the process for up to 8,000 visiting students between September and November of this year alone.

University Times observed recently that, “Those applying for permission to be in Ireland normally have to renew their registration every 12 months. The Irish Times has reported that the current system has led to long queues outside the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service.”

Indeed, the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS) has said as well that registrations for the wider Dublin area are carried out at a single location – the INIS offices at Burgh Quay – and last year a total of 83,400 were registered via that facility with the remainder registered at over 75 Garda District Offices through the rest of the country.

INIS explains that Dublin-based, non-EU students renewing visas via the new system will now be able to submit their application and all supporting documentation online, pay the registration fee online, and then mail their passport to INIS. The passport is needed to complete registration as their visa renewal has to be placed in their passport in the form of the relevant immigration stamp. The updated passport will then be returned by registered mail and the accompanying permit card will follow separately, and also by registered mail.

INIS reports as well that a total of 138,400 non-EEA nationals registered their immigration permission to be in Ireland in 2018. Within that total, students accounted for 55,000 (or 40%) of all registrations last year.

For additional background, please see:

Most Recent

  • Global student satisfaction survey highlights growing attention to career services Read More
  • OECD tracks global student flows to developed market-based economies Read More
  • UK ELT reports declining enrolments for first half of 2025 Read More

Most Popular

  • Which countries will contribute the most to global student mobility in 2030? Read More
  • Research shows link between study abroad and poverty alleviation  Read More
  • Beyond the Big Four: How demand for study abroad is shifting to destinations in Asia and Europe Read More

Because you found this article interesting

UK ELT reports declining enrolments for first half of 2025 Extending the global pattern reported for 2024 of declining English language learning enrolments, English UK’s quarterly reporting for...
Read more
Global ELT volumes dipped in 2024 Globally, the ELT sector gave back some hard-won, post-pandemic gains in 2024. An annual study of eight top...
Read more
New analysis forecasts marginal growth for foreign enrolment in Australia through 2030 In the five years leading up to the pandemic, Australia’s foreign enrolment grew at an average of 10%...
Read more
China opens up to global STEM talent with new visa class The contrast offered by the global news headlines over the past couple of weeks could not have been...
Read more
US proposes new rules for student visas including term limits and other restrictions On 28 August 2025, the US Department of Homeland Security published a proposed rule: Establishing a Fixed Time...
Read more
US Office of Management and Budget grants budget reprieve to key exchange programmes In a highly unusual intervention in an area of Congressional authority, the US Office of Management and Budget...
Read more
Canada: How is study permit processing taking shape this year? There are two important and recurring themes in our conversations with education agents over the last few months...
Read more
UK study visa grants strengthening in first half of 2025 A 21 August 2025 data release from the UK Home Office shows that student visa grants were up...
Read more
What are you looking for?
Quick Links