Stamp 4 permission, renewal and citizenship

Stamp 4 allows you to live and work in the State without an employment permit. It offers greater flexibility when changing employment, while remaining subject to its own conditions and renewal requirements.

When planning ahead, check three points: renewal requirements, the residence rules for citizenship and the conditions attached to your permission.

Working on Stamp 4

Stamp 4 holders can work in the State without an employment permit.

Employment permits relate to specified employment, and changing employer or losing a job can require action under the permit rules. Stamp 4 allows you to change jobs, move sector or work for yourself without a new employment permit, provided you continue to meet the conditions of your residence permission.

Stamp 4 can be granted through several routes, including as the spouse or partner of an Irish or EU citizen, after a qualifying period on certain employment permits, or through long-term residency. The route determines the conditions attached to the permission.

Is Stamp 4 permanent residence?

Stamp 4 is registered on your IRP card and has an expiry date. You must renew it in accordance with the requirements for the route under which it was granted.

Previous renewals do not make the permission permanent. If the basis of the permission has changed, check the relevant requirements before the next renewal.

Stamp 5 is a separate residence permission without condition as to time. It has its own application requirements.

Is Stamp 4 the same as citizenship?

Stamp 4 is a residence permission and does not confer Irish citizenship. It does not itself give a right to an Irish passport, voting rights in a general election or referendum, or the free-movement rights of an EU citizen. Holders remain subject to immigration requirements.

Naturalisation requires a separate application, with its own residence requirements, fee and processing times. Holding Stamp 4 does not automatically lead to citizenship. The qualifying residence period must be calculated under the naturalisation rules.

Before choosing an application date, check how the current rules treat each period of residence. A period that does not count can affect when an application can be made.

Maintaining your permission

Stamp 4 holders must continue to meet the conditions of their permission. Register when required, renew within the permitted window and keep your address up to date.

Prepare for renewal before the permission expires. Allow time to check any change in circumstances and gather the required documents.

Planning ahead

Check your registration record and permission letter to confirm the basis on which Stamp 4 was granted and the conditions attached to it.

If you plan to apply for citizenship, review the residence requirements on the Immigration Service Delivery website early. Checking your record in year three rather than year six gives you more time to address missing evidence and plan the application.

Common questions

Is Stamp 4 permanent?

Stamp 4 has an expiry date and must be renewed. It allows work without an employment permit, but it does not grant permanent residence.

Can a Stamp 4 be lost?

A change in the basis of the permission can affect renewal, for example where a qualifying relationship ends or a required condition is no longer met. Check the basis recorded on your registration and the current requirements for that route.

Does Stamp 4 time count towards citizenship?

Reckonable residence is assessed under the naturalisation rules, which treat different permissions differently. Check the Immigration Service Delivery naturalisation guidance when calculating the qualifying period.

Sources

1. Registering your immigration permission — immigration stamps — Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, Immigration Service Delivery
2. Becoming an Irish citizen through naturalisation — Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, Immigration Service Delivery
3. Long term residency — Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, Immigration Service Delivery

Terms