Irish and British citizens continue to enjoy the right to travel freely throughout Ireland and the UK in the same manner as before.
There is no requirement for Irish and British citizens to carry passports when travelling within the Common Travel Area.
However, many air and sea carriers require some form of identification and some carriers regard a passport as the only valid identification. Immigration authorities may also require you to have valid official photo-identification, which shows your nationality. Therefore, please check that your passport is valid and in date.
For journeys on and across the island of Ireland, British and Irish citizens do not require any travel documents.
Immigration requirements, as appropriate, continue to apply to non-Irish and non-British citizens in both jurisdictions.
Non-EEA nationals should be in possession of a valid travel document and, if required, an Irish entry visa or transit visa for the State.
Immigration requirements, as appropriate, will continue to apply to non-EU and non-UK citizens. For further information, please see the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service website.
Flights between Ireland and the UK continue to operate after Brexit. If you have booked a flight directly to or from the UK, you do not need to take any action.
The EU currently has rules in place which protect passengers in the case of delays or cancellations to their flights. These rights will continue when travelling to or from the UK on an EU airline and from the EU to the UK on a UK airline but it remains to be seen if the UK government will adopt a similar passenger rights regime for passengers on UK airlines departing the UK.
If you are travelling via the UK to an onward destination, either within the EU or to a third country, we do not envisage any additional security checks. As it stands, passengers transiting the UK may occasionally be rescreened.
Direct ferry services to and from Ireland to the UK continue to operate as normal. If you have booked a ferry to or from the UK, you do not need to take any action and can travel as before.
You will continue to benefit from EU maritime passenger rights if your port of embarkation is in the EU 27, or in the UK provided that the port of disembarkation is in the EU 27, and the service is operated by a carrier established within the territory of a Member State or offering passenger transport to or from a Member State.
UK driving licences are no longer valid for persons living in Ireland. However, the Minister for Transport has signed an agreement with the United Kingdom that will allow residents of Ireland with a UK driving licence to exchange that licence (under this new agreement) for an Irish driving licence.
This agreement will be of particular benefit to anyone planning to live in Ireland as it allows them to exchange their UK licence for an Irish driving licence. It also allows anyone who did not exchange their UK licence in time, before the deadline of 11pm on the 31 December 2020, to exchange it under this new agreement.
However, for anyone in this situation who didn’t exchange their UK licence by the deadline, their UK licence is no longer valid to drive in Ireland, it is only valid for exchange purposes. It is imperative that it be exchanged immediately.
Visiting Ireland on a UK licence: UK visitors to Ireland are not affected, there is no reason that you will not be able to drive in Ireland with your existing driving licence. You will not be required to carry an International Driving Permit with you in order to drive here, just ensure to carry your UK driving licence with you.
Driving in the UK on an Irish licence: The UK Government has advised that arrangements for EU licence holders who are visiting or living there will not change. Therefore, visitors to the UK and Northern Ireland with driving licences from EU Member States, including Ireland, should enjoy the same arrangements as before.
Drivers visiting Ireland from the UK will not be required to carry an International Driving Permit in order to drive here.
Drivers from the UK, including Northern Ireland, may now drive in Ireland and elsewhere in the EU, without a Green Card as proof of motor insurance.
This comes from the European Commission decision to allow UK and Montenegro enter the Green Card Free Circulation zone, as permitted under Article 8.2 of the EU Motor Insurance Directive. This came into effect on 2 August 2021. .
Green Cards are also not required by Irish drivers driving in Northern Ireland or Great Britain.
Mobile operators are no longer legally required under EU law to offer roaming at no additional charge to customers travelling to the UK from the EU. This includes travel between Ireland and Northern Ireland. It is therefore, a commercial decision for mobile operators whether or not they apply roaming charges.
This does not mean that mobile operators will necessarily apply new charges. The three main mobile providers in Ireland have indicated that there will be no changes to the current roaming arrangements for their customers. However, this could be subject to change over time. In any event, all operators must make customers well aware of any roaming charges they could incur, if and when, they use mobile devices in the UK. If you have any concerns or you wish to check, you should contact your provider directly.
UK mobile operators have indicated their intention not to reintroduce mobile roaming charges.
ComReg, the independent telecoms regulator, will continue to ensure that all providers meet relevant obligations in areas such as roaming alerts. ComReg also has information for customers in relation to roaming on their website, including tips on how to avoid inadvertent roaming when using a mobile device in the border regions.
Rules for pet travel between Ireland and Great Britain have changed.
Each pet travelling, or returning, from Great Britain to Ireland must, in addition to being microchipped and vaccinated against rabies must:
If the pet does not have a valid EU pet passport, the pet must be accompanied into Ireland by a health certificate issued by the UK authorities. A health certificate is required before each entry into the EU.
You should contact your vet as soon as possible before your travel date to Great Britain to start making the necessary arrangements in good time.
The Protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland means that there will be no change to the rules for pet travel on the island of Ireland.
You should also check with the UK authorities for the latest information.
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