Publication
Travelling to Ireland during the COVID-19 pandemic
From Department of the Taoiseach
Published on
Last updated on
- 1. Before you arrive
- 2. New pre-departure testing requirements for all passengers travelling to Ireland
- 3. Travel advice for passengers whose journey originates in Great Britain, South Africa, or any country in South America
- 4. Advice on restricting movement
- 5. Categories of passengers not requested to restrict their movements on arrival
Passengers arriving to Ireland from overseas are required to complete a COVID-19 Passenger Locator Form. This is an online form. Paper versions of the form are also available if required.
Failure to complete the form could result in the issuing of penalties, including a fine of up to €2,500 or imprisonment for up to 6 months.
An exemption from completing the form is in place for providers of essential supply chain services such as hauliers, pilots and maritime staff.
See below for pre-departure testing requirements.
Travel within the island of Ireland is subject to prevailing domestic public health restrictions as outlined on gov.ie. Incoming passengers should ensure that they are aware of, and comply with, all relevant public health restrictions that apply to the population in general.
Passengers travelling to Northern Ireland must ensure that they are familiar with the guidance and regulations in place, including the completion of a UK Passenger Locator Form.
Effective from 16 January 2021, all passengers arriving into Ireland (except those arriving from Northern Ireland) are required to have a negative or ‘not detected’ result from a pre-departure COVID-19 RT-PCR test that was carried out no more than 72 hours prior to arrival in Ireland.
This is a mandatory requirement. Passengers will be asked to present evidence of their negative/‘not detected’ result before boarding their airplane or ferry and will be denied boarding if they cannot produce such evidence.
Passengers who arrive in an Irish airport or sea port without evidence of a negative/‘not detected’ test result, or a valid exemption, commit an offence and may be subject to prosecution, punishable by a fine not exceeding €2,500 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or both.
International Transport Workers, including workers in aviation, maritime and road haulage sectors are exempt from this requirement where they are travelling in the course of performing their duties.
Children aged 6 and under are also exempt from the testing requirement, although they are advised to restrict movements for 14 days. The responsible adult travelling with children aged 7 or older must ensure that those children have a negative/'not detected' test result.
Passengers who arrive Ireland solely for the purpose of travelling onwards to another state and do not leave the airport are also not required to provide evidence of a test.
If a citizen has a genuine humanitarian emergency requiring urgent travel, they should contact the nearest Embassy or Consulate immediately for advice and consular assistance before commencing their journey.
Passengers undertaking a short journey abroad originating in Ireland, of less than 72 hours duration, may require a PCR test taken in Ireland before departure to comply with the requirement to present a test result on return to Ireland.
All passengers who arrive from Great Britain, South Africa or any country in South America are advised to self isolate (stay in your room) for a period of 14 days following their arrival into Ireland.
All such travellers, whether they have symptoms or not, are asked to phone any GP or GP out-of-hours service to arrange for a COVID-19 test, which should be done as soon as possible after 5 days post-arrival. This test will be free of charge if arranged through GPs.
Please check the Irish College of General Practitioners website for a list of GPs with phone contact information, or the HSE website for your local GP out of hours service.
Taking this test will allow the HSE to identify suspect cases for new variants of COVID-19 and control its transmission in Ireland. Notwithstanding the result of this test, you are advised to complete the entire 14 days period of self-isolation.
If at any point in the 14 days following arrival, a traveller develops any symptoms suggestive of COVID-19, they should immediately phone a GP and alert them of their recent visit from Great Britain, South Africa or South America.
The EU 'traffic lights' approach to travel applies to countries in the EU/EEA.
Nearly all of Europe has a high incidence of COVID-19 and is in a high-risk category (orange/red). If you are coming from red or grey regions, or from outside the EU/EEA, you should restrict your movements for 14 days.
This applies to all people entering the State, even if you have no symptoms. If you are unsure which risk area you are travelling from, please check the ECDC website.
See above for specific requirements regarding travel from Great Britain, South Africa and South America.
Restricting your movements means staying home or in your accommodation, and avoiding contact with other people, including those in your household that are at particular risk should they contract COVID-19. You should wear a face covering, including while indoors, to protect them.
You can go outside to exercise by yourself as long as you keep 2 metres away from other people. You should not meet or socialise with people outside your immediate household.
The request to restrict your movement means:
- do not go to work, unless you work on your own and can completely avoid other people
- do not go to school or college
- do not use public transport
- do not have visitors at your home
- do not visit others, even if you usually care for them
- do not go to the shops or pharmacy unless it's absolutely necessary - where possible, order your groceries online or have some family or friends drop them off
- do not go to gatherings such as weddings or funerals - information is available on bereavement and grief during COVID-19 here.
- do not meet face-to-face with older people, anyone with a long-term medical condition or pregnant women
You can find out more about restricting your movements on the HSE website.
In line with the EU traffic lights approach, the request to restrict movements does not apply to travellers from green regions or orange regions or those arriving from Northern Ireland.
Currently, all passengers entering Ireland from red and grey regions within the EU/EEA and from all non-EU/EEA countries are requested to restrict their movements for 14 days. See above for specific measures applying to travel from Great Britain, South Africa and South America.
This general request to restrict movement for 14 days does not apply to certain defined categories, as indicated below:
(a) International Transport Workers, including workers in aviation, maritime and road haulage sectors
(b) Those travelling with an essential function or need as set out in paragraph 19 of the EU Council Recommendation, including:
I. Passengers travelling for the purposes of an imperative business reason, only while carrying out that essential function
II. Passengers arriving for imperative family reasons, only while pursuing that imperative reason
III. Returning passengers, who have carried out an essential function in another region, but who have otherwise restricted their movement while in that region
It is the responsibility of individuals to determine whether their circumstances fall within one of the categories outlined in the EU Council Recommendation.
You can indicate on your Passenger Locator Form if you are travelling with an essential purpose as defined by Council Recommendation 2020/1475. You may be asked for evidence in support of this.
The information provided on this form will be used to provide you with public health information and COVID-19 advice and may be used for the purpose of contact tracing.
Imperative business reasons could include clients of State agencies or those whose attendance in person is critical to the functioning of a business. It is requested that those who consider their circumstances to be within this category carry supporting documentation from the state agency concerned or from a company CEO or Chairman or Director.
Imperative family reasons could include providing essential care to children, elderly or vulnerable people (in particular to those who live alone but excluding social family visits), exercising a right of access to a child, attending a court hearing, or attending a wedding or funeral. Those who consider their circumstances to be within this category should carry supporting documentation from relevant sources such as undertakers, clerics, social workers or solicitors.
Those who intend travelling should be aware that individual workplaces, schools, childcare facilities and colleges in Ireland can apply their own health and safety measures. Intending travellers, as well as parents/guardians, should familiarise themselves with these requirements before booking any travel.
Passengers arriving from a red or grey region within the EU/EEA or from non-EU/EEA countries should restrict their movements for 14 days (other than the categories outlined above).
This period of restricted movement can end if you receive a negative/’not detected’ result of a PCR test that has been taken a minimum of five days after your arrival in Ireland. You should wait for your negative test result to be returned before ending the period of restricted movements.
This approach to post-arrival testing does not apply to travel from Great Britain, South Africa or South America who are advised to complete the entire 14 day period of self-isolating.
There are a number of COVID-19 testing technologies currently available or emerging on the commercial market. However, a negative result from a COVID-19 Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) test is currently the only test type considered acceptable by Ireland’s public health authorities in relation to international travel. This will be kept under review.
Testing provision under Ireland’s framework for international travel is provided by commercial suppliers, and passengers will pay for this directly. Testing for international travel is not provided through the public health system.
As the availability of testing cannot be guaranteed, intending passengers wishing to avail of a post arrival test should seek an appointment for a test in advance of travel.
Under Ireland's infectious disease legislation details of a positive post-arrival COVID-19 test result must be provided by the test provider to the HSE public health department for follow up.
When travelling to your destination:
- you can travel to the location where you plan to restrict your movements
- ask a relative or household member to collect you when you arrive in Ireland
- avoid using public transport if possible; if you have to use public transport, you must wear a face covering
Household members who were not travelling with you do not need to restrict their movements.
While in Ireland you will be required to follow public health advice listed below.
You should:
- wash your hands regularly and thoroughly - especially after you have been out and about or in and out of other people's homes or businesses
- observe good cough and sneeze etiquette
- maintain social distancing - keep 2 metres apart from other people
- wear a face covering if you are using public transport. This is the law
- only use public transport for essential journeys - walk or cycle instead where possible
- wear a face covering when visiting people aged 70 or over, or other vulnerable people - be sure to practise social distancing for their safety
- work from home if possible. If you cannot work from home - keep 2 metres apart from other people
All travellers should be aware of the symptoms of COVID-19.
The common symptoms are:
- a fever (high temperature - 38 degrees Celsius or above)
- a cough - this can be any kind of cough, not just dry
- shortness of breath or breathing difficulties
- loss or change to your sense of smell or taste
If you have symptoms, self-isolate and contact your GP or HSE Live on 1850 24 1850 immediately.
