Registering as an Irish citizen through a grandparent costs €278 for an adult, and processing is currently taking approximately 12 months. The passport is a separate second step: €75, plus €15 postage if you live outside Ireland, with a current average of 20 working days.
All figures are as of October 2026.
Watch: Do You Qualify for an Irish Passport?
The video starts at the part that answers this question. For the whole picture, read Irish Passport Through a Grandparent: Do You Qualify?
Subscribe to Love Ireland on YouTube for a new plain-English guide to Ireland every week. The full video is on YouTube: Do You Qualify for an Irish Passport? The Grandparent Rule Explained.
The registration fee
- Adult: €278. That is €270 for registration and the certificate, plus €8 for postage and handling.
- Child under 18: €153. That is €145, plus €8 for postage and handling.
You pay the fee online, when you complete the application form on the Department of Foreign Affairs website.
The 12-month wait
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The Department says processing is currently taking approximately 12 months.
- The clock starts when your correct documents arrive, not when you fill in the form.
- If they need clarification or more documents, it takes longer.
- Applications are handled in strict date order.
What makes it take longer
The Department says it is seeing more incomplete applications, and they slow things down. Incomplete applications are returned and not processed, so gather everything before you start the form.
Two smaller things also cost people time:
- Do not put a passport application in the same envelope. Everything will be sent back to you.
- Use mail you can track, because the Department does not acknowledge receipt.
Then the passport
You cannot apply for the passport at the same time as registration. When you are registered, you receive a Foreign Birth Registration certificate, and the passport application comes after that.
- You apply online, and you can do that from the United States.
- A standard 10-year adult passport costs €75, plus €15 postage if you live outside Ireland.
- The current average for a first-time online application is 20 working days.
- That counts from when your documents arrive, and mailing time is extra.
First-time applications cannot be rushed. Do not book travel until the passport is in your hand.
One more cost to plan for
You will need your grandparent’s Irish birth certificate, and a certificate ordered from Ireland’s civil registration service costs €20, plus €5 postage to the United States.
The figures at a glance
- Registration, adult: €278
- Registration, child under 18: €153
- Registration processing: approximately 12 months from when your documents arrive
- Adult passport: €75, plus €15 postage outside Ireland
- First-time online passport: 20 working days on average, plus mailing time
Fees and waiting times change, so check the official pages at ireland.ie before you apply.
General information, not legal advice. Facts checked against official Irish government pages on 6 October 2026.
Official sources
- Department of Foreign Affairs: Registering a foreign birth
- Department of Foreign Affairs: Citizenship
- Department of Foreign Affairs: Born abroad
- Passport Service: First-time adult passport
- Passport Service: Turnaround times
- HSE: Order an Irish birth certificate
Subscribe to Love Ireland on YouTube for a new plain-English guide to Ireland every week. The full video is on YouTube: Do You Qualify for an Irish Passport? The Grandparent Rule Explained.
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