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Republic of Ireland · residence general · Leads to settlement

Stamp 4 permission

By · Last reviewed:

Guidance updated 10 September 2026. Full-review date shown above.

Source check: all 4 official citations reconfirmed 13 September 2026

Time-limited Irish residence permission allowing employment without an employment permit and business activity, subject to the permission conditions. An employment-based Stamp 4 upgrade is separate from Long Term Residency and citizenship.

No sponsorship requiredLeads to permanent residencyEmployment-based upgrades are renewable every 2 years for the qualifying 21-month group and every year for the 57-month group. Other Stamp 4 bases have their own duration and conditions.
Processing time
Use the relevant ISD registration or renewal process once eligible. This guide does not establish an instant issue or a guaranteed decision time.
Government fees
The general registration fee is €300 where applicable; exemptions and fees for an underlying permission must be checked separately.
Typical duration
Employment-based upgrades are renewable every 2 years for the qualifying 21-month group and every year for the 57-month group. Other Stamp 4 bases have their own duration and conditions.
Sponsorship required
No
Leads to permanent residency
Yes
Reviewed Immigration Service Delivery ↗

In short

Time-limited Irish residence permission allowing employment without an employment permit and business activity, subject to the permission conditions. An employment-based Stamp 4 upgrade is separate from Long Term Residency and citizenship. Guidance updated 10 September 2026. Costs, application stages and eligibility conditions are set out with their sources below.

Cite this: https://visaatlas.org/visas/ireland/stamp-4#answer

What is the Stamp 4 permission in Republic of Ireland?

Stamp 4 permission is an unsponsored Ireland route. Indicative government fees are The general registration fee is €300 where applicable; exemptions and fees for an underlying permission must be checked separately; indicative processing time is Use the relevant ISD registration or renewal process once eligible. This guide does not establish an instant issue or a guaranteed decision time; typical duration is Employment-based upgrades are renewable every 2 years for the qualifying 21-month group and every year for the 57-month group. Other Stamp 4 bases have their own duration and conditions. This route can lead to permanent residence.

Primary guidance checked with Immigration Service Delivery on 10 September 2026.

Overview

Stamp 4 is an immigration permission, not an entry visa or a single eligibility route. For employment-based upgrades, ISD uses 21 months of qualifying employment for CSEP, Hosting Agreement researchers and Multi-Site GEP Non-Consultant Hospital Doctors, or 57 months for ordinary GEP and Intra-Company Transfer employment. Family, protection and other permissions have different eligibility bases. Stamp 4 allows employment without an employment permit and business activity, but professional and permission conditions still apply. It does not automatically grant Long Term Residency or citizenship.

Guidance by nationality

Specific information for applicants from these countries. Don’t see yours? The general eligibility criteria above apply to everyone.

Additional sources

Eligibility

Typical criteria

  • ✓For the employment upgrade, identify whether the qualifying permission belongs to the 21-month CSEP/hosting-agreement/multi-site NCHD group or the 57-month ordinary GEP/ICT group. Do not combine the groups to reach the shorter threshold.Immigration Service Delivery ↗
  • ✓Other Stamp 4 bases include qualifying Irish-family and protection permissions. Being related to an Irish or EEA citizen is not automatic approval; EU Treaty Rights have a separate process.Immigration Service Delivery ↗
  • ✓Comply with the conditions of your permission and apply to renew before it expires. Work in a regulated profession remains subject to the relevant professional requirements.Immigration Service Delivery ↗

Common blockers

  • !Gaps in employment or non-compliance with permit terms.

Typical evidence

  • ·For an employment upgrade, the Revenue Employment Detail Summary establishes employment commencement; where moving from another permission, the relevant employment-permit validity is also used.Immigration Service Delivery ↗
  • ·Use the registration or renewal checklist for your actual permission basis; family/protection and employment-upgrade evidence are not interchangeable.Immigration Service Delivery ↗
  • ·Keep IRP cards and ISD permission letters for each period when assessing residence; citizenship and Long Term Residency do not use identical qualifying rules.Immigration Service Delivery ↗

Application pathway

  1. Identify the permission basis

    Use the relevant employment, family or other eligibility route. Employment upgrades use the 21- or 57-month conditions, not a universal waiting period.

  2. Apply through the correct ISD process

    Eligible employment-permit holders apply to renew under Stamp 4 conditions through ISD. The DETE support letter is no longer required; other Stamp 4 bases have their own approval and registration steps.

  3. Renew and assess later applications separately

    Renew before the permission expires. For citizenship, count all qualifying residence, including eligible earlier Stamp 1 time; do not restart the residence clock at Stamp 4. Long Term Residency is a separate scheme.

After approval: prepare for your next step

For Stamp 4 permission, use the actual decision and the issuing authority’s instructions to establish what has been granted. A successful application, permission to enter, permission to work and a residence document are not interchangeable.

  1. 1. Check the decision. Confirm the name, passport, status granted, start date and any next action. Resolve an error with the authority before relying on the document for travel or employment.
  2. 2. Establish the travel step. Read any entry window, activation, collection or in-country registration instruction. For an extension or change of status, do not assume leaving the country is required or safe while a further step remains pending.
  3. 3. Confirm what you may do. Check whether employment, self-employment, remote work or study is permitted under the status granted. Do not infer unrestricted work rights from the absence of an employer sponsor.
  4. 4. Organise the household. Check each accompanying person’s permission separately, then arrange healthcare, accommodation, access to money and the relevant local registrations. A tax number or bank account does not by itself prove a right to work.
  5. 5. Keep the ongoing conditions visible. Record the actual expiry, renewal process, permitted absences and any duty to report changes. An initial grant does not automatically establish permanent residence or citizenship.
Official Stamp 4 permission instructionsBuild my moving plan for this routeMoving to Ireland

Official application links

Where to actually go next

Government links only

These are the official pages to use for this route. Open them before preparing documents: the forms, fees, appointment systems, and sponsor steps can change without warning.

  1. Official guidanceApplicant
    Register immigration permission ↗

    Use this official guidance to register or renew the Stamp 4 permission after approval.

    Immigration Service Delivery · verified

Fees and processing time

Indicative government fees: The general registration fee is €300 where applicable; exemptions and fees for an underlying permission must be checked separately.. The issuing authority does not publish a central processing time for this route, so plan against comparable cases. Both change over time, so the dedicated pages below carry the itemised breakdown and the current official figures.

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Frequently asked questions

Does Stamp 4 lead to Irish citizenship?+

Time on Stamp 4 can count toward the 5-year reckonable residence requirement for naturalisation, provided all other conditions are met (good character, intent to continue residing in Ireland, etc.).

Is Stamp 4 the same as Long Term Residency?+

No. Stamp 4 is a permission category used for different legal bases. An employment-based Stamp 4 upgrade does not grant Long Term Residency; that scheme has a separate 60-month qualifying-residence assessment and other conditions. Citizenship is another application and can include earlier qualifying Stamp 1 residence.

How long until I can apply for an employment-based Stamp 4 upgrade?+

ISD uses 21 months of qualifying employment for CSEP, Hosting Agreement researchers and Multi-Site GEP Non-Consultant Hospital Doctors, or 57 months for ordinary GEP and Intra-Company Transfer employment. Confirm the actual permission and employment evidence; the shorter and longer groups cannot simply be combined. This is an application for an immigration-permission upgrade, not an automatic grant or Long Term Residency.

Can I change employer freely once I have Stamp 4 in Ireland?+

Stamp 4 permits employment without an employment permit and allows you to establish and operate a business. Professional registration and the conditions attached to your permission still apply. Renew before expiry; do not assume every Stamp 4 has the same validity period or that the upgrade itself grants citizenship.

Need tailored advice?

We do not provide legal advice. For an application that depends on your exact circumstances, consult a regulator-listed immigration advisor.

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How we verified this

We check every figure on this page against the primary government source, record the date it was last checked, and re-check it on a regular schedule. Rules change, so always confirm time-sensitive details with the official source before you rely on them. Visa Atlas is an information-only publication and does not give legal advice.

Primary source: Immigration Service Delivery

Last checked: 10 September 2026

See the full evidence trail and methodology

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