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Republic of Ireland · family

STEP family residence — spouse, partner or minor child

By · Last reviewed:

Guidance updated 15 November 2026. Full-review date shown above.

Residence for an approved STEP founder’s eligible spouse or partner and children under 18, subject to relationship evidence and the founder’s continuing permission.

Eligible STEP principal, qualifying spouse or partner or under-18 child relationship, custody and actual family permissionDoes not lead to permanent residencyProgramme framework: two years, possible three-year renewal and later five-year renewals; the individual grant and principal’s continuing eligibility control.
Processing time
Considered with the STEP application and required family evidence; quarterly proposal evaluation is not a guaranteed family decision or registration deadline.
Government fees
Nominated family included in the principal’s EUR 350 STEP application fee. Standard registration EUR 300 where payable; individual exemptions and age rules apply. Visa, document and insurance costs are separate.
Typical duration
Programme framework: two years, possible three-year renewal and later five-year renewals; the individual grant and principal’s continuing eligibility control.
Required support
Eligible STEP principal, qualifying spouse or partner or under-18 child relationship, custody and actual family permission
Leads to permanent residency
No
Reviewed Immigration Service Delivery, Ireland ↗

In short

Residence for an approved STEP founder’s eligible spouse or partner and children under 18, subject to relationship evidence and the founder’s continuing permission. Guidance updated 15 November 2026. Costs, application stages and eligibility conditions are set out with their sources below.

Cite this: https://visaatlas.org/visas/ireland/step-family-residence#answer

What is the STEP family residence — spouse, partner or minor child in Republic of Ireland?

Eligible STEP principal, qualifying spouse or partner or under-18 child relationship, custody and actual family permission. Follow the actual programme, grant and permitted activity conditions. Indicative government fees are Nominated family included in the principal’s EUR 350 STEP application fee. Standard registration EUR 300 where payable; individual exemptions and age rules apply. Visa, document and insurance costs are separate; indicative processing time is Considered with the STEP application and required family evidence; quarterly proposal evaluation is not a guaranteed family decision or registration deadline; typical duration is Programme framework: two years, possible three-year renewal and later five-year renewals; the individual grant and principal’s continuing eligibility control. This route does not lead to permanent residence.

Primary guidance checked with Immigration Service Delivery, Ireland on 15 November 2026.

Overview

The STEP guidelines allow a qualifying founder to include an eligible spouse or partner and minor children in the residence application. The family relationship and custody must be established, and family status depends on the principal continuing to meet the programme conditions. Current ISD stamp guidance includes eligible Investor and Entrepreneur family members under Stamp 4; it does not classify every accompanying spouse as a no-work Stamp 3.

Additional sources

Eligibility

Typical criteria

  • ✓The STEP guidelines cover an accompanying spouse or partner and children under 18 who are in the applicant’s or partner’s legal custody or guardianship. They do not create a general route for adult children or other relatives.Immigration Service Delivery, Ireland ↗
  • ✓Prove a legal marriage or civil partnership, or a de facto relationship with at least two years of cohabitation. A qualifying child must be unmarried and not in a de facto relationship.Immigration Service Delivery, Ireland ↗
  • ✓The family’s permission depends on the principal meeting the programme conditions. The current stamp guidance includes eligible Investor and Entrepreneur family members under Stamp 4, subject to the actual permission granted.Immigration Service Delivery, Ireland ↗
  • ✓Eligible family must be nominated and evidenced in the STEP application. The guidelines require family members’ good-character affidavits from age 16, and the principal must maintain the programme’s insurance and financial conditions.Immigration Service Delivery, Ireland ↗

Common blockers

  • !A relationship alone is insufficient without an actual family grant. The guidelines cover children under 18; a reference to older dependants in the application form’s police-document checklist does not establish adult-child eligibility for STEP.Immigration Service Delivery, Ireland ↗
  • !If the principal loses programme status through fraud, deportation or serious criminal conviction, the guidelines provide for withdrawal from the beneficiary and family. Business failure also triggers a review of the participant’s status; do not assume independent permanent family permission.Immigration Service Delivery, Ireland ↗
  • !New principal STEP applications from Russian or Belarusian citizens are not accepted under the current page. That notice does not by itself determine every mixed-nationality family or existing holder’s case.Immigration Service Delivery, Ireland ↗
  • !IIP and STEP Stamp 4 periods are expressly excluded from the separate employment-based Long Term Residency scheme. Renewable programme residence is not an automatic permanent-residence grant. Naturalisation is a separate application under its own current residence and other requirements.Immigration Service Delivery, Ireland ↗

Typical evidence

  • ·Supply the family sections of the application and certified identity documents, marriage or civil-partnership evidence, de facto relationship evidence where relevant, birth certificates and custody, guardianship or adoption documents. Include the relevant character information and declarations.Immigration Service Delivery, Ireland ↗
  • ·For a de facto partner, document the previous two years’ cohabitation; for a child, establish legal custody or guardianship and that the child is unmarried and not in a de facto relationship.Immigration Service Delivery, Ireland ↗
  • ·Use the actual family permission and current registration instructions. The current Investor and Entrepreneur registration section specifies passport, current programme letter and first-registration insurance evidence; renewal requires passport, current IRP card and current letter.Immigration Service Delivery, Ireland ↗
  • ·Children under 16 ordinarily do not register; register when they reach 16. For those required to register, follow the arrival instructions and book the appointment after arrival within the applicable period. First registration and a programme application are separate stages.Immigration Service Delivery, Ireland ↗

Application pathway

  1. Check the principal and qualifying relationship

    Confirm the founder’s STEP basis and the spouse, partner or under-18 child category. Establish the relationship, cohabitation and custody evidence; this is distinct from general Irish or EEA family routes.

  2. Include the family in the STEP application

    Complete the nominated-family sections, identity and relationship documents, relevant character evidence and declarations. The EUR 350 programme application fee covers the principal and nominated family; approval remains necessary.

  3. Obtain permission and arrange lawful entry

    Follow the actual grant and any entry-visa requirements for each family member. Complete the necessary affidavits. Do not treat the family relationship or the principal’s application receipt as permission to enter, stay or work.

  4. Register where required and follow Stamp 4 conditions

    Current guidance includes eligible entrepreneur family members under Stamp 4. Its general conditions allow employment without an employment permit and operating a business, subject to the actual grant and professional requirements. Children under 16 ordinarily do not register; registration is required from 16.

  5. Maintain linked eligibility and renew

    Keep the principal’s programme compliance and the actual family permission under review. Obtain the required current programme letter and renew registration before expiry within the applicable 12-week window. A renewable five-year period is not an automatic permanent-residence or citizenship award.

After approval: prepare for your next step

For STEP family residence — spouse, partner or minor child, 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 the conditions for your own permission, including work, and keep evidence of the qualifying relationship. The principal applicant’s conditions may differ.
  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 STEP family residence — spouse, partner or minor child instructionsBuild my moving plan for this routeMoving to Ireland

Plan the practical side of your stay

Once you have checked the official route, you can prepare for day-to-day life in Ireland. These optional services are separate from the application and do not establish visa eligibility.

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
    Check STEP family eligibility ↗

    Read the eligible family, relationship, residence and withdrawal sections of the official guidelines.

    Immigration Service Delivery, Ireland · verified

  2. Official guidanceApplicant
    Check current Stamp 4 conditions ↗

    Read the Investor and Entrepreneur family example and the general conditions, then follow your actual grant.

    Immigration Service Delivery, Ireland · verified

  3. Official guidanceApplicant
    Check family registration and age rules ↗

    Use the current appointment, registration age and renewal instructions for each family member.

    Immigration Service Delivery, Ireland · verified

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Frequently asked questions

Does every STEP spouse receive a no-work Stamp 3?+

No. Current official stamp guidance includes eligible Investor and Entrepreneur spouses, partners and family under Stamp 4. Its general conditions allow employment without an employment permit and running a business, subject to the actual permission and professional rules. The principal founder’s separate no-other-employment condition must not be indiscriminately copied onto the family.

Can I include my adult child?+

The STEP guidelines define eligible children as under 18 and subject to custody, guardianship and relationship conditions. Do not infer eligibility for adult children from an application-form checklist referring to police reports for dependants aged 18–24. Any adult’s alternative residence basis must be established separately.

Does my child need an IRP card?+

Current registration guidance says children under 16 ordinarily do not register and should register when they turn 16. That registration age rule does not remove the need for an eligible family residence or entry basis, and it does not extend STEP’s family category to all adult children.

Are family residence and citizenship automatic?+

No. The relationship and nominated-family application require approval, and continued status is linked to programme compliance and the issued letter. Stamp4 may be relevant to a separate naturalisation assessment, but neither a STEP family grant nor a five-year renewal is an automatic citizenship or employment-based Long Term Residency award.

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, Ireland

Last checked: 15 November 2026

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