Ireland spouse visa for Brazilian nationals

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What this visa is

If you are married to, or in a civil partnership with, an Irish citizen, you can apply to live with them in Ireland. This is a residence route, not a visit. If you are approved you get Stamp 4 permission, which lets you work without an employment permit. As a Brazilian national you do not need a visa to enter Ireland. You travel with your spouse, tell the immigration officer at the airport that you are coming to live with them, and then apply for permission to stay.

Figures in this guide are as at October 2026. Ireland changed its family reunification rules on 12 June 2026, so older guidance that quotes a €40,000 income figure is out of date.

Who can apply

You can apply if you are the spouse or civil partner of an Irish citizen, or their unmarried partner. You both need to be 18 or over when you apply, and your marriage must be one that Irish law recognises. Irish law does not recognise polygamous marriages, so only a first marriage can qualify.

If you are not married, you can apply as a de facto partner. You need to show you have lived together in a relationship akin to marriage for at least 2 years before you apply, and that the relationship has been exclusive for that time. Unmarried partners always need preclearance or a visa before travelling, whatever their nationality.

You must have met in person. Immigration Service Delivery (ISD) states that a relationship must include a number of face to face meetings, and video calls do not count.

Who can sponsor

Your spouse or partner sponsors you if they are an Irish citizen living in Ireland or intending to live there. Under the June 2026 policy, Irish citizens can apply at any time, with no waiting period.

If your spouse is not an Irish citizen, a different set of rules applies. These are covered in their own section near the end of this guide.

Financial requirement

Your Irish citizen spouse must show gross income of at least €75,000 in total over the 3 years before you apply. That works out at about €25,000 a year. Income from State benefits does not count towards this, and your spouse must not have been mainly reliant on State supports for a continuous period of 2 years. Only one sponsor’s income is assessed, so your own earnings cannot be added.

If your spouse lives and works in Ireland, they prove this with an Employment Detail Summary from Revenue for the 3 years before you apply, plus their 3 most recent consecutive payslips. Self employed sponsors provide Revenue Notices of Assessment for the last 3 years and evidence of earnings since their last tax return.

The threshold rose from €40,000 for applications made from 12 June 2026. Some ISD pages had not been updated at the time of writing, so rely on the June 2026 policy document if you see the older figure.

If your spouse is moving back to Ireland with you

Many Irish citizens married to Brazilian nationals are living abroad and plan to move back together. The policy allows this: an Irish citizen sponsor can be living in Ireland or intending to live there. If your spouse lives outside Ireland, ISD asks for a copy of their passport showing their residence in the country where they live.

The €75,000 threshold still applies. The evidence ISD lists is Irish Revenue records, and the published policy does not set out how earnings from outside Ireland are assessed. If your spouse has been working abroad, contact ISD or an immigration adviser before you plan your move, so you know what evidence will be accepted.

Your Brazilian marriage certificate

You need your certidão de casamento issued by the cartório where your marriage was registered. Marriage certificates from outside the EEA must be apostilled. In Brazil, apostilles are issued by authorised cartórios.

Your certificate is in Portuguese, so it needs an English translation. A translation done outside the EEA must also be apostilled. Brazil’s sworn translators (tradutores juramentados) produce translations that can then be apostilled.

Documents you need

ISD lists the following for applications made in Ireland. In general you need:

The Spouse of Irish National application form
Your passport and your spouse’s Irish passport
Your marriage or civil partnership certificate, prepared as described above
Your spouse’s income evidence, as described above
If either of you was married before, proof that the earlier marriage legally ended
An English translation of your certidão de casamento, apostilled if it was done outside the EEA
Evidence of your joint address in Ireland

Your spouse may later be asked for proof of suitable accommodation. ISD does not need this when you first apply, but can request it during the assessment.

How to apply

As a Brazilian national you can travel to Ireland with your spouse without a visa. When you arrive, tell the immigration officer at the port of entry that you intend to apply for family reunification as the spouse of an Irish citizen. Do not enter as an ordinary visitor: the June 2026 policy says applications are not accepted for family members who are in Ireland as visitors, on a different permission such as a student permission, or without permission.

You then apply for permission to remain under ISD’s Spouse or Civil Partner of an Irish National scheme. You send the application form and documents through ISD’s online Customer Service Portal, as PDF, JPEG or PNG files of up to 5MB each. Bring your original marriage certificate and passports, evidence of your joint address in Ireland, and your spouse’s income evidence.

If you are an unmarried partner, you must get preclearance from ISD before you travel, even though you do not need a visa.

Costs and processing times

You do not pay a visa fee because you do not need a visa. Unmarried partners need preclearance before travelling.

Spouses and civil partners of Irish citizens are also exempt from the €300 registration fee. Unmarried partners pay the €300.

ISD does not publish a separate target for applications made in Ireland, and its scheme page notes delays in processing. For join family applications generally, ISD aims to decide applications from spouses of Irish citizens within 6 months, and its policy says applications can take around 12 months. These are targets, not guarantees. Make sure your spouse meets the financial threshold before you apply, because an incomplete or premature application takes longer.

After approval

ISD sends you a letter granting permission to remain, with instructions on how to register. You then register your permission and receive an Irish Residence Permit card. Your Stamp 4 permission lets you work for any employer, or be self employed, without an employment permit. It is renewable.

As the spouse or civil partner of an Irish citizen, you may be able to apply for Irish citizenship once you have been married for at least 3 years and have lived in Ireland for 3 years. Check the naturalisation rules with ISD before you apply.

If your spouse is not an Irish citizen

If your spouse holds a Critical Skills Employment Permit, they can bring you with them straight away and there is no income threshold. You get Stamp 1G permission, which lets you work without an employment permit.

If your spouse holds a General Employment Permit, they must have lived in Ireland for 12 months before sponsoring you, and must have earned more than €30,000 gross in the year before you apply. They also need to show suitable accommodation. You get Stamp 1G permission.

ISD’s target for these applications is 12 months. Spouses of EU citizens living in Ireland follow a separate route under EU free movement rules.

FAQs

Do I need a visa?
No. Brazilian nationals do not need a visa for Ireland. Unmarried partners still need preclearance before travelling.

I am already in Ireland on a Stamp 2 student permission. Can I switch?
The June 2026 policy says applications are not accepted for family members already in Ireland on a different permission, such as a student permission. Get advice from ISD or an immigration adviser before you apply.

Does my translation need an apostille?
Yes, if it was done outside the EEA. Translations done inside the EEA do not need one.

Can my own salary count towards the €75,000?
No. Only your Irish spouse’s income is assessed.

Can I work once I have permission?
Yes. Stamp 4 lets you work without an employment permit.