Ireland’s opposition party Sinn Féin has proposed introducing a new long-term residency permit that would allow eligible migrants to live and work in the country without becoming Irish citizens. Under the proposal, foreign nationals who have completed five years of qualifying residence in Ireland could obtain more secure immigration status, giving them greater freedom to change jobs, establish businesses and continue living in the country.
The proposal, reported by the Irish Examiner on 28 October 2026, comes as Ireland considers major changes to its citizenship system, including increasing the standard residence requirement for naturalisation from five to eight years. Sinn Féin’s plan would offer another option for migrants who wish to remain in Ireland for the long term but do not necessarily want Irish nationality. However, the new residency proposal has not been approved by the Irish Government and is not currently available for applications.
New Residency Proposal
Sinn Féin’s spokesperson on Justice, Home Affairs and Migration, Matt Carthy, has argued that Ireland needs a clearer and more accessible route to long-term residence.
According to Carthy, some migrants apply for Irish citizenship primarily because of the uncertainty and administrative burden associated with renewing their residence permissions.
Many foreign nationals have already established their careers, families and communities in Ireland. However, depending on their immigration status, they may still need to complete regular renewal procedures to maintain permission to remain in the country.
Sinn Féin believes a broader long-term residence system could give qualifying migrants greater security while potentially reducing the number of naturalisation applications submitted by people who do not particularly want citizenship.
The proposal is part of the party’s wider immigration and citizenship policy, rather than a new Government programme.
Five-Year Eligibility Requirements
Under the proposed arrangement, migrants would generally need to complete at least five years of qualifying residence in Ireland before becoming eligible for the new permission.
The conditions described by Sinn Féin include:
- Five years of qualifying residence: Applicants must demonstrate that they have lived in Ireland for the required period under eligible immigration permissions.
- Immigration compliance: They must have followed Irish immigration laws and the conditions attached to their previous residence permissions.
- Tax compliance: Applicants would need to demonstrate that they have fulfilled their tax obligations.
- Good character: Applicants must satisfy requirements concerning their conduct and compliance with Irish law.
These conditions indicate that the scheme would be intended primarily for migrants who have established a lawful and sustained connection with Ireland.
However, several important details remain unclear.
Sinn Féin has not yet provided a complete operational framework identifying precisely which immigration stamps would count towards the proposed five-year requirement.
Consequently, it is not yet possible to confirm whether all categories of workers, students, family members or people holding other immigration permissions would qualify.
No official application portal, application fee, processing period or implementation date has been announced for the proposed scheme.
Rights Under Proposal
One of the most significant features of Sinn Féin’s proposal concerns the employment rights that successful applicants could receive.
According to the Irish Examiner report, qualifying migrants would be allowed to work without requiring a separate employment permit.
This could potentially make it easier for foreign workers to move between employers without facing the employment-permit restrictions associated with some immigration categories.
Successful applicants could also be permitted to establish and operate their own businesses.
The proposed rights include:
- Working in Ireland without a separate employment permit.
- Changing employers without obtaining a new employment permit.
- Starting or operating a business.
- Enjoying more secure long-term residence in Ireland.
- Accessing public services, including healthcare and education, subject to applicable eligibility rules.
For foreign nationals whose immigration permission depends on a particular type of employment, these changes could provide greater flexibility.
Nevertheless, access to public services would not necessarily mean automatic entitlement to every State benefit. Healthcare, education and social welfare support have their own eligibility conditions.
Furthermore, long-term residence would remain different from citizenship. It would not automatically provide an Irish passport or the full rights associated with European Union citizenship.
Existing Residency Scheme
An important distinction is that Ireland already operates a long-term residency programme.
Under the existing Immigration Service Delivery arrangements, certain foreign nationals who have completed at least 60 months of qualifying legal residence based on employment permits can apply for long-term residency.
Applicants generally must have held qualifying employment permissions, complied with immigration conditions, remained legally resident and met other requirements.
Successful applicants receive permission to work in Ireland for another five years without a separate employment permit.
The existing programme is therefore already available to some migrant workers, but it does not provide a general five-year residency entitlement to everyone who has lived legally in Ireland.
For example, a person who has lived in the country for five years entirely on a student permission cannot assume that this period qualifies them for the current long-term residency programme.
Applicants must also be employed during the application process. Self-employed applicants are not accepted under the standard scheme.
The official application fee is €500, payable after approval within the period specified by Immigration Service Delivery.
Sinn Féin’s proposal appears intended to establish a broader and more secure alternative, although its precise eligibility categories have not yet been fully defined.
Residency Options Compared
| Residence option | Qualifying period | Current status |
| Sinn Féin’s proposed long-term residence | 5 years of qualifying residence | Opposition proposal only |
| Existing long-term residency programme | 5 years, mainly under eligible employment permits | Currently available |
| Stamp 5 permission | 8 years of qualifying legal residence | Currently available |
| Standard Irish citizenship | 5 years of reckonable residence | Current law |
| Proposed standard citizenship reform | 8 years of reckonable residence | Government legislative proposal |
These are different immigration pathways, each with its own rules.
For example, Ireland’s Stamp 5 permission, officially described as residence Without Condition As To Time, can generally be requested after eight years of qualifying legal residence. It allows successful applicants to remain in Ireland subject to the conditions of that permission.
The existing five-year long-term residency programme is different from Stamp 5, and neither should be confused with Irish naturalisation.
Eight-Year Citizenship Proposal
The latest residency proposal comes amid a wider debate over the future of Irish citizenship.
On 9 September 2026, the Irish Government approved the priority drafting of legislation intended to change several naturalisation requirements.
The Government’s proposals include increasing the standard qualifying residence period from five years to eight years, introducing language and civics assessments, and adding requirements concerning financial self-sufficiency.
Under the proposed eight-year system, most applicants would need two years of continuous residence immediately before applying, together with six additional years accumulated during the preceding ten years.
However, the proposed eight-year residence requirement has not yet replaced the existing five-year rule.
Under current rules, most adult naturalisation applicants need five years of reckonable residence, including one continuous year immediately before applying and another four years during the preceding eight years.
Applicants must also meet identity, good-character and other statutory requirements.
The Government’s citizenship proposals and Sinn Féin’s residency proposal should therefore be treated as separate policy developments, even though they are connected to the broader debate about immigration reform.
Sinn Féin’s Citizenship Position
Sinn Féin has also outlined its own position on changes to Irish citizenship. The party supports an eight-year standard residence requirement but has called for shorter routes to remain available in proportionate circumstances.
These could include people granted refugee status and spouses or civil partners of Irish citizens.
Sinn Féin has additionally proposed transitional arrangements for people who are already working towards citizenship under the existing requirements.
This could become particularly important for migrants who have spent several years building up reckonable residence and are approaching eligibility under the current five-year framework.
The party argues that applicants should not face an abrupt cut-off when legislation changes.
However, the final design of any transitional protection, including who might qualify and when it would take effect, remains undecided.
Additional Citizenship Conditions
Sinn Féin has proposed several further changes to citizenship eligibility. One proposal involves placing the existing good-character requirement on a clearer statutory footing.
Although Irish citizenship applicants must already demonstrate good character, Sinn Féin wants legislation to identify more clearly the circumstances that could affect eligibility.
This could include serious criminal convictions, persistent offending and fraud involving immigration, citizenship, tax or social protection systems.
The party has also proposed that applicants demonstrate an appropriate level of financial self-sufficiency.
However, Matt Carthy has indicated that the party does not favour introducing a fixed salary threshold as the sole measure.
This distinction could matter for applicants whose employment circumstances change temporarily, including people taking sick leave or time away from work to care for family members.
Other proposals include proficiency in English, Irish or Irish Sign Language and an assessment covering Irish civic life.
These would be citizenship requirements, not necessarily conditions for the proposed five-year residence permission.
Impact On Migrants
For migrants currently living in Ireland, the proposed residence route raises several important questions.
Foreign workers who already qualify for Stamp 4 or the existing long-term residency programme may have access to some of the employment flexibility described in Sinn Féin’s proposal.
However, migrants who do not qualify for those routes could potentially benefit if a future scheme accepts a broader range of lawful residence categories.
The details will be particularly important for people with mixed immigration histories, such as workers who previously held student permissions or moved between different residence stamps.
Another consideration is the relationship between long-term residence and citizenship.
A secure residence permission could allow migrants to continue their careers and family lives in Ireland without immediately applying for naturalisation.
On the other hand, foreign nationals seeking an Irish passport, citizenship rights or broader European Union free-movement rights would still need to consider citizenship separately.
The practical advantages of any new permit would ultimately depend on its validity, renewal rules, qualifying residence categories and employment conditions.
Applications And Start Date
There is currently no confirmed start date for Sinn Féin’s proposed five-year long-term residency permission.
The proposal has not become law, and Immigration Service Delivery has not introduced a new application process based on the announcement.
Applicants should therefore avoid treating five years of general residence as an automatic entitlement to a new permission.
Foreign nationals already living in Ireland should continue to comply with the conditions of their current immigration stamps and ensure that their permissions remain valid.
Those interested in existing long-term residency may consult the official Immigration Service Delivery website to determine whether their employment history and immigration permissions satisfy current requirements.
Similarly, people preparing naturalisation applications should continue checking the official citizenship guidance, particularly while the Government’s proposed reforms move through the legislative process.
What Happens Next?
The next development will depend on whether Sinn Féin’s residency proposal gains support from the Government or progresses through a legislative initiative.
The party may seek to advance its preferred changes during discussions on the wider citizenship reforms.
However, parliamentary debate and political support do not automatically create a new immigration permission.
A functioning scheme would require decisions on legal authority, qualifying residence, application procedures, permission conditions and administration.
For now, Ireland’s existing residency and naturalisation arrangements remain the relevant rules for applicants.
Final Outlook
Sinn Féin’s proposal introduces a potentially significant alternative for migrants who want to establish their long-term future in Ireland without necessarily obtaining citizenship.
A broader five-year residence route could offer greater employment flexibility and residence security to qualifying applicants, particularly if its eligibility extends beyond the narrower categories covered by the existing scheme.
At the same time, the proposal is being discussed alongside possible changes that would make the standard citizenship route longer and introduce additional requirements.
For migrants, the most important point is the distinction between political proposals and immigration permissions already available under Irish law.
The five-year residence proposal remains at the political discussion stage, and the planned eight-year standard citizenship requirement has not yet come into force.
Further details will be needed before migrants can determine whether they would benefit from the proposed new residence pathway.