My IRP card hasn’t arrived: what to do

The short answer

After you register or your renewal is approved, ISD posts your IRP card to your home address. It should arrive within about 15 business days: weekends and public holidays don’t count.

• Before day 15: keep waiting. You can’t collect it, and ISD can’t speed it up.
• After day 15: submit a query on the Customer Service Portal. Have recent proof of address ready.
• Meanwhile: your passport stamp (first registration) or ISD’s confirmation email (renewal) shows your permission.

Track your card

Enter the date you were registered, or the date your renewal was approved. The tracker counts 15 business days, skipping weekends and Irish public holidays.

Counting the 15 days

Count from the day after your registration appointment, or after ISD’s email approving your renewal. Only Monday to Friday count, and public holidays are skipped.

• No holidays in the way: registered on a Friday, the card is due on the Friday 3 weeks later. For 2 October 2026, that’s 23 October.
• A bank holiday: the October bank holiday (26 October 2026) pushes a card from 16 October to 9 November.
• Christmas: approved on 18 December 2026, the card isn’t due until 12 January 2027, because Christmas Day and New Year’s Day fall on Fridays. St Stephen’s Day is a Saturday that year, so it doesn’t change the count.

ISD’s older first-registration page says 10 working days. Its newer FAQ and renewal page both say about 15 business days, so the tracker uses 15.

How your card travels

ISD’s guide to its registration services explains what happens after approval:

• A third-party manufacturer prints the card and sends it straight to your home address by An Post Express Post.
• If An Post can’t deliver it, the card goes back to ISD at Burgh Quay. ISD says it then phones you to arrange delivery to the right address, so watch for missed calls.
• When you send a query, ISD checks returned cards, the An Post tracking and your records before reissuing.

The card goes to the address you gave ISD, so make sure it’s complete: include your apartment number and Eircode.

If it’s late: send a query

1. Log in to the Customer Service Portal and click Submit Query on your dashboard.
2. Choose Registration & Irish Residence Permit (IRP) Cards, then Irish Residence Permit (IRP) Cards.
3. Pick “My IRP card has not been delivered to my home address following approval”.
4. Have recent proof of your current address ready. ISD’s example is a utility bill dated in the last 3 months.

ISD looks into what happened and, if needed, posts a replacement card to your home address.

While you wait

• First registration: your passport was stamped with your permission at the appointment.
• Renewal: ISD’s email confirms your permission has been renewed. If you applied before your old card expired, ISD says you can keep working until the new card arrives.

If you need to travel

• You don’t need a visa to enter Ireland: ISD says you can travel and ask for entry at the border without the card.
• You need a visa: you can ask for an emergency re-entry visa through the portal, before you leave. A card not yet received by post is one of the reasons ISD lists, but it’s only for a genuine, unforeseen need, and you must have permission until the date you come back. Send your passport’s biometric page and your flight details. If it’s approved, you get an appointment at the Dublin Registration Office.

Already abroad and visa-required? ISD can’t give you a re-entry visa from outside Ireland: you’d need to apply for an emergency entry visa at the nearest Irish visa office, embassy or consulate.

When the card does arrive

Check it straight away. If something’s wrong, send a query with the details of the error and ISD can reissue it. If you lose it, report it to the Gardaí first.

Common mix-ups

Common questions

Sources