How stamps work
Every permission to live in Ireland has a stamp number, such as Stamp 1, 2 or 4. The stamp depends on why you’re here, and it’s shown on your Irish Residence Permit (IRP) card, and sometimes in your passport. It tells you two things:
- what you can and can’t do, such as work, study or run a business, and
- how long you can stay.
ISD can attach extra conditions to your permission, listed in your permission letter if you get one. And it’s a condition of every stamp that you obey the law and don’t come to the adverse attention of the Gardaí.
Find your stamp
Choose why you’re in Ireland. Where it depends on more, you’ll get one follow-up question.
Stamp finder
Choose why you're in Ireland to see the stamp you'd usually get, and what it lets you do.
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- Work
- Business
- Counts for citizenship
Based on ISD's stamp conditions. Your permission letter and the stamp you're given are what count, and ISD can add conditions.
Nothing you choose is sent to us or saved. Guidance only, not legal advice.
The stamps at a glance
| Stamp | Usually for | Work | Business | Counts for citizenship |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | Retiring here on your own means, visiting academics, dependent older relatives | No, unless ISD allows | No, unless ISD allows | Yes |
| 1 | Working on an employment permit, or a working holiday | With your permit (or ISD letter) | Only if ISD allows | Yes |
| 1A | Trainee accountants | As a trainee | No | ISD doesn’t say |
| 1G | Graduates of Irish degrees; partners of certain permit holders | Yes, full time | No | Yes (graduates, partners of Critical Skills holders and researchers) |
| 1H | Hospital doctors on a multi-site permit | As an NCHD | ISD doesn’t say | Yes |
| 2 | Full-time study on the ILEP list | 20 hours a week in term, 40 in holidays | No | No |
| 2A | Study not on the ILEP list, semesters abroad, private secondary school | No | No | No |
| 3 | Volunteers, ministers of religion | No | No | Yes |
| 4 | Spouses of Irish citizens, refugees, parents of Irish children, people moving on from employment permits | Yes, no permit needed | Yes | Yes |
| 4D | Non-EEA family of UK citizens, under the Brexit scheme | See the scheme | See the scheme | See the scheme |
| 5 | Permission without condition as to time | – | – | Yes |
| 6 | Irish citizens with dual citizenship (no registration) | – | – | – |
Family members of EU, EEA and Swiss citizens get their permission under EU Treaty Rights, not the stamps above.
Where ISD’s own pages differ
Two things are worth knowing, because ISD’s pages don’t quite agree:
- Partners of employment permit holders. ISD’s stamps page still says family of work permit holders get Stamp 3. ISD’s family reunification policy of June 2026 settles it: partners and children of Critical Skills, General Employment and Intra-Company Transfer permit holders, and of researchers, get Stamp 1G, and can work. Family of other Stamp 4 holders get Stamp 3. Your permission letter is what counts.
- Moving to Stamp 4 after a permit. The stamps page gives about 2 years on a Critical Skills permit and 5 years on another employment permit. ISD’s Stamp 4 upgrades page is more precise: 21 months of employment on a Critical Skills permit, a hosting agreement or a multi-site NCHD permit, or 57 months on a General Employment or Intra-Company Transfer permit.
Moving between stamps
Many people hold several stamps over the years. Common paths:
- Student to graduate to work: Stamp 2 while you study, Stamp 1G after you graduate, then Stamp 1 with an employment permit.
- Permit to Stamp 4: after enough time on an employment permit, renew on Stamp 4 conditions.
- Partner on Stamp 1G: renewed every year, with Stamp 4 possible after 5 years.
Stamp changes and renewals are done online. Apply before your current permission expires: gaps can affect a citizenship application later.
Common mix-ups
Common questions
What is an immigration stamp?
It's the type of permission you have to live in Ireland, shown by a number such as Stamp 1, 2 or 4. It's on your IRP card and sometimes in your passport, and it tells you what you can do and how long you can stay.
Which stamp lets me work without an employment permit?
Stamp 4, and Stamp 1G (as a graduate on the Third Level Graduate Programme, or as the partner of certain permit holders). Stamp 1 needs an employment permit or a letter from ISD saying you don't need one.
How many hours can I work on Stamp 2?
Up to 20 hours a week during term and 40 hours a week during the holidays, in casual employment. You can't run a business.
Is Stamp 4 permanent residency?
No. Stamp 4 is granted for a specified period and you renew it before it expires. Stamp 5, permission "without condition as to time", is the one that isn't tied to a period.
Which stamps count towards citizenship?
ISD says Stamps 1, 1G (as a graduate or the partner of a Critical Skills permit holder or researcher), 1H, 3, 4 and 5 count as reckonable residence, and its citizenship guide adds Stamp 0. Student Stamps 2 and 2A don't.
What happens if I break my stamp's conditions?
ISD says your permission may not be renewed and you'd have to leave, or you may be issued with an intention to deport notification. It's also a condition of every stamp that you obey the law.
Can I change to a different stamp?
Often, yes. Stamp changes are done online, for example from Stamp 2 to Stamp 1G after graduating, or from Stamp 1 to Stamp 4 after enough time on an employment permit.
Do I have to carry my IRP card?
ISD says you should always carry it with you and produce it to the authorities if asked. It's not an identity card, but it proves you're living in Ireland legally.
Sources
All sources checked on 2 Oct 2026.
- Immigration permission/stamps (conditions for each stamp)Immigration Service Delivery
- Documents needed to register (permission categories, including Stamp 1G partners)Immigration Service Delivery
- Information on Stamp 4 upgradesImmigration Service Delivery
- Third Level Graduate ProgrammeImmigration Service Delivery
- Becoming an Irish citizen guide (time that counts)Immigration Service Delivery