Filing the I-130 Petition for Alien Relative

Procedures for U.S. Citizens Resident in the Republic of Ireland

U.S. citizens who have been resident in the Republic of Ireland who wish to sponsor an immediate relative can file the I-130 petition at the Embassy.  Both the U.S. citizen petitioner and the beneficiary (the alien spouse) must have maintained continuous residency in our consular district (the Republic of Ireland) for a minimum of the preceding six months in order to demonstrate principal residence.   Appropriate evidence that the petitioner and the beneficiary have permission to reside in the Republic of Ireland must be provided.  We will require evidence in the form of:

• the U.S. citizen petitioner - a photocopy of the leave to remain stamp from the Irish government, in the petitioner's passport; (must also include a photocopy of the photo page of U.S. passport) or,
• if dual national, the petitioner's EU passport;
• the beneficiary must provide a photocopy of the photo page of his or her EU passport.
• non EU nationals must provide a photocopy of the leave to remain stamp from the Irish government, together with a photocopy of the photo page of his or her passport.

U.S. citizens whose principal residence is not in the Republic of Ireland and/or who have entered as a temporary visitor/student/or with limited leave to remain must file the petition with the appropriate USCIS Service Center in the United States.

Lawful Permanent Residents must file the I-130 in the United States.

Instructions for completing the I-130 petition can be found on the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services website. To view the PDF file, you will need to download the free Adobe reader.

Follow this link for USCIS Forms.