New online system for citizenship applications introduced by Department of Justice 

Justice Minister Helen McEntee: 'The digitisation of the citizenship application process will also improve the capacity of my department to efficiently process the growing number of applications.' Picture: Brian Lawless

Potential Irish citizens can now apply for citizenship via naturalisation through a new online system by the Department of Justice.

The portal, introduced on Tuesday, will be made available to those who want to complete their application, upload supporting documentation, and pay fees online.

The former paper-based application will still be available to those who cannot access the online system.

The measure comes as part of the department's Immigration Modernisation Programme, which intends to digitise several paper-based immigration processes. It will introduce a portal system where people will be able to manage and view all aspects of their interaction with immigration services.

The department also added the new online system would see reduced wait times for files to be registered and acknowledged.

For example, it took about seven months on average for an application to be acknowledged last year, whereas this year it was done in a matter of weeks.

There are about 31,000 applications currently in hand with the department.

Older applications are also progressing within the Citizenship Division, which wrote to 13,000 applicants in May with electronic links to start Garda eVetting.

Justice Minister Helen McEntee said: "The digitisation of the citizenship application process will also improve the capacity of my department to efficiently process the growing number of applications.

"Applications for citizenship have been rising in recent years, totalling over 17,000 in 2022 and over 16,000 to date in 2023. The digitisation of the citizenship application process will also improve the capacity of my department to efficiently process the growing number of applications.

“From a sustainability and customer service perspective, reducing paper-based systems is a strategic objective across Government, and I am pleased that my department is also making positive progress in that regard.”