Entry Requirements & Customs

Entry Requirements

Passports -- For information on how to get a passport, go to "Passports" in the "Fast Facts: Ireland" section of this guide -- the websites listed provide downloadable passport applications as well as the current fees for processing passport applications. For an up-to-date, country-by-country listing of passport requirements around the world, go to the "Travel Information by Country" Web page of the U.S. State Department at http://travel.state.gov.

Visas -- For citizens of the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand entering the Republic of Ireland for a stay of up to 3 months, no visa is necessary, but a valid passport is required.

For entry into Northern Ireland, the same conditions apply.

For citizens of the United Kingdom, when traveling on flights originating in Britain, the same rules apply as they would for travel to any other member state of the European Union (E.U.).

Customs

What You Can Bring Into Ireland

Ireland and Northern Ireland Customs are mainly concerned with two categories of goods: (1) items bought duty-paid and value-added-tax-paid (VAT-paid) in other E.U. countries and (2) goods bought under duty-free and VAT-free allowances at duty-free shops.

The first case normally applies to Irish citizens, visitors from Britain, and travelers from other E.U. countries. If the goods are for personal use, you won't need to pay additional duty or VAT. The limits for goods in this category are 800 cigarettes, 10 liters of spirits, 25 liters of wine, and 50 liters of beer.

The second category pertains primarily to overseas visitors, such as U.S. and Canadian citizens. The limit on duty-free and VAT-free items that may be brought into the E.U. for personal use: 200 cigarettes, 1 liter of liquor, 2 liters of wine, and other goods (including beer, gifts, and souvenirs) not exceeding the value of €175 ($228) per adult. There are no restrictions on bringing currency into Ireland.

Regardless of whether you arrive in the Republic or Northern Ireland, the Customs system is the same, operating on a Green, Red, and Blue format. If you're coming from the United States or another non-E.U. country, follow the green signs as long as you don't exceed the duty-free allowances, and the red signs if you have extra goods to declare. If you are like most visitors, bringing in only your own clothes and personal effects, use the Green Channel. The lanes marked with blue signs are for passengers with E.U. passports.

In addition to your luggage, you may bring in sports equipment for your own recreational use or electronic equipment for your own business or professional use. Prohibited goods include firearms, ammunition, and explosives; narcotics; meat, poultry, plants, and their byproducts; and domestic animals from outside the United Kingdom.

What You Can Take Home From Ireland

U.S. Citizens -- Onboard the flight back to the United States, you'll be given a Customs declaration to fill out. Returning U.S. citizens who have been away for at least 48 hours are allowed to bring back, once every 30 days, $800 worth of merchandise duty-free. You'll be charged a flat rate of duty on the next $1,000 worth of purchases. Any dollar amount beyond that is dutiable at whatever rates apply. On mailed gifts, the duty-free limit is $200. Be sure to have your receipts or purchases handy to expedite the declaration process. Note: If you owe duty, you are required to pay on your arrival in the United States, either by cash, personal check, government or traveler's check, or money order, and in some locations, a Visa or MasterCard.

To avoid having to pay duty on foreign-made personal items you owned before you left on your trip, bring along a bill of sale, insurance policy, jeweler's appraisal, or receipts of purchase. Or you can register items -- think laptop computers, cameras, and CD players -- with Customs before you leave. Take the items to any Customs office or register them with Customs at the airport from which you're departing. You'll receive, at no cost, a Certificate of Registration, which allows duty-free entry for the life of the item.

With some exceptions, you cannot bring fresh fruits and vegetables into the United States. For specifics on what you can bring back and corresponding fees, download the invaluable free pamphlet Know Before You Go online at www.cbp.gov. (Click on "Travel," and then click on "Know Before You Go! Online Brochure.") Or contact the U.S. Customs & Border Protection (CBP), 1300 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20229 (tel. 877/287-8667) and request the pamphlet.

Canadian Citizens -- For a clear summary of Canadian rules, write for the booklet I Declare, issued by the Canada Border Services Agency (tel. 800/461-9999 in Canada, or 204/983-3500; www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca). Canada allows its citizens a C$750 exemption and you're allowed to bring back duty-free one carton of cigarettes, 1 can of tobacco, 40 imperial ounces of liquor, and 50 cigars per adult. In addition, you're allowed to mail gifts to Canada valued at less than C$60 a day, provided they're unsolicited and don't contain alcohol or tobacco (write on the package "Unsolicited gift, under $60 value"). All valuables should be declared on the Y-38 form before departure from Canada, including serial numbers of valuables you already own, such as expensive foreign cameras. Note: The C$750 exemption can only be used once a year and only after an absence of 7 days.

U.K. Citizens -- Citizens of the U.K. who are returning from a European Union (E.U.) country will go through a separate Customs Exit (called the "Blue Exit"). In essence, there is no limit on what you can bring back from an E.U. country, as long as the items are for personal use (this includes gifts), and you have already paid the necessary duty and tax. However, Customs law sets out guidance levels. If you bring in more than these levels, you may be asked to prove that the goods are for your own use. Guidance levels on goods bought in the E.U. for your own use are 3,200 cigarettes, 200 cigars, 400 cigarillos, 3 kilograms of smoking tobacco, 10 liters of spirits, 90 liters of wine, 20 liters of fortified wine (such as port or sherry), and 110 liters of beer. For information, contact HM Customs & Excise at tel. 0845/010-9000 in the U.K., or 020/8929-0152, or consult their website at www.hmce.gov.uk.

Australian Citizens --The duty-free allowance in Australia is A$900 or, for those under 18, A$450 (including gifts given to you or intended for others). Citizens can bring in 250 cigarettes or 250 grams of loose tobacco, and 2.25 liters of alcohol. If you're returning with valuables you already own, such as foreign-made cameras, you should file form B263. A helpful brochure available from Australian consulates or Customs offices is Know Before You Go. For more information, call the Australian Customs Service at tel. 1300/363-263, or log on to www.customs.gov.au.

New Zealand Citizens -- The duty-free allowance for New Zealand is NZ$700. Citizens over 17 can bring in 200 cigarettes, 50 cigars, or 250 grams of tobacco (or a mixture of all three if their combined weight doesn't exceed 250 grams); plus 4.5 liters of wine and beer, or 1.125 liters of liquor. New Zealand currency does not carry import or export restrictions. Fill out a certificate of export, listing the valuables you are taking out of the country; that way, you can bring them back without paying duty. Most questions are answered in a free pamphlet available at New Zealand consulates and Customs offices: New Zealand Customs Guide for Travellers, Notice no. 4. For more information, contact New Zealand Customs, The Customhouse, 17-21 Whitmore St., Box 2218, Wellington (tel. 04/473-6099 or 0800/428-786; www.customs.govt.nz).