Moving back to Ireland from abroad? You’ll now find lots of helpful information on returning to Ireland at citizensinformation.ie. From looking for somewhere to live, to finding out about enrolling your children in school, this new resource is a great place to start planning your journey home.

If you are moving back, you’re in good company, as the CSO estimates that over 135,000 Irish people have returned to Ireland since 2015. In 2018, the number of returnees (23,400) even surpassed the number of Irish people leaving the country (23,300). This wave of return is certainly not the first to happen, but it is the first to occur in the digital age.

More than ever before, Irish people are sharing their experiences of return. Media outlets like the Irish Times Abroad have offered returnees a platform to share and connect, as have forums such as Ireland Move Club along with a wide range of Facebook groups. Reports like ‘Home for Good?’ and ‘A hundred thousand welcomes?’ have also highlighted challenges faced by returning emigrants. This has resulted in positive developments such as a new De Facto Pre-Clearance Scheme making it easier for Irish people to return with their non-EU partners.  All of this is good news, as it means that there are now more resources available to help returning Irish emigrants like you!

Whether you are returning with children, retiring after a long period of living abroad, coming back for work, or at the very early stages of planning your journey home, the Citizens Information’s new Returning to Ireland section will help you find out what you need to know about returning to Ireland. Created with support from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, it is part of the Ireland’s commitment to offer practical support to Irish emigrants who wish to return home. It also follows recommendations to develop an online information service for returning Irish emigrants and has gone from strength to strength since it was launched in August 2019.

Take a look for yourself at www.citizensinformation.ie/en/returning_to_ireland/. You can also follow Citizens Information on Facebook and Twitter for regular updates, and email them at returning2ireland@ciboard.ie with any feedback or suggestions.

 

 

About the author: Sarah Owen is a Digital Content Executive with Citizens Information working on their ‘returning to Ireland’ resources. She has been working with returning Irish emigrants since 2012, and was previously part of Crosscare Migrant Project. Her experience ranges from providing information to prospective returnees and advocating for people returning in crisis, to contributing to social policy initiatives and building collaborative partnerships between Global Irish organisations around the world.