Start-Up Entrepreneur Scheme

The start-up entrepreneur programme is administered by the Department of Justice. Evidence of funds €50,000 or more:

Applicants must have secured funding of €50,000 from one or a combination of the following:

• Own resources
• Business loan
• Business angel/venture capital funding
• Grant form an Irish State body

Attractions of doing business in Ireland include:

• 12.5% corporation Tax rate
• Forbes 2011 named Ireland as the best country in Europe to do business.

Residence permission:

Successful applicants will be issued with the residence permissions when the following conditions have been met:

1. The required funding has been transferred to a financial institution regulated by the central Bank of Ireland.
2. The applicant, and if relevant their spouse / partner, has submitted the required affidavit attesting to their good charter and proof of no criminal record.

Application for Start- up Entrepreneur Programme.

Residency Permission available under the Start-up Entrepreneur Programme

a) Applicants for the Start-up Entrepreneur Programme who have their investment proposals approved by the Evaluation Committee shall be invited to apply for Residency Permission under the Programme.
b) Once the applicants have provided verifiable evidence that they have transferred the funds identified in their application for approval to a business bank account in Ireland, they will be granted the following residency permission in Ireland.

• Permission to reside and work in Ireland for two years. Where an applicant is a visa required national, they will be granted a multiple entry visa for the period of two years. This is to facilitate business related travel.
• During this period beneficiaries must have private medical insurance and must not have recourse to public funds.
• Spouses and minor children shall be allowed to accompany successful applicants.

Renewal of Residency Permission

Permission will be renewed thereafter subject to;

• The Start-up remaining in place thereafter for the designated period.
• An assessment by the Evaluation Committee of the success or viability of the investment.
• The Candidates maintaining their good character.
• The candidates maintaining their private medical insurance and not having recourse to publicly funded welfare programmes.

On renewal, residency permission will be granted for 3 further years. Thereafter permission may be renewed in 5 year instalments.

Naturalisation

The Start-up Entrepreneur Programme does not provide for preferential access to citizenship for successful applicants. Successful applicants are free to apply for citizenship in the normal manner under the provisions of the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Acts 1957-2004

Eligible Family Members

Residency status, on similar terms, to the principal applicant is also available for spouses/partners and minor children (i.e. children under 18 years of age) for whom the principal applicant and/or their spouse or partner has legal guardianship.

a) Consideration of family relationships: Where the person applying for residence status under the Start-up Entrepreneur Programme for themselves and their families the validity of the family relationships will be considered.

Spouses: Applicants should provide evidence that their marriage or civil partnership is legal.
Partners: Applicants should provide evidence that they have been cohabiting with their partner in a common law/de facto relationship for the previous two years.
Children: The minor children of the applicant shall qualify for residency status provided that the applicant qualifies for residency status and provided that;

• They are legally in the custody/guardianship of the applicant.
• They are unmarried and are not in a de facto/common law relationship.

In respect of each child, the applicant must supply birth certificates detailing parentage or legal documentation verifying the applicant’s custody/guardianship.

We will be happy to assist you in your application for start-up entrepreneur scheme in Ireland – please contact us for further information.