New Irish-British Visa Scheme for non-EU Visitors

Irish Minister for Justice Frances Fitzgerald have revealed that the British and Irish  governments intend to introduce a common visa scheme. It will allow non-European  visitors to travel between the two jurisdictions with the same documents.

A visitor with Irish visa can visit the UK and vice-versa. Frances Fitzgerald said that the  governments are set to jointly agree on the plan in the next 10 days.

The tourism industry is welcoming the decision that each jurisdiction will act as a visa  authority for the other. Foreign visitors will now no longer have to go through a  different visa process for Britain and for Republic of Ireland.

The non-European visitors including the growing numbers from China and India will  be able to easily travel between Britain and Ireland.

Both the countries are already a member of Common Travel Area and so the British nationals do not require a visa to Ireland and neither do Ireland's national require a visa to the UK. However, a photo ID has to be produced at the port of entry.

Source: Irish Times

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