Ukraine has a long-standing connection with Ireland through IT outsourcing, agriculture, construction and healthcare, and a steady number of Ukrainian developers, engineers and students were already settling around Dublin before recent events. Since 2022 many more have arrived under temporary protection, spreading across every county rather than only the cities, and finding work in hospitality, care, logistics, tech and education. Family reunion has followed. What surprises many Ukrainians is the Irish winter: almost no snow, mild temperatures, but short grey days and rain that makes it feel colder than it is.
| Quick facts | Ukraine to Ireland |
| Visa to enter | No for biometric passport holders |
| Permission to stay beyond 90 days | Temporary protection or a permit |
| Ukrainian licence exchangeable | Yes, under temporary protection rules |
| Double taxation agreement | Yes |
| Social security agreement | No |
| Pets | Unlisted country, rabies blood test |
Do you need a visa?
Ukrainian citizens with a biometric passport can enter Ireland without a visa. Most people who have arrived since 2022 are here under the EU Temporary Protection Directive, which Ireland applies in full: registration at the airport or at a Department of Justice centre gives you a Stamp 4 style permission with the right to work, study and access public services, currently extended by the EU to March 2027. You do not need an employment permit while under temporary protection.
If you are moving for a job rather than under protection, the ordinary routes apply: a Critical Skills Employment Permit for roles on the critical skills list (minimum salary 40,904 euro from 1 March 2026, or 68,911 euro for other eligible roles), a General Employment Permit (minimum 36,605 euro), a study permission (Stamp 2), or family routes. Register for an Irish Residence Permit (300 euro) within 90 days of arriving.
Finding work and getting your qualifications recognised
Many Ukrainians, especially in tech, arrive with good English, while others build it through free local classes and work. Employers assess English in conversation, but universities and professional registration bodies require formal test scores. Irish is on signs but not needed.
Because most routes need a job offer first, the search happens from home. Irish CVs run to two pages, carry no photo and no date of birth, and lead with what you did rather than your job title. Most hiring runs through LinkedIn, IrishJobs, Jobs.ie and the employers' own sites; agencies are strong in tech, finance, pharma and healthcare, and employers used to sponsoring permits say so in the advert. Get your degree assessed by NARIC Ireland (free, through QQI) before you apply; it maps a Ukrainian qualification onto the Irish framework and employers recognise the letter. Regulated professions register with their own body: nurses with NMBI, doctors with the Medical Council, teachers with the Teaching Council, engineers with Engineers Ireland, and physiotherapists, radiographers and social workers with CORU. Those bodies, not employers, are the ones that ask for an English test.
Your driving licence
Ukraine is not on the ordinary NDLS list of recognised states, but under the temporary protection arrangements Ukrainian licence holders can exchange a full Ukrainian licence for an Irish one without a test, with a certified translation. If you are here on an employment permit rather than temporary protection, check with the NDLS whether the exchange applies to you; otherwise you can drive for up to 12 months as a visitor and then go through the Irish process of theory test, learner permit, Essential Driver Training and driving test.
Tax, pensions and money
Ireland and Ukraine have a double taxation agreement, so income taxed in one country is generally credited in the other and the treaty decides which country taxes what. You become Irish tax resident after 183 days in a tax year (or 280 days over two years), and from then Ireland taxes your worldwide income, with credit for Ukrainian tax under the treaty. Register with Revenue through myAccount as soon as you have a PPS number so your employer taxes you correctly, and tell the Ukrainian tax authority that you are leaving.
There is no social security agreement between Ireland and Ukraine, so the two records stand alone. You need at least 520 paid PRSI contributions (ten years) to qualify for any Irish State Pension (Contributory), and the full rate takes 40 years of contributions. Check whether your Ukrainian state pension can be paid to you in Ireland, and whether you can keep contributing voluntarily from abroad.
Your credit history does not follow you. Irish lenders only see the Central Credit Register, so expect to build a record from scratch before a mortgage or car loan. Moving money from the hryvnia into euro is cheapest through a specialist transfer provider rather than a bank; open the Irish account first, because you need an Irish IBAN to receive salary.
Healthcare
Ireland has a public system run by the HSE, but it is not free at the point of use. Once you are ordinarily resident (living in Ireland or intending to for at least a year) you use public hospitals as a public patient, and inpatient charges were abolished in April 2023. A GP visit costs roughly 50 to 70 euro unless you qualify for a medical card or GP visit card on income grounds (children under 8 get GP visits free), and prescriptions are paid for up to a monthly cap under the Drugs Payment Scheme. Emergency departments charge 100 euro without a GP referral. Students, Stamp 0 holders and most visa applicants must show private medical insurance, so many people arrive with a policy already.
Around half the population holds private health insurance from VHI, Laya or Irish Life Health, mainly to shorten waiting lists. If you are 35 or older, buy it within 9 months of arriving to avoid a Lifetime Community Rating loading. Register with a GP as soon as you have an address; practices in Dublin often have closed lists, so ask several.
Bringing your things and your pet
Goods arriving from Ukraine are imports from outside the EU. You can bring your household belongings free of duty and VAT under Transfer of Residence relief if you have lived outside the EU for at least 12 months and owned the goods for at least 6 months; your removals company files the declaration and you cannot sell the goods for a year. A car qualifies for VRT relief on the same terms, but shipping a car from Ukraine rarely makes sense once freight, registration and Irish insurance are added up.
Ukraine is an unlisted country under the EU pet rules, which adds a blood test. Your dog, cat or ferret needs a microchip, then a rabies vaccination, then a rabies antibody titre test at least 30 days after the vaccination at an EU approved laboratory, and then a three month wait from the date of the blood sample before travel. Add an EU animal health certificate issued within 10 days of travel and, for dogs, a tapeworm treatment 24 to 120 hours before arrival. Pets must arrive as manifest cargo or with an approved airline on an approved route (Dublin Airport handles most). Start the process at least four months before you fly.
Settling in: community and daily life
The Ukrainian community in Ireland is now large and spread across the whole country, from Dublin and Cork to small towns in every county, with a long-established core in Dublin. Newcomers find each other through local Ukrainian support groups, Greek Catholic and Orthodox parishes, Telegram and Facebook groups, and Ukrainian schools and cultural events.
Public transport outside Dublin is thin, and distances that would be a quick marshrutka ride at home may need a car, driven on the left. Rent is high and hard to secure, groceries and eating out cost more, and you pay by card almost everywhere. Shops close early and social life moves indoors to the pub, especially in winter.
There are no regular direct flights between Dublin and Ukraine, so getting home usually means one stop, most often via London, Frankfurt, Vienna, Istanbul or Warsaw; budget for the time as well as the fare.
First 30 days checklist
- Apply for a PPS number through MyWelfare.ie with your passport and proof of Irish address.
- Register for temporary protection on arrival if that is your route, or book your IRP registration within 90 days if you are on a permit.
- Register with Revenue myAccount once you have a PPS number.
- Open an Irish bank account; a utility bill, tenancy agreement or employer letter usually counts as proof of address.
- Register with a GP and, if you want it, buy private health insurance within 9 months.
- Get a Leap card for public transport and book your licence exchange at the NDLS before the 12 months are up.
- If a pet is following later, get its rabies blood test done now so the three month clock is running.
