American trying to marry Irish citizen and move to Ireland. Help?!

It's very hard for anyone to advise (as you've already discovered!) because there simply isn't enough information readily available on the DFA, INIS or GNIB websites that gives a clear definitive answer to your question. You're left relying on other people's accounts of their experience, or second/third hand accounts of people's friends experience (or what they think that experience was) & lastly what other people think your experience should be.

While all this is good to know, everyone's circumstances differ to various degrees & considering that Ireland has no 'one size fits all' or 'best practice' official publications I think it's best for you to try to get one tailored to your exact situation as best as you can. The little bit of official information that is available leaves a huge grey area especially as regards the maximum 90 day permission to remain & the legal requirement to give minimum 3 months notification to a Registrar in person of their intention to marry and by prior appointment only.

The way around this particular hurdle is to contact a Registrar of Marriages to obtain agreement to give your 3 month notification by post. The Registrar will send you the relevant form which you must complete and return. See here for contact details by area: http://www.hse.ie/eng/...s_and_Marriages.htmlYou would still need to make arrangements to meet the Registrar at least 5 days (or a lesser number of days with the agreement of the Registrar) before you get married in order to make the declaration of no impediment to the marriage and receive the Marriage Registration Form. See here for more details: http://www.hse.ie/eng/.../marriagesinireland/

That leaves the question of what you say your purpose of your 'visit' is at port of entry. You can't lie & say your intention is to vacation in Ireland as your real intention is to marry & remain. You can't claim that you suddenly decided to marry as further down the line it will come to light that you applied to the Registrar of Marriages to obtain agreement to give your 3 month notification by post. You can't be issued with a 'fiancée visa' as, unlike the USA immigration process, there is none.

So, without lying to authorities your only option is to tell the truth & hopefully be issued with a vistors visa, & get permission to remain for 90 days & be instructed to register with GNIB within that 90 days & continue to do so until your Stamp 4 has been issued. Your aim would be to get permission to enter & remain in Ireland without lying or omitting the true nature of your intentions. To avoid any problems at port of entry & merely hoping you won't have any, I'd suggest that as well as bringing all other documentation relating to your relationship & reasons for entering Ireland for presentation to the Immigration Officer to gain entry that you try to get as many official forms of advice/instructions that you can show to immigration officials at the airport that prove you have done everything in your power to do what you intend doing according to INIS/GNIB/DFA rules, regulations, advice & information.

In order to obtain this you should contact (by email or registered letter) your closest Irish Embassy https://www.dfa.ie/emb...d-states-of-america/ with a query. You should also contact GNIB: gnib_dv@garda.ie and INIS: visamail@justice.ie (cc that one to INISsinu@justice.ie). Get your boyfriend to do the same to DFA: feedback@dfa.ie , as well as GNIB & INIS addresses above. Print out the enquiry emails & replies & bring them with you.

The chances are that you'll receive generic type replies (the more the merrier) merely stating that you are required to produce all relevant documentation relating to your stay in Ireland to immigration officials upon entry, that the maximum leave to enter & remain is three months & if you intend staying longer you have to apply to a GNIB officer, but that's fine so as long as your question is very specific you will both have done everything in your power to show that you've done your utmost to do everything by the book & are just following official advice.

In your emails state that you want information on the following (don't ramble, unlike this post - make it very clear, precise & to the point):

- The official procedure that a US citizen should follow when they intend entering Ireland with the intention of marrying a currently resident Irish citizen & remaining in Ireland as their new Irish spouse with full permission to remain, reside & work in Ireland.

Even if the replies you receive are generic that's not your fault & you can produce evidence of your specific enquires along with the official replies that you both received.

If your boyfriend is not going over to 'collect' you & travel with you (both going through the non-EU channel) make sure he is there at the airport to meet you with his mobile phone switched on, as there's a strong possibility that the immigration officer would contact him. Remember to have medical travel insurance & a return flight ticket so as not to presume you'll be granted permission to enter or remain. It might be no harm to also have a letter of invitation from your boyfriend/boyfriend's parents/family members stating that they are prepared to support you financially before & after your marriage until such time that you are legally permitted to work/gain employment.

It might also be no harm to get engaged in the meantime during one of you're mutual visits in either Ireland or USA & have proof of that (photos of ring & engagement celebrations, congratulations cards etc). That would demonstrate a previous commitment to each other in the longer term.

That's about as much as you can do really imo. You may not experience any problems at all but it's best to be forearmed.