Irelands immigration control?

D-A-V-E

hi guys, i love watching the programme uk border force and it got me thinking..how lenient are they at the airports/ports/borders in terms of letting immigrants in? i know a lot on uk but have no clue about ireland!

are they strict or what type of things do they do to restrict numbers etc?

Rented Mule

I walked up to the counter and handed them my passport.

This should be your first indication of how thy handle immigration.

Overheal

At worst theyve pulled me aside for not having correct documents (student visa) and told me to at some point make my way to a garda station to get the correct papers, and then ive been sent on my way with a tourist's visa.

Very relaxed method of border control.

brummytom

I was amazed at the border control last time I flew to Dublin (about February, I think)... everyone just walked through. Not just people flying from EU countrys, but everyone else!

And the Immigration Officer was Eastern-european.. which I found strange

Gummy Panda

In before Degsy/Nodin debate..

Latchy

Last time I arrived in Dublin , Gardai at quick glance of passport just waved me and many others through

orourkeda

It may appear lax. Maybe we should give them the benefit of any doubt and assume that they are doing their job.

Rented Mule

orourkeda wrote: »

It may appear lax. Maybe we should give them the benefit of any doubt and assume that they are doing their job.

FF man ? :P

Mena

Never found official borders of entry lax, not in 10 years. Passports always been thoroughly checked along with ID cards etc.

Captain Darling

I love the way they hold up the passports and pretend to look at them, some of them have no more interest in looking at them then the man on the moon.

I flew from Amsterdam to Milan last week and nobody checked our passports in Milan at all. Bit of a strange one.

Morlar

There have been a few times coming off flights from various places in europe and walked straght out the door along with a majority of non Irish born people. Absolutely no checks whatsoever. When they do check it's a cursory glance at a passport.

Monkey61

Came over on the bus from England last Christmas eve and as usual the guys get on the bus at Dublin Port to check passports. Heated discussion breaks out with one non-EU guy who doesn't have any identification at all (how he got passed the checks at Holyhead is beyond me). After about 5 minutes - "Ah sure just this once, as it's Christmas we'll let you in."

Well done Ireland. Way to be taken seriously.

Also if you were on the run from the law or something equally exciting and for whatever other equally exciting reason wanted to escape to England, it would be pretty easy. (or if you just lost your passport) Half the time they don't really look at your passport getting onto the plane and Gatwick don't check passports of people flying from Dublin.

D-A-V-E

most of the stories here are for travelling, anyone know what its like for people wanting to live in ireland from eu and africa and asia etc?

AckwelFoley

Latchy wrote: »

Last time I arrived in Dublin , Gardai at quick glance of passport just waved me and many others through

you too?

Dam. i thought it was because they recognised me as snyper from boards

ego deflated

Bottle_of_Smoke

Northern Ireland is a big problem I think. To appease unionists restrictions are lax travelling from GB, to appease nationalists restrictions are lax along the border.

Somehow methinks we got the short end of the stick.

Latchy

snyper wrote: »

you too?

Dam. i thought it was because they recognised me as snyper from boards

ego deflated

Unless they are looking for specific persons ,as far as the gaurds are concerned , we are all just sheep passing through the gate

delta720

Captain Darling wrote: »

I flew from Amsterdam to Milan last week and nobody checked our passports in Milan at all. Bit of a strange one.

This is due to the Schengen Agreement, so no passport or form of id is required. Ireland only applies some of the laws within that treaty. This is because the uk did not accept it so if we did we'd have to produce a passport every time we crossed the Northern Ireland border.

Also considering there is free movement within the EU gaurds checking passports is only a formality for european flights, hence the quick glance. However if things dont look right it can become alot more very fast, a friend of mine who is very tanned got pulled because he didnt look like himself in the picture, though once they heard his accent it was all good!

Mena

D-A-V-E wrote: »

most of the stories here are for travelling, anyone know what its like for people wanting to live in ireland from eu and africa and asia etc?

Yes, a pain in the ass and a bureaucratic nightmare of colossal proportions at first. Mere irritating formalities thereafter.

AckwelFoley

delta720 wrote: »

This is due to the Schengen Agreement, so no passport or form of id is required. Ireland only applies some of the laws within that treaty. This is because the uk did not accept it so if we did we'd have to produce a passport every time we crossed the Northern Ireland border.

Also considering there is free movement within the EU gaurds checking passports is only a formality for european flights, hence the quick glance. However if things dont look right it can become alot more very fast, a friend of mine who is very tanned got pulled because he didnt look like himself in the picture, though once they heard his accent it was all good!

meah, they do the same on US flights. Most of my flights are from the US, they only glance.

I remember they went on strike.. what was they're strike?? CHECKING PASSPORTS! (Slowed down traffic)

Only in Ireland, can you strike by doing your job

Mimikyu

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mikemac

I've been on Bus Eireann/Ulster Bus buses that were stopped by gardai by the border close to Newry. It's happened a few times
Everyone asked for ID. Some didn't have ID but that was ok, they just asked your name and home address. I suppose if they were satisfied you were Irish/British they asked no more questions

Of course a Filipino couple were working in Northern Ireland and explained they were going to fly from Dublin somewhere, possibly home.
They were taken off the bus, I assume to Dundalk garda station.

So my only impression was they were strict.
Though this was 2004 so a while ago.

Latchy

Captain Morgan wrote: »

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Same as myself .I think Snyper is sorry he wasn't recognised stopped on entering Dublin

donmeister

TBH

Mimikyu

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Latchy

Captain Morgan wrote: »

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Yeah , it's a relief just to get through any passport control :pac:

dyl10

I went to the states last year.
Strolled through immigration in both countries without answering a question, while in both countries I saw older couples and black people taking a grilling.

I think your appearance is the first thing to set off alarm bells.

segaBOY

dyl10 wrote: »

I went to the states last year.
Strolled through immigration in both countries without answering a question, while in both countries I saw older couples and black people taking a grilling.

I think your appearance is the first thing to set off alarm bells.

A friend of mine is from Galway. He's a bit more tanned than other Irish people as a lot of natives from Galway/Connemara are (one reason could be that they may be related to the crew on the Spanish Armada and all that), he always gets his passport scrutinised by border officials while everyone else is waved through.

Cookie_Monster

flying to UK last week they only asked for boarding card on the way in through Stansted. pretty lax altogether

Jumpy

Once they see my blue passport at shannon they usually call me over, but otherwise its just walk on through.

Neamhshuntasach

dyl10 wrote: »

I went to the states last year.
Strolled through immigration in both countries without answering a question, while in both countries I saw older couples and black people taking a grilling.

I think your appearance is the first thing to set off alarm bells.

I'm sure in the US they still finger printed and photographed you and asked your purpose of visit and how long etc. That's standard practice for US border control.

rossie1977

its not that lax, don't forget the texas students that got sent back http://ca-es.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=104195791972