Brit moving to Ireland: What do I need to set up?!

WelshExile

Hi there

I've just moved to Ireland with my Irish partner. I'm British and we've been living in London together these past few years.

I've never lived in Ireland before so I'm a little unsure of what I need to do to get myself registered on the system. He has his PPS all set up from before.

I know I need a PPS number too and will try to sort that out this week; does anyone know of anything else / any other departments I need to get myself registered with?

Any help or advice is much appreciated!

ABajaninCork

You have to go to the local Welfare to get a PPS no. Without it, NOTHING can be done, so get that in hand first!

You need to bring ID (Passport/Driving Licence), proof of Irish address (rent book/lease/mortgage agreement), and proof that you intend to live here permanently. A copy of the flight or ferry ticket would be useful.

I went through the same process when I moved over, so am searching my memory. I think it took about 2 weeks to get my PPS.

Have a look here: http://www.welfare.ie/EN/Topics/PPSN/Pages/ppsnindex.aspx

Tells you exactly how to go about it.

HTH

WelshExile

Thanks very much for that - really helpful.

Solair

Tax etc: PPS Number needed. Just apply for one via the local Social Welfare office. You have to fill in form REG1 and bring your passport and probably proof of address in Ireland too e.g. your tenancy agreement or utility bill in your name.

More information : http://www.welfare.ie/EN/Topics/PPSN/Pages/HowToApply.aspx

If you are starting work here, make sure that your are not paying "Emergency Tax" rates. As, you will have paid too much and then have to get a refund at the end of the year.
Your employer should be able to sort this out for you. Otherwise, contact the Revenue Commissioners. In my experience, their local offices are actually quite friendly to deal with in comparison to Inland Revenue in the UK.

Car imports : You have to re-register your car after 3 months (I think). So, you might want to inquire about that with the Motor Tax Office of your local council. ( www.motortax.ie )

You will need to get a TV license ( www.tvlicense.ie )

Other taxes:

Household charge ( a crude, and controversial, token property tax)

www.householdcharge.ie (it's €100 / year at the moment)

Water charges - not introduced yet.

Healthcare :

The Irish health system is a hybrid of public and private. So, it is advisable to take out private insurance.

The Health Insurance Authority's website is a good place to start looking : http://www.hia.ie/ci/health-insurance-comparison

Other than that, there's nothing specific you need to do. You can shop around for a GP, much like any other service.


Education:

If you have kids, you would want to get in touch with local schools a.s.a.p. and find a place.

Utilities:

Communications:

Telephone / broadband- You can use a variety of landline providers ( www.callcosts.ie is a good comparison site.) - Most of these use a normal eircom (main phone company) line. Setup time depends on what is already installed in your house. If there's a phone socket, plug in a phone and if you get a dial tone, dial 199000 to get your phone number (the exchange will speak the number back to you).

Alternatively, if you are in an urban area, cable services are available from UPC. These include up to 100mbit/s broadband and telephone.

Or, in not so built up areas, you might want to consider some of the wireless ISPs like Digiweb Metro or in Cork Nova Networks etc .. these provide services comparable to DSL (faster in some cases) and also provide phone via a small antenna on your roof.

Much like the UK, it's worth shopping around and don't just default for the first provider you see.

Mobiles:

There are quite a few providers:
Vodafone
O2
Meteor
Three
Emobile
Tesco Mobile
48
Blueface Mobile

Again, there are umpteen prepay (some of which are quite cheap) and umpteen billpay plans available. So, just shop around!

Getting a bill pay phone will require an Irish bank account, proof of residence and possibly proof of employment status if they're feeling particularly odd about it e.g. can't get your credit rating check done.

Electricity & Gas:
There are a few providers, but the choice isn't as wide as in Britain.

Electricity:
Electric Ireland (formerly ESB)
Bord Gais Energy (the gas company)
Airtricity

Gas:
Electric Ireland
Bord Gais Energy
Airtricity
FloGas Natural gas.

Most do decent discounts if you bundle power and gas.

Television:
TV License 160/year gets you basic (very basic) digital TV with about 6 channels via SaorView (like UK Freeview HD)
Cable TV - UPC (or a small provider in some towns) gives a fairly good cable service comparable to Virgin Media in the UK.
Sky Ireland - Similar to UK Sky but, with Irish national TV channels too.
FreeSat UK - Works fine in Ireland, but you will need a antenna for Irish digital channels from Saorview.

Warning : Some UK TVs do not work with Irish digital terrestrial TV, but the worst case scenario is that you will need a cheap set top box, so don't worry about importing one! They all work fine with cable or Sky as it's just connected via SCART or HDMI cables to the TV.

Water:
At present this is provided without charge.

Bins:
These are privatised in Ireland. You need to shop around and pick a bin provider. There are numerous providers in most areas and you can basically google for information! Prices and services vary depending on the package you pick e.g. you might get glass collection, more recycling collections, different size bins etc. Some do pay by weight (where you're charged per KG) or just flat monthly rates.

Banking:

You need to setup bank accounts!
Again, shop around.
Just beware that AIB and Bank of Ireland issue Laser Debit cards at present. These aren't widely usable online.
Permanent TSB and Ulster Bank issue Visa Debit which works much more easily.

To open an account you'll need utility bills in your name, photo ID (passport) and PPS numbers. To avail of OD facilities etc, you may need your employment contract and proof of regular income.

As stated above : the absolute first thing you need is a PPS number. You can't open bank accounts or access state services without one!

trad

Why would you call yourself British if you are Welsh?

Stripey Cat

As far as I know, the only thing you really need to do is get a PPS number.

It's worth thinking about getting on the electoral register. Some credit agencies cross check it, and you can vote in general elections as a British elections. You can pick up the form at the post office.

Solair

England, Scotland & Wales = Britain. It's a geography thing!

mike65

trad wrote: »

Why would you call yourself British if you are Welsh?

Cos all his documents are British and not Welsh? Cos he is British and well as being Welsh?

Solair

Stripey Cat wrote: »

As far as I know, the only thing you really need to do is get a PPS number.

It's worth thinking about getting on the electoral register. Some credit agencies cross check it, and you can vote in general elections as a British elections. You can pick up the form at the post office.

As a UK Citizen living in Ireland you can vote in:
Local, European and Parliamentary Elections (General Elections)
You cannot vote in referenda or the presidential elections.

Solair

trad wrote: »

Why would you call yourself British if you are Welsh?

What has this got to do with the thread? The OP is British / Welsh the two terms are interchangeable and non-controversial. Can we stick on topic? Even if Wales left the UK, it would still be physically part of Britain geographically!

WelshExile

Solair - I can't tell you how helpful that all is, thank you SO much.

Trad - simplifies things when talking about tax and residency in case people think Wales has a different set up to the rest of Britain... and technically we Welsh are British too, it's not the sole reserve of the English

Stripey Cat

trad wrote: »

Why would you call yourself British if you are Welsh?

The original Celtic inhabitants of Britain were called the Prettanoi, (or Priteni, Pritani or Pretani), whose name the Romans used for these islands when they called them hai Brettaniai.

The people the Romans called Britanni or Brittanni were gradually driven north to Scotland or west into Wales. Some of them may have even tried to come here.

Stripey Cat

Solair wrote: »

You will need to get a TV license ( www.tvlicense.ie )

Yeah. Right.

Solair

Stripey Cat wrote: »

Yeah. Right.

Well, you can opt not to and get harassed by the post office and possibly prosecuted. It's up to you though!

Legally speaking, it is as required as it is in the UK.

And in return you get 2 comedy channels! Eh, hang on... sorry they're actually serious channels..

mike65

WelshExile do you have children or intend to in the near future? The "default" setting is Catholic run schools esp at junior level, if that's not your bag an alternative is available but to very degrees - www.educatetogether.ie are the go to guys for a non doctrinal eduction.

Stripey Cat

Public transport:

It's a bit weird. If you are in Dublin, this site can be useful http://hittheroad.ie

Dublin buses rarely use their side doors. They don't rule out using them, so be careful, but generally people get off by the front door, slowing down the service (you have to let everyone off before you can get on). I'm told this is because Irish people like to say thanks to the driver.

There are lots and lots of different types of tickets such as travel90, rambler etc etc. Nobody really understands them all. Generally you can pay cash as you board the bus, but the driver won't give you change. Instead he will print a bus ticket with what he owes you written on it, and you can get this amount if you queue up at the single office in O'Connell St where they deal with these things. Logically they should give you a free bus ride to O'Connell Street to cash them in, but they don't.

You can also buy a Leap card, which is a prepaid card to use the Bus Train and LUAS, but you still have to tell the driver where you're going, so he can deduct the correct amount. I'm not sure where you can buy Leap Cards. My local train station has a handwritten sign saying "NO LEAP CARDS". https://www.leapcard.ie

Solair

Most things are done in quite a similar way to the UK, however you'll come across the odd minor technical difference such as the phone plug being the same as the USA here, KM/H on the speed limits, using Euro instead of £.

However, to be perfectly honest, the similarities outweigh the differences by a huge amount. The vast majority of things in Ireland are done more or less similarly to the UK. The two countries sharing a border, a common language and a common history pre 1921 makes them rather alike.

The public administration system, legal system and other aspects of the Irish system are generally just the old UK system modernised and adapted to fit into the concept of a Republic i.e. remove the king/queen and replace with an elected president. Scrap the house of lords and replace with a quasi-democratic Senate. The lower house works on the Westminster model, but the electoral system is very unusual - Proportional Representation by means of a single transferable vote. (too long to explain - google it !)

The legal system is also remarkably close to England/Wales law in most respects too. Obviously the legislation since 1921 is different but the structures and procedures are broadly very similar (more so than Scots law!)

School system is a bit whacko - there are lots and lots of state-funded religious schools with a similar kind of setup to the Faith Academies that Blair introduced in the UK.
So, eh, your choice can be rather constrained by what's available in the area you move to. But, most aren't THAT indoctrinating if you're not particularly religious.

Also, like Welsh in Wales, Irish/Gaeilge is taught in school and is compulsory for anyone born here / starting school fresh here. (Not sure what the cut off point is but it's hard enough to avoid).

All in all, I think you'll find most things in Ireland extremely familiar as they're more or less the same as Wales!

If you're desperate, you can even get S4C !

mike65

Solair, you may have heard of Waterford....:mad: (I see you only know the Brown Thomas version of Ireland) :pac:

ABajaninCork

Solair wrote: »

Warning : Some UK TVs do not work with Irish digital terrestrial TV, but the worst case scenario is that you will need a cheap set top box, so don't worry about importing one! They all work fine with cable or Sky as it's just connected via SCART or HDMI cables to the TV.

Definitely, you need a Sky box or similar for your telly if you bring it over. I found out to my cost that my lovely new telly that I brought over wouldn't work as the platform here is MPEG4! :mad:. Easy enough to tune in for the UK channels we get from home. There's a very good thread on here giving the frequencies for tuning in extra FTA channels, which I'll try to find for you.

Be aware that if you import the car with UK plates, it'll attract rather a lot of attention from the Gards, so you need to re-register and pay the VRT within 90 days as already stated.

I'm English (or a Brit if you prefer! ). If you want, you can PM me if you need further help or info.

Solair

ABajaninCork wrote: »

Definitely, you need a Sky box or similar for your telly if you bring it over. I found out to my cost that my lovely new telly that I brought over wouldn't work as the platform here is MPEG4! :mad:.

Not always - if your TV's newer and supports Freeview HD (which also uses MPEG4) you should be fine.

Freeview Standard Def is just older technology that will be phased out ultimately.

ABajaninCork

Solair wrote: »

Not always - if your TV's newer and supports Freeview HD (which also uses MPEG4) you should be fine.

Freeview Standard Def is just older technology that will be phased out ultimately.

Not quite. My TV DOES support Freeview HD (full 1080hp), but doesn't work without the Sky box.

Solair

ABajaninCork wrote: »

Not quite. My TV DOES support Freeview HD (full 1080hp), but doesn't work without the Sky box.

Does the TV have country options in the installation menu ?

Try selecting one of the Nordic countries instead of the UK or Ireland.

Ireland's a member of NORDIG (Nordic Digital TV group) and those standards apply here.

You'd never know, it might work

On some older TV firmware, selecting Ireland actually disabled the digital tuner as there were no published specs for here until relatively recently.