Ireland Granted 14,247 Visas to Russian Citizens Since 2022 Invasion

Ireland has granted 14,247 visas to Russian citizens since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, with only 465 applications refused. This raises concerns from Dublin MEP Barry Andrews about potential entry of «hostile» intelligence agents.

Of the visas issued, 11,548 were short-term (90 days) and 2,700 were long-term, allowing work or study. Over 2,100 visas were also granted to Belarusian citizens in the same period. Andrews has written to Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan, urging a re-examination of visa numbers for Russian and Belarusian citizens.

Andrews also questioned the robustness of measures to assess potential hostile intelligence activities and asked if a lifetime visa ban for Russian soldiers who served in Ukraine since 2014 would be considered. This ban, proposed by Czech MEP Tomáš Zdechovský, is under discussion at the EU level. Additionally, Andrews inquired about the use of Irish visas for travel to the UK via the Common Travel Area and their impact on EU sanctions enforcement.