Ireland short stay medical treatment visa

You qualify when an appointment with a private hospital in Ireland is confirmed and you can pay the treatment in full. The visa does not cover care in public hospitals. Your doctor must expect you to be fit to leave Ireland before your permission ends, which can be no more than 90 days. Being in Ireland for medical attention is not accepted as a ground to extend a visitor permission.

The referring hospital in your country writes on headed paper with the hospital’s and doctor’s contact details, the treatment you need, why it cannot be done locally or elsewhere in your country, confirmation that your doctor has discussed the case with the Irish hospital, and whether the treatment exists in countries closer to home.

The private hospital in Ireland confirms the doctors who will treat you, that they agreed with your doctors that travel is necessary, the dates and length of treatment and aftercare, and an estimate of the total cost in euro. Your own letter adds a cost estimate for the whole visit, including accommodation and living expenses.

Bank statements for the last 6 months on headed bank paper must show you can meet the estimated costs. Travel and medical insurance must cover the full stay, including risks linked to the treatment.

Select reason for travel “Medical treatment” in AVATS and submit your file to the Irish embassy, consulate or visa office named on your AVATS summary, or the visa application centre it uses. In a medical emergency, ISD may expedite a file on request through its Customer Service Portal with evidence such as a hospital letter; otherwise files are handled in date order.

A visa only allows you to travel; the immigration officer decides on entry and stamps the date by which you must leave. Ireland does not stamp passports on exit, so keep boarding passes as proof. Travel or medical insurance does not have to be filed with every application, but you must show it on arrival if asked.

Visitor permission can be extended only after an unforeseen change of circumstances, such as being medically unfit to travel; a request beyond 90 days goes to Immigration Service Delivery and, if approved, a €300 registration fee applies.

From 1 June 2026 a refused short-stay visa can no longer be appealed; the only appeals still possible in the short-stay category are those of family members of EU, EEA or Swiss citizens under the Free Movement Directive. The refusal letter lists the reasons, and a new AVATS application with a new fee is the way forward.

Hiding an earlier refusal from any country leads to refusal, and false or misleading documents can result in a ban on applying for an Irish visa for up to 5 years.