Dublin Expat – Moving to Dublin from the US

In May 2016, I moved from the US to Dublin, Ireland and I’ve been living here as a Dublin expat ever since.

Life as a Dublin Expat

I have family here, as my father was born and raised in Dublin. When I arrived, I lived with my Aunt and Uncle in Bray. Housing is the hardest thing for someone moving to Dublin for the first time. Rents continue to increase and there are fewer and fewer properties available. This creates high competition between the ones that are left. I’ll leave how I found my current place for another blog post – but be aware if you are moving here you may have to stay in a hotel while you look for a long-term place.

Passports/Visas

I am lucky that I have an Irish passport so I did not need to get a visa. I can live and work in Ireland with no problem. That made getting a job fairly easy. My first job was actually offered by someone I had met volunteering at a music festival. Since then I applied for the job I am at now online and was offering that one on a part time basis and then full time. I’ve been full-time for over a year now.

PPS Number

Once you can work here, you will need to get sorted with a PPS number, which is just a tax tracking number. In order to get one, you do need a job first. If an employer tells you that you need a PPS number first, they are incorrect. They probably don’t know because they never had to apply for one themselves since they have always lived in Ireland. You need a letter from your employer or your employment contract in order to get a PPS number. Once you have that and a proof of address, you should be good to go. If you don’t have proof of address, just ask whoever you are living with to add your name to one of the bills. Utility companies are usually willing to have two names on it.

Bank Account

I found setting up a bank account fairly straight forward once you have the correct documentation, which you will have by getting your PPS number.

Having an Irish passport definitely made things easier, but it is doable for everyone. I would say get your name on some proof of address first and then sort out our PPS number as soon as you get a job.

Next post about Ireland will be about finding an apartment – anything else you want to hear about from a Dublin expat?