Moving Back to Ireland from Australia (2026): Everything to Sort, From Your Super to Your Licence Swap

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Moving back to Ireland after years in Australia is a bigger job than moving out was. You arrived with a backpack. You’re going home with a car, a flat full of stuff, maybe a partner and kids, and a lot of paperwork on both sides of the world.

This guide puts it all in order: what to sort in Australia before you go, how to get your things and your car home without paying tax on them, and what to do in your first weeks back. It also covers Australian partners and kids moving to Ireland from Australia with you. Each section gives you the answer first, then links to our detailed guides. Everything was checked against Revenue, Citizens Information, the NDLS, Immigration Service Delivery and other official sources in October 2026.

Your moving home timeline

3 to 6 months before you fly

• Get shipping quotes. Your belongings can arrive up to 6 months before you move and still get tax relief.
• Not married to your Australian partner? Start their preclearance now. They have to apply from outside Ireland.
• Apply for your kids’ Irish passports and contact schools.
• Start job hunting, and ask your car insurer for a no claims statement.

Your last month in Australia

• Give notice on your lease (check your state’s notice period), and get a written reference.
• Get a Letter of Entitlement (or consent form) from your state for your licence swap.
• Sell the car or book it onto a ship.
• Start your super claim, and ask your GP for your medical records.
• Email form C&E 1076 to Revenue two weeks before your shipment lands.

Your first month back

• Find your PPS number, register your job with Revenue, and exchange your licence.
• Shipped a car? Book the NCT within 7 days of it arriving, and register it within 30 days.
• Your partner registers their immigration permission. Apply for Child Benefit and register with a GP.

Before you leave Australia

The Australian side has its own list: closing accounts, cancelling your phone and utilities, lodging your final tax return and claiming your super. We’ve covered all of it in what to do when you are leaving Australia forever. These are the ones that catch people out.

• Keep one Australian bank account open. The ATO pays tax refunds into an Australian account, and suggests keeping yours open for your super. Once the money’s in, close it: that also helps show you’ve moved home for good.
• Claim your super. If you were on a temporary visa, you can claim it as a Departing Australia Superannuation Payment (DASP) once you’ve left and your visa has ended. Working holiday super is taxed at 65%, and other temporary visas at 35% (45% on any untaxed part). Permanent residents and citizens can’t claim a DASP. Read our guide to claiming your super.
• Do your final tax return. If you’re leaving permanently before 30 June and won’t earn more Australian income (apart from interest, dividends or royalties), you may be able to lodge early on paper. People with a HELP or other study debt can’t. Otherwise, lodge with myTax from Ireland after 1 July. Our tax refund guide explains it, or a registered tax agent can do it for you (check them on the TPB register).
• Permanent resident? If your visa’s travel facility runs out while you’re in Ireland, you’d need a Resident Return visa to come back as a permanent resident.
• Save a proper buffer. Rent deposits, a car, insurance and the gap before your first Irish payslip add up fast.
• Line up somewhere to stay, even if it’s family for the first few weeks.
• Start job hunting from Australia on LinkedIn, Indeed and JobsIreland.ie. If you work in a regulated job like nursing or teaching, check how your qualifications are recognised.
• Book your flight home early, especially for December. Our flights from Australia to Ireland guide shows typical fares from each city and the cheapest months.

Shipping your things home without duty or VAT

You can bring your used household goods and personal belongings into Ireland without paying customs duty or VAT under Transfer of Residence relief, as long as:

• you’ve lived outside the EU for at least 12 months in a row,
• you’ve owned and used the items for at least 6 months, and
• they arrive between 6 months before and 12 months after your move.

To claim it, email Revenue form C&E 1076 and your supporting documents to the port or airport your shipment is arriving at, at least 2 weeks before it lands. An Post stopped handling these claims in January 2024. Don’t sell, lend or hire out the items within 12 months, or the duty and VAT become payable. Trade tools and commercial vehicles aren’t covered. Full details are on Revenue’s Transfer of Residence page.

How to ship it (Australian dollars, checked October 2026):

Option	Price and time
Australia Post Economy Sea	$275 for a 20 kg parcel. Two to three months.
Send My Bag	$231 for up to 15 kg, $364 for up to 30 kg, per bag or box, plus a fuel surcharge and a €20 Irish clearance fee. Two to three working days. Irish Around Oz readers get 5% off.
Seven Seas Worldwide MoveCube	Quote only. About 141 days by sea, and they handle the customs forms. Readers get 10% off the entire shipment.
20ft container	$11,000 to $12,700 from Sydney (a Sirelo estimate).

Our full guide to shipping from Australia to Ireland compares prices and timings. Moving a whole house? Our guide to shipping a container from Australia to Ireland covers costs, removalists and the paperwork.

Bringing your car home and driving in Ireland

Shipping your car without paying VRT

You can avoid Vehicle Registration Tax (VRT), and customs duty and VAT on the car, under Transfer of Residence relief if:

• you lived abroad (at least 185 days a year) and, for duty and VAT, outside the EU for 12 months in a row,
• you owned and used the car abroad for at least 6 months before you move,
• you bring it in within 12 months of moving, and
• if you went abroad for a set period, you didn’t get the same relief on a car in the last 5 years.

Coming from Australia, you claim it on the same C&E 1076 form, emailed to the customs office where the car arrives, 2 weeks before it lands. Then book an NCT appointment within 7 days and register the car within 30 days. Sell it within 12 months of registering it and the full VRT is due. See Revenue’s VRT relief page.

Before you ship it, get an insurance quote in Ireland. Insurance, not shipping, is often what makes it not worth it.

Swapping your Australian driving licence

Australia is one of the countries whose licences Ireland recognises, so you can exchange your Australian licence for an Irish one without sitting a test. It costs €65. Don’t put it off: the NDLS says you can’t drive on a non-EU licence once you’re resident here.

• Letter of Entitlement: ACT, NSW, NT, Queensland, SA and WA licences need one from the state, dated within 6 months of your application. Without one showing when you got each category, you’re treated as a novice driver for 2 years. Victoria and Tasmania use a consent form instead.
• Automatic only, unless your Australian licensing authority gives you proof you passed your practical test in a manual. Ask for it with your letter.
• Only the categories on your licence carry over, and an expired licence can only be swapped within a year of expiry.
• You’ll also need an eyesight report dated within 3 months, and you hand in your Australian licence. Apply online with a Public Services Card and verified MyGovID, or at an NDLS centre.

Check your state’s requirements on the NDLS exchange page while you’re still in Australia.

Car insurance for returning expats

Citizens Information says Irish insurers take your overseas driving into account if you can prove it was claims free, and Australia is one of the countries they generally accept. Before you leave, ask your Australian insurer for:

• a no claims discount statement, and
• a letter or other official document with the dates and type of your cover and your no claims history.

An old Irish no claims bonus can’t be used if you’ve been away more than 2 years and that policy ended over 2 years ago, so for most people it’s the Australian letter that counts. If 3 insurers turn you down, Insurance Ireland’s Declined Cases Committee will get you a quote. See Citizens Information on motor insurance.

Moving your money

This is where most people lose money without noticing. Banks advertise “free” transfers and then give you a poor exchange rate. On a house deposit or a few years of savings, small differences add up: 1% of €50,000 is €500.

• CurrencyFair: check the rate and the exact amount you’ll receive before you send.
• Wise uses the mid-market exchange rate and shows its fees upfront.
• TorFX gives you a personal account manager and can fix a rate for a future transfer, which suits larger sums like a house sale.

Our money transfer guide compares the options in detail.

Your first weeks back in Ireland

PPS number

If you had a PPS number before you left, it’s still valid. Don’t apply for a new one. If you can’t find it, Intreo or Client Identity Services can look it up. Partners and children born abroad can only apply once they’re here. Adults can apply online with a basic MyGovID account, and if you’re staying with family, the bill payer can write on their utility bill to confirm your address. See Citizens Information on PPS numbers.

Tax and your first job

Give your employer your PPS number. If it’s your first job in Ireland, register it in Revenue myAccount using the Jobs and Pensions service. If your employer can’t get your tax details, you’ll pay emergency tax: 40% on all your pay from week five, or from the start if you have no PPS number.

In the year you arrive, you can usually claim split-year treatment, as long as you weren’t resident here the year before and will be the year after. Your Australian wages from before you moved are ignored for Irish tax, and you get your full tax credits. See Revenue’s split-year page.

Healthcare and health insurance

You can use public health services once you’re ordinarily resident: you’ve lived here a year, or you intend to stay at least a year. Medical cards are means tested. Children under 8 get a GP visit card without a means test. See Citizens Information on healthcare.

If you want private health insurance, buy it within 9 months of coming back. After that you can be charged a “late entry” loading of 2% for every year you’re over 34 without cover. If you were living abroad on 1 May 2015, or moved abroad on or after 1 November 2018, buying within those 9 months means your time abroad isn’t held against you. Expect waiting periods of up to 26 weeks (52 for maternity). The Health Insurance Authority explains the rules.

Social welfare

To get Child Benefit, Jobseeker’s Allowance and several other payments, you have to meet the Habitual Residence Condition. Irish citizens aren’t exempt, but there’s no minimum waiting period. If you’ve come home for good, you can be treated as habitually resident straight away if you show Ireland is now your main centre of interest and you’re resuming your old residence here. Evidence helps, like shipping your things home, ending your Australian lease and job, and closing your Australian bank accounts. Citizens Information explains what counts.

Renting

Be ready for the prices. The RTB Rent Index (published in September 2026) put the average rent for a new tenancy at €1,839 a month nationally in the first quarter of 2026, up 9.1% on a year earlier. The county averages were €2,335 in Dublin, €1,744 in Galway and €1,678 in Cork. Plenty of people stay with family for the first few months while they look, and it helps to bring a written reference from your Australian landlord or agent.

Buying a home

Lenders want bank statements and proof of income, and may check your credit history abroad, so bring your paperwork home. Under the Central Bank’s limits, first-time buyers can borrow up to 4 times their gross income and need a 10% deposit for a home they’ll live in.

The Help to Buy scheme refunds Irish income tax and DIRT you paid in the previous 4 tax years, towards a new home worth up to €500,000. From 7 October 2026 it’s up to €35,000. Tax paid in Australia doesn’t count, so it may not help much straight away, and you can’t use it if you’ve ever bought a home anywhere, including Australia. The same goes for the First Home Scheme. See Revenue’s Help to Buy page.

Moving with an Australian partner

If you’re an Australian moving to Ireland with an Irish partner, this part is for you. Australians don’t need a visa to visit Ireland for less than 90 days. To live here, a non-EU partner of an Irish citizen needs permission from Immigration Service Delivery (ISD), and how depends on whether you’re married.

Spouses and civil partners

Your Australian spouse or civil partner doesn’t need a visa or preclearance to travel with you. At passport control, they tell the officer they’re joining you for family reunification. Then they book a registration office appointment through ISD’s online portal and go with you, bringing your marriage or civil partnership certificate, both passports, proof of your joint address and proof of your finances. If it’s approved, they get Stamp 4, which lets them work without an employment permit. ISD says it’s getting very high volumes of spouse applications, so expect delays. See ISD’s spouse page.

De facto partners

• Your partner needs a preclearance letter before they travel. They apply from Australia and must stay outside Ireland while it’s processed. The fee is €60.
• You must have lived together for at least 2 years, with proof like leases, bills and joint accounts.
• They also need a police certificate, certified bank statements and private medical insurance from an insurer authorised in Ireland. You, as the sponsor, must meet ISD’s income test.
• Once here, they register and get Stamp 4 for an initial 12 months, and can work.

See ISD’s de facto page, or Citizens Information’s plain English guides for spouses and de facto partners.

Moving with kids

Citizenship and passports

If you or your child’s other parent is an Irish citizen born on the island of Ireland, your Australian-born child is automatically Irish. You just apply for their passport, which you can do on Passport Online from Australia. If the Irish parent was born outside Ireland, you first register the child on the Foreign Births Register, so start early. See the Department of Foreign Affairs.

School places

State-funded primary and secondary schools are free. Contact schools near where you’ll live as early as you can. If a school is full, it gives places by its admissions policy, which you can ask to see. Apply in writing, and the school has to reply within 21 days. If you can’t find a place, contact Tusla’s Educational Welfare Office. Citizens Information has guides for primary and secondary school.

Learning Irish

If your child was educated outside Ireland for 3 or more years in a row without the chance to learn Irish, they can get an exemption from studying it if they’re 12 or older when they enrol, or they finished primary school abroad. You apply to the principal with proof of their age and schooling. It isn’t available in a Gaelscoil, and it doesn’t carry over to college. See Citizens Information on the Irish exemption.

Child Benefit and college

Child Benefit is paid monthly for children under 16, or up to 18 in full-time education. You must be habitually resident, so for a child born abroad you send form CB1 with form HRC1.

Teenagers: free college fees need 3 of the 5 years before the course in the EEA, Switzerland or the UK. Years in Australia don’t count. See Citizens Information on returning with children.

Where to get free help

• Citizens Information: Returning to Ireland is the official one-stop guide, funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs. Its phone service takes calls from abroad on +353 21 229 8178.
• Crosscare Irish Diaspora Support Project helps with social welfare and habitual residence, housing, medical cards and permission for non-Irish partners.
• Safe Home Ireland helps older Irish emigrants return, including a housing service for Irish-born people aged 57 and over.

What people who’ve done it say

Some of the best advice comes from members of our returning group who’ve already made the move:

• Decide what matters most to you. Whichever way you go, you’ll give something up.
• The weather hasn’t changed. Buy a good rain jacket and move home in spring or summer if you can.
• Paperwork doesn’t sort itself out just because you’re Irish. Give yourself time.
• Be realistic about work. Most corporate jobs are in Dublin, and pay is lower than in Sydney.
• Don’t compare apples with oranges. A house in Dublin isn’t comparable with one in a small Queensland town, but outside Dublin, a family home can cost what a one-bed flat does in Sydney.
• People are lovely. Almost everyone says the welcome home is the best part.

Moving back to Ireland from Australia: FAQ

How do I move back to Ireland from Australia?

Start 3 to 6 months out with shipping quotes, your partner’s permission and your kids’ passports. Then sort your lease, car, super and tax, and ship your things tax free. Once you land, find your PPS number, register your job and swap your licence.

What do I need to do before leaving Australia?

Keep one bank account open, plan your super and final tax return, give notice on your lease, sell or ship your car, and get the letters you need for your Irish licence and car insurance.

Do I pay tax on my belongings when I move back to Ireland?

No, as long as you’ve lived outside the EU for 12 months, owned the items for 6 months, and you claim Transfer of Residence relief on form C&E 1076 before they arrive.

Can I bring my car back to Ireland?

Yes. If you owned and used it abroad for 6 months and bring it in within 12 months of moving, you can avoid VRT. Get an Irish insurance quote first, and don’t sell it within 12 months.

Can I swap my Australian driving licence in Ireland?

Yes. Australia is a recognised country, so you can exchange it through the NDLS without a test for €65. It will be automatic only unless you prove you passed your test in a manual.

Can my Australian partner move to Ireland with me?

Yes, with permission from Immigration Service Delivery. A spouse can travel with you and register after arriving. A de facto partner needs preclearance first. Both usually get Stamp 4, which lets them work.

Will I get a medical card when I move back?

Only if your income is low enough, as medical cards are means tested. Children under 8 get a GP visit card without a means test.

Do I need a new PPS number?

No. Your old PPS number is still valid. Only family members who never had one need to apply.

Will I pay extra for health insurance because I lived abroad?

Usually not, if you buy it within 9 months of coming back. The exact rule depends on when you left, so check the Health Insurance Authority’s page.

How much does it cost to move back to Ireland from Australia?

In late October 2026, the cheapest one-way fares to Dublin on Google Flights were about $740 to $760 from Sydney, Melbourne and Perth, and about $1,100 from Brisbane and Adelaide. December costs far more. Shipping runs from $275 for a 20 kg parcel by sea to $11,000 or more for a container. New tenancies averaged €1,839 a month nationally in early 2026, and €2,335 in Dublin.

This guide is general information, checked against official sources in October 2026. Rules change, so check the linked official pages for your own situation.

Last checked October 2026.

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