What does emigrating to Ireland cost?
Answer four questions and you have an honest range for your situation. Every item shows whether it's a checked rate or an estimate. The paperwork is free here. The money is almost entirely in the home, the long ferry and the most expensive electricity in the EU.
Looking for the whole route to Ireland, not just the costs? See the steps, the order and the paperwork →
A rough indication for your situation
A few short questions, and you get a range instead of an amount. That's deliberate: an exact figure would suggest a precision nobody has.
Count on a total of
€ 3.100 – € 9.900
Where does that difference come from?
- The first months€ 3.000 – € 9.000
Below you'll find per item where the upper and the lower limit come from.
- Aanvraag en papieren
- € 0 – € 85
- De verhuizing
- € 150 – € 800
- De eerste maanden
- € 3.000 – € 9.000
Every item, one by onePer item the amount, the source and whether it's a rate or an estimate
Aanvraag en papieren
- PPS number and paperwork€ 0 – € 25
- Certificates and any translations(estimate)€ 0 – € 60
De verhuizing
- The journey(estimate)€ 150 – € 800
The cost depends on what you bring. Those travelling light fly in an hour and a half. With a car or van full of belongings it becomes the long ferry. You drive to Dunkirk (± 290 km) and sail almost 24 hours to Rosslare. Or you drive to Cherbourg (± 700 km) for the crossings to Dublin. The land bridge, the route across Great Britain, is faster. But since Brexit it requires customs papers for household goods. Count on the crossing with a cabin and an overnight stay on the way.
De eerste maanden
- The first months(estimate)€ 3.000 – € 9.000
This item is high because of the rental market, the tightest in the EU. By law the deposit and the advance payment are each capped at one month. But a new tenancy costs on average € 1,755 a month nationally, and well over € 2,100 in Dublin. The search can take weeks to months. So count the expensive bridging period honestly: short-term lets or Airbnb. Add the utility connections in your own name and the dearest electricity in the EU.
And if you buy a house?
This calculation assumes renting: the first months include deposit and rent in advance.
If you buy, count on 2 to 5% of the purchase price on top of this amount. On a home of € 250,000 that's € 5.000 to € 12.500.
The real hurdle is not the tax but the market. Irish stamp duty, the transfer tax, is low: 1% up to € 1 million, 2% up to € 1.5 million and 6% above that. On top come the solicitor (± € 2,000-4,000), the survey and the registration. The solicitor is the lawyer who handles the purchase, the survey the structural inspection. Supply is thin, and bids above the asking price are usual in the cities. Without an Irish credit history a mortgage as a newcomer is a process of months. So rent first and buy later: here that is not a saying but the usual route.
An order of magnitude based on averages, not a quote. The real amounts depend on your occupation, your route, the season and dozens of choices you still have to make.
Rates checked on 29 August 2026.
Ready to get started with Ireland?
The whole journey in the right order, with your documents, your costs and all your cancellation letters. € 199 one-off, no subscription.
Also want to know whether your departure date is feasible, and where you start? Take the departure scan for Ireland →
One thing you can sort out today
Closing down the Netherlands is the same work for everyone, wherever you're going. With the letter pack you enter your details once, and every cancellation and notification letter is ready: health insurance, rent, employer, bank, pension fund. Each comes with the date by which it has to go out. € 49 one-off, and it's also included in every plan.
In Vertrekklaar you get the complete picture of your own costs, with your route, your documents and your deadlines.
From range to your own budget
The calculator above works with four questions, but the journey itself knows more. In Vertrekklaar the same model calculates with your real situation: who's coming, whether the car comes along, and whether it'll be Dublin or the west. It also watches the clocks: seven and thirty days for the car, the dog's tapeworm window, and the three months for which every proof of address stays valid. A one-off € 199, no subscription.
Leaving with AOW or a pension? Compare how countries tax your pension
Every step on one list, free
Not ready to start yet? Then you get the departure checklist for Ireland: every step in order, to print and tick off. With it, five mails in a week and a half about the pitfalls and the real costs. If the rules for Ireland change, you'll hear about it. After that we ask once where your plans stand, send one offer, and now and then one thing that fits your moment. No newsletter, and you can switch it off at any time.
Ready to begin?
64 journeys are fully ready: your step-by-step plan, your documents and your costs in one place, and the plan keeps an eye on your deadlines. You pay once, and then it's yours.