How to claim your Certificate of Irish Heritage - VIDEO

Posted on Saturday, February 25, 2012 at 08:30 AM

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Representative of the Certificate of Irish Heritage with President Michael D Higgins

The Irish Government has (finally) had a good idea! in deciding to award anybody who can claim Irish descent with a Certificate of Irish Heritage. And while it is a government endorsed document, signed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs himself, Deputy Eamonn Gilmore, just to be absolutely clear, it does not have any legal standing ie it is definitely not a passport. But that certainly isn’t deterring the 1000’s of people who have applied for their own personal Certificate of Irish Hertitage on behalf of themselves or a relative, since the scheme was first rolled out last September.

Who can apply? Literally, anybody who was not born in Ireland themselves but who has a relative that was and obviously some sort of proof of identity will be needed. ie a birth certificate or baptismal record, marriage certificate or even immigration entry records of the host country will suffice. And if you haven’t the foggiest notion where to obtain that kind of information there is free genealogy team available online at the link below to help you. And so far, they have been generally been able to come up with the necessary documentation within 24 hours.

Which is pretty impressive, considering Ireland has a diaspora of some 70 million souls worldwide, whose relatives emigrated in the wake of famine and hardship, in search of a better life in 'the lands of opportunity' like America and Australia. Many of them were mere children themselves like Lizzy Emmerson who was just 18 when she left Ireland in 1882 for New Zealand sadly never to see her family again, but whose great, great grand-daughter has managed to re-connect with her long lost relatives in Enniskillen via this new service.
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Or the millions of Irish that fled the western seaboard for the USA in the 1940’s the first sending out the fare to the second to join them. And mostly by all accounts, being hard workers they did very well for themselves, marrying (other Irish emigrant’s) raising and educating despite the horrid loneliness and endless anguish of having had to leave their families and native country. Perhaps that is why the ties are so great with Ireland and the yearning to revisit old homesteads, connect with surviving relatives relentless. At last the Irish Government has seen fit to recognize and reward their sacrifices and the right of their descendants to an official Irish identity.

The certificate itself is beautifully presented on vellum style paper, with an embossed a golden harp, the symbol of Ireland, with a choice of templates styled by the National Gallery of Ireland, available for personalization, which can then be dispatched worldwide, framed or unframed for €40 plus postage and packing, so why not claim yours and become Irish today.

Visit their website for more information.

By Susan Byron author of irelands-hidden-gems.com

Here's an instructional video from the Certificate of Irish Heritage:

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jamieLM | Feb 27, 2012, 09:59 AM EST

Trying to obtain a certificate encourages people to do the necessary genealogical research to complete their family tree. That's a good thing. Doing the research helps one to get the facts correct about their family history - the who, when, where, and why of it.

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IrelandNorth | Feb 27, 2012, 08:58 AM EST

A big issue in last Fall's Irish presidential election was wheter Irish immigrants should have the vote in Irish elections. Personally, I think they should. So Michael D[aniel]! Follow these Certificates of Irish Heritage up with citizenship. No money should be made on this. It should be not for profit only. All citizens of Irish descent everywhere should be subsidised to sabbatical in Ireland every year, whether to study, work, holiday or retire.

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BARNEYKX | Feb 26, 2012, 04:48 PM EST

So its a government idea, the governments fleecing the resident irish now they want to pull in more suckers from around the world, whose pockets is the 40 euros going into now i wonder

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GreyGoddess | Feb 26, 2012, 12:30 PM EST

I LOVE my certificate ~ but this 1934 syrupy, romanticized, propaganda piece needs to come with a disclaimer... balance demands that reasons for such dire poverty were the direct result of British overlords for 600 years! And I write this as a descendent of English ancestors as well.

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bdowney28016 | Feb 25, 2012, 07:32 PM EST

I have been working for quite a while to tie together all the names and dates that tell me what part of Ireland my family and my wife's family came from. When I complete my searches, I hope to be able to purchase the certificates for both families. My father was proud of his Irish heritage and so am I. My older brother told me once that he had traced our family's roots to Ireland but, since he passed away, none of his family seem to be able to find any of the information. But I'm hard-headed and won't quit till I find my proof. It will mean a lot to me.

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bunkerhill | Feb 25, 2012, 02:31 PM EST

My wife did try to get a certificate for my family but they came to the US in 1719 and were mixed Celts, some in Ireland and some in Scotland. However she is going to get a certificate for her own family although her parents came from there. It is something to be passed on.

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SeamusMor | Feb 25, 2012, 11:18 AM EST

Think of the impact on tourism if a visit to Ireland were a prerequisite, along with Irish ancestry to obtain the certificate. The certificate would have much more value if it cost more to obtain one.

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