Fully qualified teachers who have qualified outside of the Republic of Ireland are eligible to apply for registration with the Teaching Council. All applications from teachers who qualified abroad are processed in line with EU Directive 2005/36/EC and are assessed in the same manner, regardless of whether they qualified within or outside the EU. All applications are individually assessed.
A person deemed to be a fully qualified teacher:
- has completed a recognised teacher education qualification and programme of induction in the country in which they qualified, and
- can provide an official letter from the relevant teacher registration body / Competent Authority or Ministry of Education confirming recognition as a fully qualified teacher in the State/ country.
In accordance with EU Directive 2005/36/EC, the qualifications of teachers who qualified outside of the ROI are assessed to ensure they are of a comparable standard to those achieved by graduates of accredited programmes in Ireland. Where significant differences arise, conditions (qualification shortfalls) will be applied to the teacher's registration.
There are three stages to the assessment process. These are (1) Application, (2) Assessment and (3) Registration:
1. Application
- Applications must be made online (see below).
- Before making your application, please study the Application Guidelines for your route of registration. The Guidelines explain the documentary evidence you must upload with your application. We recommend that you should have this documentation saved as electronic files before starting your application.
- Submit the online application form, uploading all required documentation and the registration fee to the Council.
- You’ll be able to save your application and return to it later. You will have three months from the date of commencement to complete your application. Any applications that remain unsubmitted after three months will be deleted and you’ll be required to start the process again from the start.
- You’ll receive an acknowledgement email when your application has been submitted.
- If any documentation is missing a staff member will contact you to resolve the issue.
- Applications from those who qualified outside of Ireland can take up to 12 weeks to process from the date of receipt of all required documentation. This timeline adheres to EU Directive 2005/36.
Route 1: Primary
Route 2: Post-primary
- Application Guidelines for Route 2: Post-primary
- To register under Route 2, post-primary applicants must meet the requirements for at least one post-primary curricular subject, in addition to holding the relevant teacher education qualification. Applicants must consult the Council's Post-primary Curricular Subject Requirements before determining which subject(s) to apply for. The requirements are available here.
- Applicants for curricular language subjects and Irish/Gaeilge must meet the requirement of Immersive Educational Experience (IEE). A Guidance Note on IEE is available here.
- Apply online using PPQA-01 option: My Registration.
2. Assessment
- An applicant's file may be referred for assessment to an external Advisor.
- The application, including the Advisor's recommendation is considered by the Qualifications Panel which is made up of Teaching Council members.
- Where significant differences are identified between the applicant's qualifications and the registration requirements in Ireland, conditions (qualification shortfalls) will be applied to the applicant's registration.
- If the Panel decides to register the applicant subject to one or more conditions, or to refuse to register the applicant, the applicant will be informed in writing of this decision and given the option of requesting a review of the decision by the Registration Review Group, within 21 days of receipt of the decision of the Panel.
- A teacher registered with conditions (qualification shortfalls) can complete these conditions either by aptitude test (module/ course of study) or by adaptation period (by teaching in the area of shortfall) as outlined in EU Directive 2005/36/EC, within a certain time frame. This timeframe is normally 3 years but may be extended upon application in certain circumstances.
- All applicants under Route 1: Primary will have the condition of Irish Language Requirement applied to their registration.
- All applicants under Route 2: Post-primary will have the condition of History & Structure of the Irish Education System applied to their registration.
3. Registration
Registration will be finalised providing that all other requirements have been met in relation to character reference, vetting and English language proficiency.
