Official figures show 11,601 registrations were completed, up from 7,726 the previous year. Successful applicants become Irish citizens and can then apply for an Irish passport, allowing them to live and work across the European Union.

Credits: Unsplash; Author: Juho Luomala;

Foreign Birth Registration allows people born outside Ireland to claim citizenship if they have an Irish-born grandparent or a parent who was already an Irish citizen before their birth. The Department of Foreign Affairs says completed applications are currently taking about 12 months to process and are handled in strict date order.