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IrelandActiveStartup Visas
IrelandActiveStartup VisasStart-up Entrepreneur Programme (STEP)
€50,000 secured funding for a High Potential Start-Up capable of 10 jobs or €1M in sales within 3-4 years.
Ireland's Immigrant Investor Programme closed to new applicants on 15 February 2023. STEP is the founder-specific route that is open.
Not sure this route fits your business?
Book a Consulting Session- Official program name
- Start-up Entrepreneur Programme (STEP)
- Program category
- Starting an innovative company
- Current status
- Active and accepting applications
- Best suited for
- Non-EEA founders with an innovative High Potential Start-Up (HPSU)
- Overview
- STEP grants residence permission to non-EEA founders of an innovative business capable of creating 10 jobs and generating €1 million in sales within 3-4 years (a "High Potential Start-Up"). Initial permission runs for 2 years and is renewable. The founder must maintain principal residence in Ireland.
- Minimum investment
- €50,000 secured funding
- Active involvement required
- Yes
- Residence status granted
- Residence permission, initially 2 years, renewable
- Family inclusion
- Yes — immediate family reunification with right to work, study, or run a business
- Spouse work rights
- Yes
- Permanent residence pathway
- Conditional — via long-term residency; requires principal residence in Ireland
- Official source
- irishimmigration.ie
Want more background?
Our guide explains how this route works in practice and what to prepare first.
Read the Ireland guide →Directional guidance only, not immigration advice. Confirm current HPSU assessment criteria with Ireland's immigration service. Last verified September 15, 2026.