Category: Ireland

PPS Appointments & the Wonderful World of Taxes

On By EmilyinEarnestIn Ireland, Visas, Working Holiday2 Comments

So, in keeping with the informative post theme that I’ve got going on lately, I’ve decided to write a bit about the PPS appointment, which is the third to last step (don’t give up yet, move towards the light!!). Assuming that you find yourself a job, you’ll need a PPS number, which stands for personal public service number, in order to do the fun stuff like get paid (which is always the end goal) and pay taxes (not so much the end goal).

Unlike the GNIB, which is a big shit-show of people vying for appointments and spots in the line, your PPS appointment will be something scheduled and organized. In order to get an appointment though, you have to make an account on MyWelfare, which is the Irish site which deals with public services. BUT in order to access MyWelfare you have to use your account information from MyGovID, which is confusing but is pretty much the same account details.

There’s a link in the left hand corner of the MyGovID page which says “register,” which’ll lead you to the sign up process where you can input all your information. From there, you’ll see an icon on your MyWelfare dashboard which says “Appointments,” which is where you’ll need to go to reserve your spot.

Untitled

I would recommend going on and making your appointment as soon as possible. I went in and did it right after the GNIB because usually there’s nothing open until the following month. You can always go in and cancel or change the date of your appointment, but getting in as early as possible means that you can sooner be paid and set up your bank account.

When the time comes for you to go to your meeting, you’ll need official proof of ID (which means get out that passport) and a document proving your employment/address in Ireland. Make sure your proof of employment document has your address on it, if you’re requesting it from your employer, make sure they have it on there. Most employers will know how to write a formal letter of employment, but there are tons of templates online that you could fill out and just send to them to fill in their details and sign.

*Also note the address of your appointment, there are two PPS offices in Dublin, one is The Intreo Centre 197-199 Parnell St in Dublin 1 and the other is D’Olier House on D’Olier St in Dublin 2. I went to the latter office, it’s between the Spar and the Ashfield Hostel.*

Once you get there you’ll check in and fill out a sheet with basic information like your name, birth date, address, etc. Then, they’ll call you up to a desk (for me it took less than 10 mins to have my name called) where they’ll ask you for a lot of the same information you filled out on the sheet. You’ll have to present your passport and proof of employment document so they can take scans. The woman who spoke with me also called my employer just to confirm I worked with them, so let your boss know when your appointment is just in case they call.

After all the documents are scanned and you’ve answered all the questions you’ll be free to go! They’ll send your PPS number along (it took me about 5 business days to get it) along with a PPS ID card, which comes a bit later.

Once you get your PPS number, however, you’ll be ready to send in your form 12A, which I’ll post about next, which is important because it is one of the few documents you can use as official proof of address in order to open your bank account.

All in all, by this point you’re probably wanting to pull your hair out, but that wouldn’t be good for all your future Facebook pictures from various scenic Irish locations. So take a deep breath, make some tea, buy and eat a whole roll of chocolate digestives and keep on going.

So here’s a majestic picture of the Cliffs of Moher to inspire you…

923024_10202414019255314_256531905_n

 

 

 

Job Hunters: Dublin Edition

On By EmilyinEarnestIn Dublin, Ireland, Working HolidayLeave a comment

Hello all!

Sorry for the radio silence lately. I’ve been up to my ears with work and apartment hunting (which is a nightmare in Dublin, rant/post to follow).

So, my last informative post that didn’t have to do with frolicking in Phoenix Park was about the GNIB, which is pretty much your first step in the long and arduous process of setting yourself in Ireland (but breath a sigh of relief because if you can survive the Immigration Office, you can do anything).

Next you’ll want to find yourself a job, unless you have a sizable trust fund which will allow you to live luxuriously in a studio flat surrounded by non-Ikea furniture (those people can promptly walk into the Liffey).

Depending on your degree/experience, the difficulty of getting a job will vary. If you’re looking for something specifically in your field, it may take longer/be harder to find something quickly, in which case you should definitely bring enough money for you to subsist on for at least two months if not more. If you’re a bit more flexible and willing to take whatever position comes to you, you’ll find that there are lots of opportunities.

I personally signed with a recruitment/temp agency. I contacted them and went in for an interview where they went over my CV (which you should have edited and in tip top shape before you move over) and asked me questions about my previous experience. Signing with a temp agency is a good move to start out, because they can give you jobs as short as a day, a week and also as long as six months. If you want to get office experience for future job applications it’s great for getting your foot in the door. It’s also a way to get immediate work, which could be helpful until you find something more permanent if that’s your goal.

Otherwise, if you’re looking for something specific or any jobs in Dublin I would definitely recommend using the site Indeed. With Indeed, you can set the location and search key words relating to the job you’re looking for. I found the best way to do it was to search for the field you want or your goal position, for example “customer service,” and then filter the results by date. That way you can see jobs that were recently posted. Also, if you make a profile and upload your CV, it’ll save your information and automatically input it in jobs you’re applying for (which saves a ton of time that could be better spent in the pub).

If you’re not having any luck with Indeed there are a few other sites that are useful including:

There are also tons of cafes, bars and restaurants that are hiring all around Dublin, especially if you have service experience or if it’s the high season/tourist season (summer). In this case, it might be best to hit the pavement and hand out CVs personally. It’s one thing to say you are personable with customer service skills, and it’s another to meet the manager yourself and leave an impression before they’ve even looked over your credentials.

Make sure to have multiple copies of your CV printed and at the ready, I’ve found the best places to print are the various public libraries around the city (my closest is the Rathmines Library). They’re cheaper than the internet cafes and you’re much less likely to meet a sketchy internet prowler, which is always a plus.

Good luck with your search for employment my friends!

Phoenix Park — Dublin

On By EmilyinEarnestIn Dublin, Ireland, TravelLeave a comment

Like any girl of my generation, I grew up thinking I was going to be a princess after watching Disney VHS tapes. My mind was filled with images of tame woodland creatures that would flock to me and be my friends. Unfortunately, reality set in as I aged when I realized that no, the coyotes do not want to hear me sing. No, the squirrels do not want to sit on my shoulder as I twirl in my full skirt. And no, the birds most certainly don’t want me to stroke them as I hum in perfect tune to no one in particular (except for the handsome prince conveniently lurking within hearing distance).

BUT, all of those dreams came rushing back when I visited Phoenix Park this past week. Phoenix Park is an absolutely massive and beautiful area on the north side of the Liffey. It includes huge expanses of greenery, gardens and some monuments/official buildings.

IMG_6786

Most importantly it has free roaming herds of Dublin Deer. When hearing this you might think, well I have deer at home…why would this matter. Well good friends, it matters because these deer are not like your average deer. For one thing, they’re gorgeous, much prettier than Bambi with many of them sporting white coats and massive antlers.

For anther, they’re tame. While you may see many signs telling you not to approach them, they are very used to humans roaming about the park. When my friend and I held up some of the freshly cut grass (there are football fields in the park which are maintained and mowed), a few of the deer came right up to us. They ate the grass and padded around us for awhile, obviously used to people bringing them food (we saw other people giving them carrots).

While there are warnings that they’re wild, they do seem quite friendly with humans. If you’re anywhere near the park or visiting Dublin for the day, stop by, it really is magical. The Dublin Zoo is also within the park grounds, so if you’re out for the day with your family, its a good place to explore. Though word to the wise, don’t chase the deer or scream at them (this sounds like common sense, I know, but we saw some pretty atrocious behavior by some over-enthusiastic park goers). They’ll be much more likely to come up to you if you hold out food to them from afar!

Cell Phones in Ireland

On By EmilyinEarnestIn Ireland, VisasLeave a comment

Hello friends…

So, I’m entering week number two of my Working Holiday Authorization in Dublin and I thought I’d go ahead and talk about cellphones. Not only because I’d be lost without the guiding light of Google Maps, but also because Pokémon Go just came out and I know you’ll all want to keep up with your teams (#BlueTeam4ever).

The first step is to check on the status of your phone if you have one. If you want to use your current cell phone, you’ll have to make sure it’s “unlocked” or, in other words, that it’s not still attached to your contract. If you’ve had it for more than 2 years, you should be able to contact your network provider and have it unlocked for you, which essentially takes your phone off of their network.

If you, like me, have a more recent phone that is still on the 2 year contract, there are a few options, all of which are not too fun or convenient. The first is you can pay off the remainder of your contract and the price of your phone. That means you’ll have to pay them what you would have had you continued using their service. If you’re close to the end of your contract this isn’t that bad, but if you recently got your phone, this could be too much.

In the more unfortunate case, you’ll have to either use a different phone (I used an older generation iPhone that I had lying around the house) OR you could buy a cheap smart phone when you get to Ireland and just use that.

**Bonus third option: if you buy said cheap phone and activate it, you can make that phone a “hotspot” and sync your newer phone to that so that it can still receive messages and such. That’s just if you insist on having your phone that’s still locked into contract.

Once you have the unlocked phone, all you need to do is get a sim card from an Irish phone company and top up.

One of the many reasons to love Ireland is their lack of long-term cell phone contracts. Once you get the sim card you can “top up” — or add money to your account — and be done with it. I’ve been using a brand called Three which I like quite a lot. For 20 Euros a month I get unlimited data, unlimited texts and free calls to any network on the weekends, which has worked well enough for me since I use FaceTime to call people most of the time.

There’s other options as well, however, which you might want to check out. Companies such as Meteor, O2, Postfone, Tesco and Vodafone all offer plans that may suit your particular situation better.

As long as you remember to top up on time, you’ll be free to Tweet and Tinder to your hearts desire!

GNIB Registration — AKA Hell on Earth

On By EmilyinEarnestIn Ireland, Visas5 Comments

Hello all! As I’ve just gotten onto the right sleep schedule, I’m ripe and ready to crank out the blog posts on all I’ve learned in the past few days. One topic being the dreaded GNIB or Garda National Immigration Bureau. When you receive your Working Holiday Authorization, it informs you that you have to register with the GNIB within 90 days of entrance by going to their office in Dublin, which is over by the Liffey. Once you do this, you’ll be given a GNIB card, which is necessary to have as a form of proof of ability to work. What they don’t tell you is that this process is by no means as easy as it sounds.

First of all, the GNIB is only open Mondays and Tuesdays from 8am-9pm. While this time period seems long, you have to get there VERY EARLY in order to be seen. Each day, they give out a certain amount of appointment numbers and if you arrive too late, you may not be able to get a slot.

While the office opens at 8am, it is extremely important you get there early to procure a spot in line. I would suggest arriving at 6am or earlier if you want to get in and out before they close. I know this sounds absurd, but people sleep overnight to get spots, and many arrive between 5am-6am.

I personally arrived at about 5:45am, and ended up with the appointment number 95, which was lucky as I saw others who got numbers in the 200s.

When the GNIB opens, they’ll slowly start letting people inside. You’ll queue up in order to get your appointment number, and once you have this, you sit and wait until the screen flashes your number. This can take a very long time. I was in the door at 8:10am and was in the second group of people they let in, and I wasn’t seen until around 12:30pm.

Once your number is called, you will walk up and speak to a representative. Make sure you have…

  • Your passport
  • Your Working Holiday Authorization
  • An Irish address and phone number for them to have on file
  • A credit card/debit card to pay the €300 fee

From there they’ll have you pay the fee and take your picture for your GNIB card (which looks just like any sort of identification card). They’ll hold on to your passport while you go back to the waiting room.

At this point in the process you’ll have to wait until they call your name over the loudspeaker. It is good to sit in the far corner of the room during this process (over by the entrance to the bathroom) because the speaker is the best there and it’s easier to hear your name called. It took about 2 hours for this to happen in my case, with them presenting me with the card (and returning my passport) at about 2:30pm.

All in all, I spent 9 hours at the GNIB in order to fully complete the process. You are allowed to leave while everything is processing, however if you miss your appointment that would be on your head. I was personally too nervous to leave during my time, but a very kind friend brought me coffee, which was a relief. Definitely bring a book, your iPod or a laptop to use, because the waiting is basically like the DMV on crack.

So, in conclusion, the GNIB is like the 9th circle of hell, but once you do it you’ll be home free (JUST DON’T LOOSE YOUR CARD!!). So when it comes to the Immigration office, may the odds be ever in your favor…

**Side note – Avoid the bathroom at all costs as it is terrifying. The whole thing is lit up blue with a strobing light overhead in order to apparently keep people from shooting up (?????!!!!). Excuse me while I continue to have stress nightmares about peeing there.

***Second side note – I went on the 4th of July and never have I enjoyed the concept of freedom better than when I walked out of the GNIB doors, I literally almost kissed the dirty pee-stained sidewalk (I didn’t though, for the sake of dental hygiene).

 

Dublin Week 1 – First Impressions

On By EmilyinEarnestIn Ireland, Travel, VisasLeave a comment

After planning and worrying endlessly about my gap year, I’ve finally arrived in Dublin and settled in. I’m living in an area called Portobello, which is a pretty hip and generally nice area of the city near the canal. So far I’ve frequented a few pubs and coffee shops and set myself up nicely (however, spoiler alert, normal filtered coffee is very rare around here, the closest you can usually get is an Americano).

The Stint housing is absolutely amazing. If you’re thinking of doing a gap year in Dublin or even an internship (as they coordinate those as well) I would highly recommend contacting them about their program. Not only is it centrally located, its decked out. When I arrived last Tuesday, completely disheveled from my long flight, I walked into the house and immediately felt at home. The kitchen and living room are nice and spacious, perfect for movie nights or casual hang outs in the evening. There’s a nice little back patio with furniture to sit about and a grill, which we used successfully for our Fourth of July party! My room has a terrace outside where I can sit out and relax, that is, when the weather isn’t being bipolar.

Stint arranged a cab to pick me up at the airport and bring me to the house, which was a relief, and the driver gave me a very handy update on the Brexit (which is all anyone is talking about around here). Then I was met by Melanie, the head of the Stint program, who gave me the tour and a little swag bag that had a water bottle, some much needed instant coffee, a map of the city and other little odds and ends. She was very kind to me despite my deliriously tired state, which I was thankful for because I looked like a garbage person I was so bedraggled .

IMG_6739.JPG

I’ve found the best place to shop for groceries around here seems to be Lidl, which is just down the street a ways from the flat in another younger/hipper area called Rathmines. There’s also Tesco Express, which is good but a tad bit more expensive.

One of the things that struck me, especially in the few days of adjusting, was how hard it is to find certain things in the shops around here. It took me about four days to find a place that had notebooks, pens and tape. There’s also a very limited selection of shampoo/bathroom essentials at the grocery store so it’s best to try to find yourself a pharmacy. No Walmarts to be found in Dublin!

Here’s a little guide that I made to where to buy different items around Portobello…

Groceries: Lidl, Tesco/ Tesco Express, Aldi

**Helpful tip – you have to bring your own shopping bag or they charge you for one

Shampoo/Conditioner, Bathroom Essentials: Boots, pharmacies (there are a bunch of privately owned pharmacies around that usually carry all your basic items)

Office Supplies: Eason

**Eason also has books

Clothes: Penney’s (very cheap, kind of like Forever 21, they also have homeware), TopShop, H&M

Makeup: Boots, Penney’s (cheap but a pretty large selection, with some toiletries as well), Lush (more expensive)

That’s my mini guide to shopping, but if there’s anything I forgot shoot me a comment. I’ll be posting about my experiences registering with the Garda Naturalization and Immigration Bureau (or GNIB) and getting my GNIB card, which will be a doozy of a post because it was a hellish experience. More to come!

 

 

Working Holiday Visa Requirements – Update

On By EmilyinEarnestIn Ireland, Travel, VisasLeave a comment

Hello all!

Less than two weeks until my arrival in Ireland and I’m just now letting the packing-themed panic set in.

To avoid thinking about outlet converters, sleep schedules and how many pairs of underwear I can fit into one suitcase, I’ve decided to do a post on the newly updated requirements for the Irish Working Holiday Authorization for USA natives.

So, a little while ago I posted about the various requirements for a United States college student/graduate to be able to work abroad in Ireland. While most of the requirements hold true to my previous write up, there have been a few changes made, which are reflected in their new website format.

To clarify these, I’ll list out all the requirements below…

  1. The first step is completing the application page provided by the Irish Consulate which can be found at this link. It’s pretty basic information and can be filled out fairly easily.
  2. A photocopy of the applicant’s US passport, which must be valid for the entirety of the stay in Ireland.
  3. Two identical passport photos with the applicants name on the back. These can be done at most CVS or Walgreens stores.
  4. A current resumé with at least TWO references (before it said “references” and now it stipulates the number).
  5. Evidence that the applicant is in secondary-education or has graduated in the past twelve months. I ordered a copy of my official transcript from my university as proof.
  6. An original bank statement proving that you have at least $4,000 (this is also different, before it was you needed proof of either $4,000 or a return plane ticket and proof of $2,000).
  7. A money order or cashier’s check (no personal checks) for the allotted amount based on which embassy you are sending your application to.

Finally, if your application is accepted which should take anywhere between 6-12 weeks, you have to send them further materials including…

  1. Return airline ticket (which doesn’t have to be back to your original country, just out of Ireland).
  2. Certificate of health insurance coverage for the duration of your stay in Ireland (check with your insurance company on their policy for travel abroad and see if they can email you an official proof of coverage document).
  3. The applicant’s Passport.

So there you have it! I didn’t want anyone to read my previous post and think they were sending the wrong documents. Make sure to send your info early, as mine took eight weeks to process! Any questions don’t hesitate to comment.

~Irish Consulate Website Link~

 

 

Working Holiday in Ireland – Next Steps

On By EmilyinEarnestIn Ireland, Travel, VisasLeave a comment

I have finally received my Irish Working Holiday Authorization! After many emails and calls to the consulate and more than one mini panic attack, I have in my hand the laminated piece of paper that will give me the ability to work for an entire year. 

I sent the application in March 18th and received my acceptance on May 25th. At this point I was required to send the consulate copies of my plane tickets (to and from Ireland) as well as proof of insurance for the duration of my time period there.

After emailing them the same day with copies of the documents requested, I was pleased to discover my WHA in my hands by May 27th! 

All in all it took a little over eight weeks to get approved. So, if you’re planning your year abroad, make sure to apply at least 2 months ahead of your departure date. It seems it was actually a blessing in disguise that I didn’t do the Au Pair position I initially hoped for, because both my passport and working authorization wouldn’ve still been processing within the Irish Consulate!

So, now that the WHA is all sorted, I’ve also secured my spot for Stint Ireland. A group that helps coordinate internships and gap years for college students and recent grads!

I officially booked my place with them, including a room in one of their awesome Stint Houses in a trendy little part of Dublin called Portobello!


So things are on the up and up and I can’t wait for my new departure date June 27th!

**Side note — in an earlier post, when I was first applying for my visa, I was wondering whether I needed to provide proof of a flight all the way to your home country (which is the United States in my case) or just out of Ireland. I finally got my answer, which is it just has to be out of Ireland not necessarily back to your country of origin.

Missed Flight

On By EmilyinEarnestIn Ireland, Travel4 Comments

Today I was supposed to be on a plane to Dublin.

I was supposed to pack my life into a suitcase and a carry on, wonder what it would be like to be an au pair, read/watch/sleep my way through a non-stop flight and meet my would-be new host family when I stepped fresh off the plane.

But instead I slept in with my dog, went on a run, ate copious amounts of Mexican food and drank margaritas with a friend.

I feel like I should be sad or feel weird about the whole thing but I don’t, mostly because I have a plan.

I recently got in contact with a program out of Dublin called Stint Ireland. Stint coordinates both internships and gap years for college students and recent grads. They help you apply for your visa, and then organize whatever you need once you get to Ireland (cell phones, jobs/internships, housing — you name it).

They had an opening in one of their houses for June 28th and after looking through their website and obsessively stalking their social media, I decided to jump at the chance. The best part is that you live with other people your age in the house, which means you have an automatic group of people to travel and hang out with (not to mention the Stint staff does trips around Ireland, excursions to other countries and outings in the city itself).

Plans for Ireland are back on and I can’t wait to start my new adventure!

Up the Creek Without a Paddle

On By EmilyinEarnestIn au pair, Ireland, Travel3 Comments

So…

This past Saturday I graduated from college with a Bachelor of Science. After four years of desperate studying, hours in the library and countless stress-dreams about sleeping through exams, I finally received a diploma (well, I actually received an empty diploma holder, but they’re supposed to send me the real thing in the mail).

The night after my graduation, in the midst of my last night of celebrations with my friends all together in our dorm, I received an email.

My au pair family had cancelled on me less than two weeks before my flight to Dublin was meant to arrive.

I was devastated. God bless my friends for not panicking while I sobbed uncontrollably into their shoulders (good thing I had already drank half a bottle of wine when I received the news, or maybe not so good of a thing).

The family had a crisis, with one member being hospitalized, and they could no longer definitively offer me employment or a place to stay. Shocking and devastating as this was, my moderately buzzed self went straight from tears to action. I re-made my au pair account on aupairworld.com and instantly sent out messages to some families that interested me.

Today I skyped with a family in Cork, Ireland and hopefully that will turn out positively, but until I have more solid plans, I’ve cancelled my flight for the 19th of May.

This has been a setback but I will get to Ireland, even if it’s not in the way I initially thought.