Irish people are moving to Australia, which has seen a massive surge in recent years due to high living costs and housing issues in Ireland, alongside traditional destinations like the UK for economic opportunities, and places like the UAE (Dubai/Abu Dhabi) and Canada for work, particularly in skilled trades, healthcare, and teaching, often motivated by better pay and lifestyle.
The dispersal of the Irish has been mainly to Britain or to countries colonised by Britain.
Irish citizens made up the majority of the population (83.7%), while the remaining 16.3% are non-Irish citizens. In the 12 months leading up to April 2025, 13,500 people left Ireland to go to Australia, an increase of 2,900 (27%) from 2024 and 8,800 (187%) from 2023.
The high cost-of-living in Ireland as a driver to leave Irish shores was repeatedly mentioned in our analysis of 48 blogs written by Irish people living all over the world. Housing and healthcare were highlighted, but also the costs of public transport, education and childcare.
Cities with the largest Irish-born populations were Sydney (12,730), Melbourne (8,950) and Perth (7,060).
Find Koroit in the Great Ocean Road region between Port Fairy and Warrnambool. This little township holds its own, confident and always true to itself and the rolling green pastures fringing it. Character-filled Koroit is one of Australia`s most complete examples of an early Irish settlement.
While England historically provided the largest immigrant group, India is now the top country of birth for recent migrants and is rapidly becoming the largest single overseas-born group in Australia, followed by China, New Zealand, and the Philippines, reflecting a significant shift in migration origins toward Asia and recent booms in migration numbers overall.
For most people, a household salary of €100,000 would put a family in the category of “rich”. And if you earned that last year, you were among the top 6.6pc of employees, Revenue figures show. The average gross pay for a PAYE worker nationwide was €42,100 in 2024, while the Dublin average was €49,500.
2. High Cost of Living. Ireland, particularly cities like Dublin, has a high cost of living. Housing is a significant expense, with rental prices for a one-bedroom apartment in Dublin averaging €1,500–€2,000 per month.
In the United States, the term "Black Irish" was initially used in the 19th century to derogatorily describe Irish refugees of the Great Famine. It later shifted into a term used to describe people of Irish descent who have black or dark-colored hair, blue or dark eyes, or otherwise dark coloring.
In general, tuition fees and the Ireland vs. Australia living cost are higher in Australia compared to Ireland. Consumer prices in Australia, including rent, are 1.8% lower than in Ireland. Rent prices in Australia are 18.8% lower than in Ireland.
At the 2021 census, the most commonly nominated Anglo-Celtic ancestries were: English Australian: 8,395,928. Irish Australian: 2,410,833. Scottish Australian: 2,176,777.
They were also found to have most similarity to two main ancestral sources: a 'Northwestern France' component which reached highest levels in the Irish and other Celtic populations (Welsh, Highland Scots and Cornish); and a 'West Norway' component related to the Viking era.
A 'good' salary in Ireland generally ranges from €50,000 to €70,000 per year. This would allow a single person or small family to live comfortably, especially outside of Dublin.
Ireland and Australia have a reciprocal health care agreement (RHCA) that entitles visitors from Ireland to Australia to receive medically necessary treatment as public inpatients or outpatients in Australian public hospitals, on the same terms as Australian residents (i.e. free of charge).
Since Brexit and as of 2025, Irish citizens are the only nationality in the world with the right to live and work in both the European Union and the United Kingdom.
Employer criteria
That an employer – employee relationship will exist in that the prospective employee concerned will be employed, salaried and paid directly by the employer. An employment permit will not issue unless at the time of application at least 50% of the employees in a firm are EEA nationals (50:50 rule).
Housing was seen as the most important issue facing the Republic of Ireland as of 2025, with 64 percent of respondents placing it as one of the top two issues facing the country.
With a medical card you can get public health services free of charge, including doctor visits and public hospital services. The medical card covers the cost of prescription medicines but you must pay a set charge when you get the medicines – this prescription charge is the same for each item.
That means that your net pay will be € 478 124 per year, or € 39 844 per month.
No, Australia is not 90% white; while a large majority identify with European ancestry (around 76-80% in recent years), a significant and growing portion identifies as Asian, African, Middle Eastern, or Indigenous, making it a highly multicultural nation with diverse ethnic backgrounds, not overwhelmingly white. Recent census data shows European ancestry (English, Irish, etc.) makes up a large chunk, but Asian ancestries are also substantial, with over 17% Asian population and around 3.8% identifying as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander, per the 2021 census data from Wikipedia.
The latter, in effect, is an adjustment to the former to incorporate the 12/16 rule, whereby an arrival counts as an overseas migrant arrival if the person stays in Australia for 12 of the following 16 months.
NSW had the highest level of net overseas migration with 186,433 people arriving, followed by Victoria (161,758) and Queensland (87,954). The Northern Territory had the lowest level with 3,189 people.