Record number of Brits apply for Irish passports amid post-Brexit malaise

A record number of UK citizens applied for Irish passports in 2024, as Britons seek “backdoor” access to the European Union.

Britain is in an economic malaise, and post-Brexit restrictions have made travel and work within the EU difficult for British passport holders. Many Britons are also keen on buying holiday or retirement homes on the continent, but European countries are increasingly restricting that option, with Spain introducing a 100% tax on non-EU property buyers and Portugal scrapping easy routes to citizenship for wealthy foreigners, the Financial Times reported.

Middle-class Britons are also migrating to the United Arab Emirates in large numbers, Arabian Business said.