Searches related to Irish passport applications leaped to dramatic heights following the aftermath of the EU referendum polls. The world's leading search engine revealed that the bulk of these searches were from Northern Ireland, BBC reported.
Other search terms entered included phrases such as the outcome of the UK leaving the EU, and it peaked around June 23rd midnight. Although critics said that the data doesn't accurately reveal the actual search volumes, the "Brexit won vote" resulted in a huge drop of the sterling pound's value hours after the polls closed.
In a related Market Watch post, Ireland's Prime Minister Enda Kenny has responded to the search results for Irish passport applications' online inquiries. She said that Ireland's open, strong, and competitive economy makes it another good place to raise families and look for jobs.
Irish passport holders are allowed the freedom to work in countries which belonged to the 28-member union. These people are also entitled to a "visa-on-arrival" or right to "visa-free" travel rights to more than 170 countries worldwide, based on research gathered by Henley & Partner's Visa Restrictions Index, a known global advisory firm.
This unexpected spike in Irish passport applications at the time the U.K. is still coping with the Brexit vote, made Ireland a perfect alternate route and dubbed the gateway to anywhere in Europe. Although there's been an increase regarding queries related to acquisition of Irish passports, it could still take up to 2 years after UK's Brexit move.
Good news for people who still wish to pursue relocating elsewhere in the EU via Irish passport applications: the U.K. considerably remains a member state without changes to EU citizens travelling and working between the U.K. and Ireland. "Every effort will be made to minimize any changes to these arrangements," according to a statement from the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs.
