student visa from Nepal
Two stages: a long-stay D visa that gets you into Ireland, then registration for the residence permit that actually lets you study and work. Missing the 90-day registration window is the avoidable mistake.
Nepali nationals are visa-required, so the route has two distinct halves and people frequently plan only for the first.
Stage one, before travel: a long-stay 'D' study visa, applied for online through AVATS
Stage two, after arrival: register with immigration for an Irish Residence Permit carrying a Stamp 2 — the legal basis to study and work part-time
Ongoing: the IRP must be renewed annually
You must register for your IRP within 90 days of arriving in Ireland. The D visa gets you in; the IRP is what lets you stay and study.
Get an unconditional offer on an ILEP course
Your programme must be on the Interim List of Eligible Programmes. A course that is not on it cannot support a student visa.
Pay tuition, get the NOC
Ireland generally wants tuition paid before the decision. Get the MoEST NOC before remitting.
Complete the AVATS application
Online through the Automated Visa Application and Tracking System, then print the summary.
Assemble and submit documents
With biometrics and visa-centre steps where required for Nepal.
Await the decision, then travel
On approval you travel — but your permission is not complete until you register in Ireland.
Register for your IRP
Within 90 days of arriving, paying the €300 registration fee, to receive your Stamp 2.
Passport
Valid for at least 12 months.
Offer / acceptance letter
Unconditional, for an ILEP-eligible course.
Proof tuition paid
Ireland wants this before the decision, not after.
Financial evidence
Around €10,000 in living funds, plus your tuition.
Private medical insurance
Required — not optional, and not covered by anything else.
Academic documents
Transcripts and certificates, translated where needed.
English results
As your programme requires.
Study and intent statement
Your rationale for the course and your plans.
Nepal NOC
The MoEST Foreign Study Approval Letter.
Financial evidence: around €10,000 in living funds, plus your tuition
As everywhere: funds should be genuinely yours, with a documented history — a recent unexplained lump sum invites questions
Ireland generally requires tuition to be PAID before your visa is decided — unlike New Zealand, where the decision comes first.
This is the opposite of New Zealand's Approval in Principle. Before you transfer a year's tuition, read the provider's refund policy for visa refusal — reputable institutions have one, and knowing its terms is the cheapest insurance available to you.
The MoEST Foreign Study Approval Letter: online at noc.moest.gov.np, NPR 2,000, issued in ~1–5 working days, valid 6 months
Because tuition is paid upfront here, the NOC sits earlier on your critical path than for destinations that let you pay later. Start it as soon as you hold an unconditional offer.