Buying a US Home from Ireland: Mortgage, Visa and Tax Facts

Q: Will my Irish credit history be recognised?

It will not appear in a US credit score. The Central Credit Register, run by the Central Bank of Ireland, lets you request your own report free of charge, and it is a sensible document to have ready. Whether a US lender takes it into account is up to the lender, so raise it in the first conversation.

Q: Is there a special visa for Irish citizens, like the Australian E-3?

No. The State Department's treaty list has an E-3 line for Australia only. Irish citizens have access to the E-1 and E-2 treaty categories, the standard employer-sponsored visas and the Diversity Visa lottery. None of them is obtained by buying property.

Q: Do I pay Irish tax on rent from a US property?

If you are resident and domiciled in Ireland, Revenue taxes rental income from foreign property. Where a double taxation agreement exists, as it does with the United States, foreign tax on that income can be credited against the Irish tax. A foreign property tax cannot be credited or deducted.

Q: If I move out before selling my Irish home, do I lose Principal Private Residence relief?

Not necessarily. Revenue treats the last 12 months of ownership as a period of occupation even if you have moved out. If the home was not your main residence for the whole time you owned it, relief is given in proportion. Certain periods abroad because of employment duties can also count.

Ireland and the United States at a glance

Figures last checked: 3 October 2026

Visiting: In the Visa Waiver Program since 1995: viewing trips need an ESTA, not a visa.
Treaty visas: E-1 trader status since 1950 and E-2 investor status since 1992. There is no Irish E-3: that category is for Australians only.
Income tax treaty: Yes, in force.
Estate tax treaty: Yes (estate tax only).
Social security agreement: Yes, since 1 September 1993.
Currency: Euro, so the down payment carries exchange-rate risk against the dollar.
Already there: About 117,000 people born in Ireland live in the United States (Census Bureau, 2024).

Your route into the United States

Irish citizens can visit under the Visa Waiver Program. Living and working in the United States needs a separate status, and for a mortgage that status is the starting point, because a lender has to establish that you are lawfully resident before it can offer mainstream terms. The routes are a green card, including through the Diversity Visa lottery for which Ireland qualifies, an employer-sponsored visa, or the E-1 and E-2 treaty categories for traders and business investors.

One thing to clear up: there is no E-3 for Ireland. That visa exists for Australians only. And no visa follows from buying a home. The guide to visa status and US loans covers each route.

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Familiar words, different meanings

An Irish buyer recognises more of the US process than a continental one does: there is no civil-law notary, and contracts are private documents handled by professionals for each side. The Law Society's guidance is that a reasonable closing date in Ireland is around five weeks from the contract for sale, which is close to the US rhythm of 30 to 45 days from accepted offer.

The differences are in who does what. In most US states the closing is run by a title or escrow company, and you may never hire a solicitor of your own unless you choose to or the state's custom calls for it. A lender will also insist on title insurance, which has no real Irish counterpart. And your interest rate can be fixed for 30 years, usually with the freedom to refinance later.

What a US lender sees of your Irish finances

Your record on the Central Credit Register does not cross the Atlantic as a score. Request your free report anyway. It costs nothing and gives the lender a document where it would otherwise have a blank.

Income is the bigger hurdle. Fannie Mae's rules require two years of US federal tax returns before income paid by a foreign employer in foreign currency can be counted, and require funds held abroad to be exchanged into dollars and placed in a US-regulated institution before closing. A newcomer is therefore assessed mainly on a US job and on money already in a US account.

Your Irish home and Irish tax

If you sell at home to fund the purchase, Principal Private Residence relief is the rule to understand. The final 12 months of ownership count as occupation even after you have left, and relief is proportional if the house was not your main home throughout.

If you keep the Irish home, note that the temporary Mortgage Interest Tax Credit depends on the property being your principal private residence in the year of the claim. And if you remain Irish resident while owning in the US, Revenue taxes the US rent, with credit for US tax on that income under the treaty. Shareholders who leave should know about the temporary non-resident rule: selling certain substantial shareholdings while abroad and returning within five years can bring the gain back into Irish tax.

Estate tax

The United States asks for an estate tax return from people who are neither citizens nor residents once their US assets, a house included, exceed $60,000. Ireland is one of nine EU countries with a US estate tax treaty. It is worth asking a specialist how that treaty applies to you before you decide whose name goes on the deed.

Checklist for Irish buyers

Confirm your US status and when it begins.
Request your Central Credit Register report and gather payslips, tax documents and statements.
Work out PPR relief before you move out or let the Irish home.
Open a US account, move the down payment early and plan the euro to dollar conversion.
Ask the lender about title insurance and who conducts the closing in your state.
Tell your adviser about any US rental income and substantial shareholdings.
Take advice on the estate tax treaty before choosing how to hold the property.

Questions people moving from Europe ask

Will my Irish credit history be recognised?

Is there a special visa for Irish citizens, like the Australian E-3?

Do I pay Irish tax on rent from a US property?

If I move out before selling my Irish home, do I lose Principal Private Residence relief?

Continue your research

Sources (13)

Figures and rules on this page were checked against these sources on 3 October 2026. Rates, prices and local rules change, so confirm anything you rely on before you commit.

Made, reviewed and approved by Bas Terpstra, AFM- and PGN-certified
Basterpstra B.V., Drachten, the Netherlands (AFM 12050993)

Who made this guide. Bas Terpstra makes, reviews and approves every guide, using AI tools and public sources as a starting point. Rules and figures change, so treat this as general information and confirm the details for your own situation.

This page is general information, not personal financial, legal, tax or immigration advice. Nothing here is an offer, and no rate, loan amount, approval or visa outcome is promised. Mortgage availability is subject to immigration status, income, credit, appraisal and lender criteria, and lending, tax and local rules change. Consult a licensed US lender, an immigration attorney and a cross-border tax adviser. Any property securing a loan may be at risk if payments are not made.