Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) has completed its routine Smartraveller review for Ireland, reaffirming the country’s lowest advisory level—“Exercise normal safety precautions”— on 9 November 2025. The notice, which will remain in force until at least 10 November, cites petty crime and isolated protests as the primary risks and provides no COVID-19 related restrictions.
Although seemingly routine, the update matters for multinationals headquartered in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane that benchmark their duty-of-care thresholds against Smartraveller ratings. A single-step increase to “Exercise a high degree of caution” would automatically trigger mandatory security briefings and more stringent pre-trip approvals for many corporates.
![Australia maintains ‘Exercise Normal Precautions’ travel advisory for Ireland]()
The advisory also reminds travellers that Ireland grants visa-free entry to most Australians for stays up to 90 days, but flags the separate UK Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) now required for those entering Northern Ireland by land or air. Travel managers should ensure that staff making side trips across the border have secured the £10 ETA to avoid fines at British entry points.
With Christmas travel volumes building, Australian companies sending assignees to Irish offices should continue standard precautions: secure laptops, moderate alcohol consumption in city centres at night, and monitor local news for demonstrations related to housing and migration policy. Cyber-security teams are advised to remind staff that free public Wi-Fi networks in pubs and hotels remain a common attack vector.
Although seemingly routine, the update matters for multinationals headquartered in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane that benchmark their duty-of-care thresholds against Smartraveller ratings. A single-step increase to “Exercise a high degree of caution” would automatically trigger mandatory security briefings and more stringent pre-trip approvals for many corporates.
The advisory also reminds travellers that Ireland grants visa-free entry to most Australians for stays up to 90 days, but flags the separate UK Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) now required for those entering Northern Ireland by land or air. Travel managers should ensure that staff making side trips across the border have secured the £10 ETA to avoid fines at British entry points.
With Christmas travel volumes building, Australian companies sending assignees to Irish offices should continue standard precautions: secure laptops, moderate alcohol consumption in city centres at night, and monitor local news for demonstrations related to housing and migration policy. Cyber-security teams are advised to remind staff that free public Wi-Fi networks in pubs and hotels remain a common attack vector.
