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In short: Storage before, during or after a move to Ireland is available at both the UK and Irish ends, matched to one vetted partner, free.
Useful when move-in and move-out dates do not line up. Part-load and full-load delivery follows when you are ready.
Storage comes up on a lot of Ireland moves. The Irish property may not be ready. The UK sale may complete before the Irish purchase. Or you may rent temporarily in Ireland before moving into a permanent home. In each case, your goods need somewhere to go between the two addresses.
There are two main storage points. UK-end storage holds your goods in Great Britain while you wait for the Irish property. Irish-end storage holds goods in Ireland, at a warehouse or bonded store, until you are ready to move in.
The key thing to watch with UK-end storage is timing. Revenue requires your goods to arrive in Ireland within 12 months of you moving to Ireland. If you move to Ireland but leave your goods in UK storage beyond 12 months, the Transfer of Residence relief may be lost. The 23% Irish VAT could then apply. Plan the storage period against that 12-month window before you commit.
International Removals Companies connects your enquiry with one FIDI-certified partner mover. We are not a removal company. The service is free and there is no obligation to book.
Transfer of Residence relief removes import duty and the 23% Irish VAT on used personal goods when you move your home to Ireland. One of Revenue's conditions is that the goods must be imported within 12 months of the date you establish Irish residence.
The 12-month clock starts when you move to Ireland, not when you pack your goods in the UK. If you move to Ireland in January and your goods arrive in Ireland in November of the same year, you are within the window. If you are still in UK storage in February the following year, you are outside it and the relief may be lost.
Irish-end storage, such as a bonded warehouse after the goods arrive at Dublin Port, does not affect the relief. What matters is the date the goods formally enter Irish customs territory, which is when they arrive at the Irish port, not when they are delivered to your home. The bonded store simply holds them temporarily while the customs paperwork is completed.
If you are likely to need more than 12 months of UK storage, contact Revenue early and get specific guidance for your situation. Your mover advises on the timing, but the customs eligibility decision is yours to confirm with Revenue.
Revenue requires goods to arrive in Ireland within 12 months of you establishing Irish residence.
Plan UK storage duration carefully against this deadline. When in doubt, ship early and use Irish bonded storage rather than extending UK storage beyond the window.
Once the Irish property is ready, the stored goods need to be delivered. Urban Irish properties throw up specific access challenges worth planning ahead of the delivery day.
The Republic of Ireland uses the euro (EUR). If you are moving from the UK, you are moving from sterling into a euro economy. That affects deposits, any charges you pay at the Irish end, and your day-to-day spending after you arrive.
International Removals Companies works with currency exchange partners. We do not provide currency exchange ourselves, but if you need to convert sterling to euro for your move, we can connect you with a partner who can help. This is entirely separate from the removals service and carries no obligation.
Northern Ireland uses the pound, not the euro. If you are moving to Northern Ireland rather than the Republic, currency exchange is not relevant to your move.
The main ferry from the UK to Ireland is Holyhead to Dublin Port, run by Irish Ferries and Stena Line. The crossing takes about 3 hours 15 minutes. For customs, Transfer of Residence relief on Form C&E 1076 removes import duty and the 23% Irish VAT on used belongings if you qualify. The Common Travel Area covers people, not goods. Your belongings still go through the customs process even though you can travel freely between the UK and Ireland.
After arriving in Ireland, you will need a PPS number. PPS stands for Personal Public Service number. You use it for Revenue, banking, employment and most official matters. Apply at your local Intreo centre when you arrive.
Have the Eircode for your Irish address ready too. An Eircode is the Irish postcode. It is a seven-character code, unique to each address. Rural townland addresses have no street number. The Eircode is how the mover finds your door. Georgian flats in central Dublin have narrow stairs and no lifts. Medieval town-centre streets in Galway and Kilkenny can be too tight for a large van. Give access notes when you enquire.
We do not send your enquiry to a list of firms. We connect you with one suitable FIDI-certified partner mover for your specific route. They check your move and confirm the price. You are not committed to anything.
FIDI FAIM is the main quality standard for international removal companies. Partner movers are audited by Ernst and Young every three years. The audit covers more than 200 quality checks. For a move with customs paperwork, that standard matters.
Storage is common on Ireland moves for three reasons. First, the Irish property may not be ready on arrival — a completion date slips or renovations take longer than expected. Second, you may be selling your UK property before you leave, requiring a gap between vacating and moving to Ireland. Third, you may be renting temporarily in Ireland before moving into a permanent home.
Yes. Goods can be placed in UK storage and then shipped to Ireland when the property is ready. The key point is the Transfer of Residence relief timing: Revenue requires goods to be imported into Ireland within 12 months of you establishing Irish residence. If goods stay in UK storage beyond 12 months after you have already moved to Ireland, the relief may be lost. Plan the storage period carefully.
Using Irish-end storage — goods arriving in Ireland but going into a bonded warehouse or commercial storage before delivery to your home — does not affect the relief as long as the goods formally enter Ireland within the 12-month import window. The arrival at the Irish port is what counts for the customs position, not the delivery to your home. Confirm the exact customs treatment with your mover.
A bonded store is a Revenue-approved customs warehouse. Goods in a bonded store are technically in Irish customs territory but have not yet cleared customs. They can be held there while the Transfer of Residence application is processed. Once clearance is granted, the goods are released from bond and delivered to your Irish address. Bonded storage is used when customs paperwork is not ready at the time of arrival.
UK storage options include self-storage units (accessible but not suitable for removal vans in all cases), commercial warehouse storage with your removal company, and container storage in a sealed 20ft or 40ft container. Container storage is efficient for large moves and makes the Ireland delivery straightforward as the container can be sealed and shipped intact.
This depends on the storage type. Commercial warehouse storage with your removal company usually allows access by arrangement. Self-storage is accessible to you directly. A sealed container is only accessible on full delivery. A bonded store does not allow access until customs clearance is complete. Confirm access terms with your mover before committing to the storage option.
Storage adds cost through the storage charge itself (weekly or monthly fee) and the additional handling at both ends of the storage period. Container storage for the Ireland route is often the most cost-effective as it eliminates a separate unstuff-and-repack step. Get a combined quote covering collection, storage, the ferry and the Irish delivery so you can see the full cost in one figure.
Speak to your mover as soon as you know about a delay. Storage charges continue, but the mover can usually hold goods in UK storage or Irish bonded storage without the move unravelling. The critical point to watch is the 12-month Transfer of Residence import deadline. If a significant delay is expected, get Revenue guidance early rather than letting the window lapse by accident.
International Removals Companies is not a removal company. We are a free matching service operated by DATACONTEXT (UK) LTD (company 07425576). You send your move details including the storage requirement and we connect you with one FIDI-certified partner mover who offers combined move and storage services on the UK to Ireland route. Free, no obligation.
This guide is written and maintained by Darren Benjamin, founder of International Removals Companies (DATACONTEXT (UK) LTD, Companies House 07425576). Darren has worked in international removals and logistics for over 20 years and has been a director of a UK removals company since 2013.
Partner movers hold FIDI FAIM Certified, BAR Overseas, IAM, EUROMOVERS and FEDEMAC accreditations. Only FIDI FAIM is an audited certification, checked by Ernst and Young.
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Send your details, both addresses, the room or item list, your storage requirement and timeline, and the Irish delivery address with Eircode. One FIDI-certified partner mover quotes the combined storage and move cost.
Get a Free Storage and Move QuoteFree. One FIDI-certified partner mover. DATACONTEXT (UK) LTD, operating since 2010.
International Removals Companies connects removals to Ireland enquiries with one suitable vetted partner mover. Partner movers hold FIDI FAIM, BAR Overseas, IAM, EUROMOVERS and FEDEMAC accreditations where confirmed. Working Member of AGM Group since 2010.
Prices, transit times, insurance cover and customs paperwork must be confirmed by the partner mover before booking.