Irish Embassy in London will be relocated after 75 years at current site
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Irish Embassy in London will be relocated after 75 years at current site

THE Irish Embassy in London will be relocated after 75 years at its current Grosvenor Place site.

It will move to a new Ireland House location in central London it was confirmed this week.

That site will also house the Irish Passport Office, currently located on Cromwell Road, as well as the government agencies Bord Bia, Enterprise Ireland and IDA Ireland.

London’s Ireland House is expected to open in early 2026, a Department of Foreign Affairs spokesperson confirmed to the Irish Post.

Tánaiste and Foreign Affairs Minister Micheál Martin’s plans for the move were approved “in principle” by the Irish Government on Tuesday, May 29.

They fall under the Global Ireland Strategy, which was launched in 2018 and aims to double Ireland's global influence by 2025.

Initial scoping for the Embassy's relocation began in 2019, with the move expected to be complete and Ireland House open in London by early 2026, the DFA has confirmed.

With London Ireland’s largest bilateral mission in any city in the world, the impending move is “significant”, the DFA admits.

“It’s a significant move…one which represents the future era of relations between us and our nearest neighbour,” the DFA confirmed.

“75 years in its current location is hugely historic,” they added, before admitting that the plans for the Embassy’s future are “very exciting”.

There are currently 22 Ireland House locations in cities across the globe, where Irish state agencies and embassies are co-located.

Described as a “convening and a welcoming space” the London location will be “symbolic”, the DFA adds, representing a “Team Ireland presence in London”.

“It will be a convening and welcoming space for businesses, representatives and friends of Ireland,” they added.