The COVID-19 pandemic in the Republic of Ireland is a part of the worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). In Ireland, it has resulted in 1,764,987 cases and 9,815 deaths, as of 22 November 2025.
89.4% of those who died were aged 65 or over and 76% had underlying illnesses with a median age of death at 82 years old. During 2020 and 2021, the country had one of the world's lowest excess death rates, which is an overall indicator of the pandemic's impact, at an estimated 12.5 deaths per 100,000 population.
The virus first reached the country in late February 2020 and cases were soon confirmed in all counties. The government first introduced public health and economic measures to mitigate its impact by shutting schools, childcare facilities and cultural institutions in March 2020. Large gatherings were cancelled, including St Patrick's Day festivities. On 27 March, the first stay-at-home order banned all non-essential travel and contact with others. People were made to keep apart in public, and those most at risk were told to cocoon. The Oireachtas passed an emergency act giving the state far-reaching powers to control the virus's spread, and the Gardaí given powers to enforce the lockdown.
The state's first lockdown in 2020 was the longest in Europe, especially for hospitality and retail. It caused a severe recession and an unprecedented rise in unemployment. Infections and deaths dropped to low levels by June and restrictions were gradually lifted, while schools remained closed for summer break. Pubs that served food were allowed to reopen in late June. However, "wet" pubs, or pubs that do not serve food, could not reopen until September. Ireland had the longest closure of pubs compared to other countries in Europe.
In October 2020, another statewide lockdown was imposed following a surge in cases, excluding schools. There was another surge in late December 2020, and on Christmas Eve, another statewide lockdown was imposed. This was soon tightened to include schools, and was one of the strictest in the world. (Archived Link added on 3 April 2025) (Alternate Link - Archived) The vaccination programme began on 29 December, and has been praised as one of the most successful rollouts in the world.
In February 2021, the government imposed testing and quarantine rules on incoming travellers for the first time. Infections fell sharply, and schools re-opened in March. The lockdown was gradually lifted from May, but unlike most of Europe, indoor hospitality remained shut. Infections rose again in July due to the Delta variant but there were fewer deaths. Indoor hospitality reopened under strict rules, while vaccinations sped up. Despite Ireland's high vaccination rate, there was another surge in late 2021 due to the Omicron variant, with record-breaking cases being reported. Proof of vaccination or non-infection became mandatory to enter most indoor venues, but the government imposed another curfew on indoor hospitality from 20 December. Cases fell sharply, and the majority of restrictions, including mandatory mask wearing and social distancing, were eased in January and February 2022.
As well as the major strain on Ireland's healthcare service, the pandemic measures severely damaged Ireland's economy, disrupted education and had far-reaching impacts on society, including politics, religion, crime, the arts and sports. In May 2023, it was announced by the Director-General of the World Health Organization that COVID-19 was no longer a public health emergency of international concern. In September 2023, in response to lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic, the Irish government approved the establishment of a new health agency focused on infectious diseases, pandemic preparedness, and other emerging public health threats, based on recommendations from the Public Health Reform Expert Advisory Group.
An independent evaluation of the State's response to the pandemic, chaired by Anne Scott, was established in 2024, and in 2026 held public hearings and expert discussions examining health, social and economic impacts and lessons for future public health emergencies, with early findings highlighting impacts on vulnerable groups and preparedness challenges.
Statistics
The surveillance of COVID-19 cases was integrated into existing national Computerised Infectious Disease Reporting (CIDR) system since COVID-19 was made a notifiable disease on 20 February 2020. CIDR is the information system used to manage the surveillance and control of infectious diseases in Ireland, both at regional and national level. Daily epidemiological reports on COVID-19 were prepared by the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) for the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET). Additional information was provided by the Health Service Executive (HSE) in its daily operations updates.
In February 2022 the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) launched their Epidemiology of COVID-19 in Ireland Data Hub. The Data Hub provided the latest data relating to cases, deaths and outbreaks in Ireland.
On 24 April 2020, a daily high of 220 deaths from COVID-19 were reported in Ireland, while on 8 January 2022, a high of 26,122 new cases were recorded.
By 13 November 2023, the Department of Health had confirmed 1,725,026 cases and 9,366 deaths; a rate of 342,416 cases per million (34.2% of the population), 1,866 deaths per million (0.19% of the population) and 2,606,161 tests per million population.
COVID-19 variant cases in Ireland (14 August 2024) (Archived Link added on 25 August 2025) (Alternate Link and Archived Version added on 26 August 2025)Virus variantNumber of casesVariants of concernOmicron64,483Delta28,990Alpha16,130Beta77Gamma33Variants of interestLambda4Mu4Other1,639Total111,252
+ County: Confirmed Cases: Confirmed Deaths: Dublin 515,595 3,007 Cork 174,974 919 Galway 92,642 351 Kildare 85,218 506 Limerick 73,687 432 Meath 71,214 312 Donegal 61,831 340 Tipperary 54,909 243 Louth 54,593 349 Wexford 46,943 311 Kerry 46,479 233 Wicklow 44,576 262 Waterford 42,989 243 Mayo 41,814 423 Clare 40,336 229 Westmeath 34,941 174 Kilkenny 33,147 178 Laois 30,431 157 Offaly 28,133 155 Cavan 27,183 191 Carlow 24,338 129 Monaghan 23,453 150 Roscommon 23,064 146 Sligo 21,724 79 Longford 15,523 68 Leitrim 10,667 56 Total: 1,715,065 9,777
Timeline
First Wave The National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET), a group within the Department of Health, began monitoring the spread of the virus before it was confirmed to have reached Ireland. The Coronavirus Expert Advisory Group—a subgroup of NPHET chaired by Dr Cillian de Gascun, the UCD-based Director of the National Virus Reference Laboratory – met for the first time on 5 February in Dublin.
On 27 February, the first case on the island of Ireland was announced—a woman from Belfast who had travelled from Northern Italy through Dublin Airport. Two days later, on 29 February, the first confirmed case in the Republic of Ireland was announced involving a male student from the east of the country, who had arrived there from Northern Italy. Authorities shut a secondary school linked to the case as a precautionary measure.
On 11 March, an elderly patient in Naas General Hospital in County Kildare (south-west of the country's capital city, Dublin) became Ireland's first fatality from the virus.
On 12 March, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar announced the closure of all schools, colleges and childcare facilities until 29 March. The announcement came one day after the World Health Organization formally declared the outbreak a pandemic.
On 27 March, Taoiseach Varadkar announced a national stay-at-home order with a series of measures which he summed up as: "Stay at Home". The measures, which coincided with an escalating death toll, were also a response to increased reliance on intensive care units (ICUs) to treat critically ill patients, and an attempt to lower this number before capacity was reached.
On 16 April, the National Public Health Emergency Team reported that lockdown and other measures had driven the growth rate of the pandemic "as low as it needs to be" and was "close to zero".
On 1 May, Taoiseach Varadkar announced the extension of the current restrictions to 18 May at the earliest. A roadmap to easing restrictions in Ireland that included five stages was adopted by the government and subsequently published online.
Second Wave On 15 September, the Government announced a medium-term plan for living with COVID-19 that included five levels of restrictions.
LevelSocial & Family GatheringsWeddingsIndoor & Outdoor EventsSports Training, Matches & EventsGyms, Pools & Leisure CentresReligious ServicesRestaurants, Cafés & PubsHotels, Guesthouses & B&BsRetail & ServicesIndoor Cultural VenuesDomestic TravelPublic TransportSchools & ChildcareMaximum 10 from 3 other householdsMaximum 100 people can attendIndoor: 100/200 depending on venue size; Outdoor: 200/500 depending on venue sizeNormal training with protective measures; Matches & Events: 100 indoors/200 outdoor/500 stadiaOpen with protective measures50 people can attendOpen with protective measuresOpen with protective measuresOpen with protective measuresOpen with protective measuresNo restrictionsOff-peak hoursOpen with protective measuresMaximum 6 from 3 other householdsMaximum 50 people can attendIndoor: 50/100 depending on venue size; Outdoor: 100/200 depending on venue sizeIndoor training: pods of 6; Outdoor training: pods of 15; Matches & Events: 50 indoors/100 outdoors/200 stadiaOpen with protective measures50 people can attendGroups of 6 from up to 3 householdsOpen with protective measuresOpen with protective measuresOpen with protective measuresNo restrictions50% capacity / peak-hours prioritisedOpen with protective measuresMaximum 6 from 1 other householdMaximum 25 people can attendNo organised indoor events; Outdoor: gatherings of up to 15Indoor training: 1 individual only; Outdoor training: pods of 15 (non-contact); Matches & Events: except specific exemptionsIndividual training onlyServices move online; 25 people can attend funeralsRange of restrictions up to and including no indoor diningServices limited to residents onlyOpen with protective measuresVenues closedStay in your county50% capacity, use only when necessaryOpen with protective measuresNo visitorsMaximum 6 people can attendNo organised indoor events; Outdoor: gatherings of up to 15Indoor training: 1 individual only; Outdoor training: pods of 15 (non-contact); Matches & Events: except specific exemptionsClosedServices move online; 25 people can attend funeralsOutdoor dining (maximum 15 people), takeaway or deliveryExisting guests & essential purposes onlyPrimarily outdoor essential retail/servicesVenues closedStay in your county25% capacity, avoid public transportOpen with protective measuresNo visitorsMaximum 6 people can attendNo organised indoor/outdoor eventsIndividual training only & no eventsClosedServices move online; 10 people can attend funeralsTakeaway or delivery onlyEssential purposes onlyEssential retail onlyVenues closedStay at home, exercise within 5 km25% capacity, avoid public transportRecommendations based on situation & evidence at time Resilience and recovery 2020-2021: Plan for living with COVID-19, announced on 15 September 2020.
On 4 October, following an increase in cases, the National Public Health Emergency Team recommended the highest level of restrictions for the entire country – Level 5 for four weeks. The Government rejected NPHET's recommendation, and instead moved every county in Ireland to Level 3 COVID-19 restrictions with improved enforcement and indoor dining in pubs and restaurants banned. On 19 October, the Government agreed to move the entire country to Level 5 lockdown restrictions.