The Irish wolfhound, one of Ireland’s native animal symbols, is set to take a centre stage role in the upcoming redesign of Irish passports, slated for a late 2025 rollout. The initial designs, recently showcased to Deputy Prime Minister (Tánaiste) Micheál Martin, have been received positively.
In the past year, a public consultation involving 15,000 Irish citizens residing locally and overseas was initiated to determine the fauna and flora representation on the passport. The Irish wolfhound gained the most support among suggested fauna, while the red squirrel, red deer, shamrock, gorse and bluebell were also favoured.
The three-year-old Irish wolfhound, Boánn, who hails from Boyne Valley and serves as an ambassador to the Irish Wolfhound Club of Ireland, inspired the artwork by Denise Nestor that was shown to Mr Martin.
Underlining the significance of the new design, Mr Martin stated his desire to see the public’s feedback reflected in the final design. He said, “The Irish passport is a crucial document of the Irish State, offering its citizens visa-free access to 192 countries. The redesign embodies a vital step to uphold the sanctity and global recognition of the Irish passport.”
The procurement for the redesign project is won by Bray-based firm AG2. Its secure document designer, Wil Byrne, mentioned that public views will shape the redesign. He stated that his company’s paramount objective was to have the Irish passport recognised internationally for its visual and security elements.
So far, the Passport Service has issued over 200,000 passports in 2024.
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