Irish Census 2022: Forms being completed as window opens

Census forms were being filled out across the Republic of Ireland on Sunday night.

Under Irish law, every person in the country must be entered on a form.

The Republic of Ireland's census was due to be undertaken last year, but was delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Forms could be filled out from 21:00 on Sunday until 07:00 on Monday, so that people enter the information based on where they were staying overnight.

The Central Statistics Office, which organises the census, acknowledged that not everyone in the country would have received a form.

It has reassured people that they can contact their office and fill in one retrospectively.

The enumerators in the Republic will begin to collect the completed forms from Monday morning and will continue to do so until no later than 6 May.

Residents are being invited to add a short personal message when they fill in the census form.

The new feature is called the "time capsule". This is because the documents will be sealed and are not expected to be made publicly available until 2122.

There are eight new questions on Census 2022 forms, covering important 21st Century issues such as working from home; childcare provision; internet access and renewable energy sources.

There are also changes to 25 existing questions including new ways of asking citizens about religion, ethnicity, disability and the Irish language.

The census process helps governments to shape public services according to population size, household locations and public need.