Census 2027 to be first census with option to complete form online

Eva Osborne

The next census will be held in 2027 and will be the first census in Ireland where the public will have the option to complete their census form online.

It will be held on May 9th, 2027, ending the tradition of holding the population poll in a year ending with either a six or a one.

The census will also move from a ‘de facto’ census, which counts everyone where they are staying on a specific night, to a census of the usually resident population.

This means that there will no longer be one census night when everyone completes or is included in a form where they are staying that night.

Instead, people who usually live in Ireland (their 'usual residence') will complete the census during the five weeks leading up to census date.

'Usual residence' refers to the place where a person normally lives and spends the majority of their time. It is typically the address where they sleep most nights.

This definition helps to more accurately reflect the true population distribution across the country, according to the Central Statistics Office (CSO).

The Time Capsule which proved popular in the last census is also being retained, allowing the public to leave messages or personal information for their relatives in the future.

The online census form will be available to complete on the dedicated census website. Paper forms will be available on request through the census call centre/webform.

There will be a longer period of time to complete and submit/return the census form, which will be five weeks before census date.