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Getting IVF and other specialist treatment through the HSE

If you need specialist treatment to help you get pregnant you may be able to get it for free through the HSE.

The treatments are:

Getting free IUI, IVF and ICSI through the HSE

To get free IUI, IVF or ICSI through the HSE, your GP or consultant must refer you to a regional fertility hub.

At the regional fertility hub:

  • a consultant must recommend the treatment
  • you and your partner must meet all access criteria

Your consultant may recommend IUI, IVF or ICSI if:

We work with some private fertility clinics. We may be able to refer you to a private clinic we have approved for the treatment.

You cannot get this treatment for free through the HSE if you need donor eggs or sperm.

If you are single

Access criteria

To access free IUI, IVF or ICSI treatment through the HSE you and your partner must meet all the access criteria.

The access criteria are around:

  • residency
  • age
  • previous IVF treatment
  • children
  • number of parents
  • relationship length
  • sterilisation
  • body mass index (BMI)
  • lifestyle

Residency

You must be resident in the Republic of Ireland.

Referral to regional fertility hub

You can only be referred to a regional fertility hub by a GP or consultant.

Age

You must be age 18 or over.

Your age when your GP or consultant referred you to the regional fertility hub must be:

  • under 41 if you're a woman
  • under 60 if you're a man

Age criteria for tests and other treatment

Previous IVF treatment

You can get treatment if any of these apply:

  • you have not had free IVF through the HSE
  • you had no more than 1 round of privately funded IVF before and have no unused embryos still in storage
  • you started tests for IVF but have not started taking IVF medicine

Children

You must have no more than 1 living child between you.

This includes children you:

  • adopted
  • are the biological parent of
  • plan to be parent of in a surrogacy arrangement
  • are non-birth mother to in a same-sex female relationship

Number of parents

Only 2 people can plan to be parents to the child.

Relationship length

You must be in a relationship with your partner for at least 1 year.

Sterilisation

You must never have had a sterilisation procedure to prevent pregnancy.

This includes:

  • vasectomy
  • blocking or sealing your fallopian tubes (tubal ligation)

BMI

You must have a BMI of between 18.5 and 30, if you are a woman.

Lifestyle

If you plan to be the birth mother you must drink no more than 1 or 2 standard drinks up to 2 times a week.

If you plan to use your sperm for fertility treatment you must drink no more than 3 to 4 standard drinks and no more than 10 standard drinks a week.

You must not smoke or have smoked in the last 3 months.

You must not take recreational drugs or have taken any for at least 3 months.

If you meet the access criteria

Even if you meet the access criteria, your consultant at the regional fertility hub will have to recommend this treatment.

If they do, you:

  • choose the clinic you want to use from the private fertility clinics we have approved
  • must sign a consent form to say you are happy for a referral to be made to the clinic you choose and that your details can be shared with them

If you need IVF or ICSI

If your consultant recommends IVF or ICSI and you meet all the access criteria, you can get this treatment for free through the HSE. Each couple can get 1 round of IVF or ICSI for free.

If you need IUI

If your consultant recommends IUI and you meet all the access criteria, you can get IUI for free through the HSE.

If you do not meet the access criteria

You may still be able to get other fertility treatments at a regional fertility hub if you do not meet the access criteria.

These treatments do not include free IUI, IVF or ICSI. But they may still help you have a baby.

To get a referral for to a regional fertility hub you must:

  • be under 43 for women
  • be under 60 for men
  • have a BMI of 18.5 to 35 for women

Accessing other types of treatments and tests at a regional fertility hub

If you have had HSE fertility tests or treatment in the past

You may still be able to access free IVF, ICSI or IUI if you were discharged from a regional fertility hub. Discharged means when your tests and treatment end.

For example, if you did not meet all access criteria and now do.

If you now meet all access criteria for IUI, IVF and ICSI and were discharged:

  • before 1 January 2025 - go to your GP to get a new referral to a regional fertility hub
  • on or after 1 January 2025 - contact the regional fertility hub and ask for a review appointment

Using HSE fertility services

If you need donor eggs and sperm

You are not currently eligible for free IUI, IVF or ICSI through the HSE if you:

  • cannot use your own eggs or sperm
  • are in a same-sex couple
  • are single

When these treatments become available we will update the information on who can get free IUI, IVF and ICSI through the HSE.

If you need donor eggs or sperm, you can get this treatment privately. Private treatment is not free. You'll have to pay for it.

If you have health insurance, they may pay for some of the treatment costs.

Page last reviewed: 30 June 2025
Next review due: 30 June 2028