Radio Amateurs

The Amateur Station licensing scheme allows individuals to use radio equipment for the purposes of conducting experiments, intercommunication and engaging in self training in wireless telegraphy.

The ITU Radio Regulations define amateur service as “A Radiocommunication service for the purpose of self-training, intercommunication and technical investigations carried out by amateurs, that is by duly authorized persons interested in radio technique solely with a personal aim and without pecuniary interest.”

Health of the Hobby Survey 2026

Please click on the below survey link to complete the 2026 Health of the Hobby survey.

The survey will be open until 5pm on the 30th of March.

By taking part in this survey, you consent to ComReg using the information provided to inform its current work on reviewing the Amateur Station Licensing regime. Any subsequent presentation of the results will be made in aggregate form, and all submissions to this survey will not be held by ComReg for more than 30 days after the submission date. The submissions will then be deleted

Survey link: Health of the Hobby 2026

Guidelines

More information can be found in our Amateur Station Licence Guidelines R6.

Applying for a licence

All applications for Amateur Station Licences should be made via https://elicensing.comreg.ie/

Please download this document for guidance on how to use the online facility.

To be eligible to apply for a licence applicants are required to have successfully passed a CEPT/HAREC TR/61-02 level examination.

Applicants interested in sitting the examination for CEPT/HAREC TR/61-02 level radio theory and regulations for Radio Amateur stations examinations in Ireland should contact the Irish Radio Transmitters Society (IRTS) for further information www.irts.ie

Main Types of Licence

 • CEPT Class 1 / CEPT Class 2

• Visiting Ireland / Reciprocal Licences
TR/61-01 Signatories

  •  non Novice or Intermediate Licence
  •  EI/ home call-sign
  •  no longer than 3 months

Non TR/61-01 Signatories

  •  >= 3 Months <= 1 Year
  •  licence must be seen to be equivalent or reciprocal to TR/61-01 Signatories
  •  non Novice or Intermediate Licence

For more information please refer to the Amateur Station Licence Guidelines R6.

Fees

The fees payable for an Amateur Station Licence are:

  • New Application €100*
  • Licence Amendment €30

*A €30 fee is applicable if you are aged 65 or over or in receipt of disability allowance or pension

Radio Amateur Contests
The table below provides a list of all Radio Amateur contests where licensed Radio Amateurs are temporarily permitted to transmit increased power for the duration of the contest. Transmission at the increased power outside of the contest date is not permitted and is a breach of the Radio Amateur licence conditions. ComReg reserves the right to amend the permitted power increases in the future.

 Month Contest Name Mode Power (W) Frequency MHz
  January  CQWW 160M  CW  1500  1.810-1.850; 1.850-2.000
  February   ARRL DX  CW  1500  1.810-1.850; 1.850-2.000; 3.5-3.8; 7.0-7.1;7.1-7.2;14.00-14.35; 21.0-21.450; 28.0-29.7
 CQWW 160m  SSB  1500  1.810-1.850; 1.850-2.000
March ARRL DX SSB  1500 1.810-1.850; 1.850-2.000; 3.5-3.8; 7.0-7.1;7.1-7.2;14.00-14.35; 21.0-21.450; 28.0-29.7
CQWW WPX SSB 1500 1.810-1.850; 1.850-2.000; 3.5-3.8; 7.0-7.1;7.1-7.2;14.00-14.35; 21.0-21.450; 28.0-29.7
 May  ARI International DX  All  1500 1.810-1.850; 1.850-2.000; 3.5-3.8; 7.0-7.1;7.1-7.2;14.00-14.35; 21.0-21.450; 28.0-29.7
 CQWW WPX  CW  1500  1.810-1.850; 1.850-2.000; 3.5-3.8; 7.0-7.1;7.1-7.2;14.00-14.35; 21.0-21.450; 28.0-29.7
June IARU Region 1 FD  CW 1500 1.810-1.850; 1.850-2.000; 3.5-3.8; 7.0-7.1;7.1-7.2;14.00-14.35; 21.0-21.450; 28.0-29.7
 All Asian DX  CW  1500  1.810-1.850; 1.850-2.000; 3.5-3.8; 7.0-7.1;7.1-7.2;14.00-14.35; 21.0-21.450; 28.0-29.7
July VHF/UHF FD All 1000 144.0-146.0; 70.125-70.450; 50.0-52.0; 430-432.0; 432.0-440.0; 1240-1300
IARU HF All 1500 1.810-1.850; 1.850-2.000; 3.5-3.8; 7.0-7.1;7.1-7.2;14.00-14.35; 21.0-21.450; 28.0-29.7
CQWW VHF All 1000 144.0-146.0; 50.0-52.0
 IOTA All 1500 3.5-3.8; 7.0-7.1;7.1-7.2;14.00-14.35; 21.0-21.450; 28.0-29.7
August European HF Contest All 1500 1.810-1.850; 1.850-2.000; 3.5-3.8; 7.0-7.1;7.1-7.2;14.00-14.35; 21.0-21.450; 28.0-29.7
Russian RDA  All 1500 1.810-1.850; 1.850-2.000; 3.5-3.8; 7.0-7.1;7.1-7.2;14.00-14.35; 21.0-21.450; 28.0-29.7
September All Asian DX SSB 1500 1.810-1.850; 1.850-2.000; 3.5-3.8; 7.0-7.1;7.1-7.2;14.00-14.35; 21.0-21.450; 28.0-29.7
IARU Field SSB 1500 1.810-1.850; 1.850-2.000; 3.5-3.8; 7.0-7.1;7.1-7.2;14.00-14.35; 21.0-21.450; 28.0-29.7
WAE DX SSB 1500 1.810-1.850; 1.850-2.000; 3.5-3.8; 7.0-7.1;7.1-7.2;14.00-14.35; 21.0-21.450; 28.0-29.7
Scandinavian CW 1500 3.5-3.8; 7.0-7.1;7.1-7.2;14.00-14.35; 21.0-21.450; 28.0-29.7
Scandinavian SSB 1500 3.5-3.8; 7.0-7.1;7.1-7.2;14.00-14.35; 21.0-21.450; 28.0-29.7
October Oceania DX SSB 1500 1.810-1.850; 1.850-2.000; 3.5-3.8; 7.0-7.1;7.1-7.2;14.00-14.35; 21.0-21.450; 28.0-29.7
Oceania DX CW 1500 1.810-1.850; 1.850-2.000; 3.5-3.8; 7.0-7.1;7.1-7.2;14.00-14.35; 21.0-21.450; 28.0-29.7
CQWW SSB 1500 1.810-1.850; 1.850-2.000; 3.5-3.8; 7.0-7.1;7.1-7.2;14.00-14.35; 21.0-21.450; 28.0-29.7
November CQWW CW 1500 1.810-1.850; 1.850-2.000; 3.5-3.8; 7.0-7.1;7.1-7.2;14.00-14.35; 21.0-21.450; 28.0-29.7
December ARRL 10m All 1500 28.0-29.7

Regulations

The regulations governing the issue of Radio Amateur Licences are the Wireless Telegraphy (Amateur Station Licence) Regulations, 2002 (S.I. 192 of 2009)

Comparison of Radio Amateur power levels in CEPT Member States

ComReg has developed its own spreadsheet based on the information provided by the Deutscher Amateur Radio Club e.V[1] of all CEPT member countries to give a better overview of the level of harmonisation across Europe. This spreadsheet is available for download here.

[1] See Countries with CEPT Licence, Compiled by Hans Schwarz, DK5JI, (Current as of 2021-06-26) available at  https://www.iaru-r1.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Cept-Laenderliste.pdf

 

 

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