Surely not?
Surely the BBC has got its facts wrong/is choosing to misprepresent something about the law in this? The article is called "Latvia calls on Ireland to tackle sham marriages", link and a quote from below…
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-11792437
"Some women only find out about the sham marriage when they arrive in Ireland.
The marriages are conducted there because it is not illegal in the Irish Republic to marry in return for money. According to Latvia’s Ministry for Foreign Affairs, this anomaly is a throwback to a centuries-old Irish tradition of the bride’s wedding dowry. "