IRELAND – Significant Expansion to Employment Permit System

December 29, 2023

On December 20, 2023, the Irish Department of Enterprise, Trade & Employment (“DETE”) announced a number of significant changes to the Irish employment permit system which will result in an increased eligibility for permits for non-EEA nationals. These changes are very welcome bearing in mind existing labour market shortages—Ireland is effectively at full employment. In addition to this, many of the minimum salary requirements for employment permits will be raised, effective as of January 17, 2024, with further salary increases anticipated in 2025/2026.

DETE also noted that 40,000 employment permits were issued in 2022, with demand remaining high in 2023, during which 31,000 employment permits were issued. We expect demand for employment permits to remain high in 2024, although the increased salary levels discussed below may present employers with budgetary headaches.

In this article we outline the headline changes for employers.

Additional roles eligible for employment permits

The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment has added 11 roles to the Critical Skills Occupation List and made 32 roles eligible for a General Employment Permit. These changes are focused around sectors experiencing labour shortages particularly within the construction, healthcare, pharmaceutical and agricultural sectors and within the transport and mechanics industries.

Amongst the new roles added, electricians, electrical engineers and contractors and skilled metal workers are now eligible for General Employment Permits. Chemical and project engineers are eligible for Critical Skills Employment Permits. The addition of these roles will assist the Irish Government to meet housing targets and to build and improve infrastructure in line with Ireland’s National Development Plan.

Increased Salary Thresholds

The increase in the minimum salary thresholds (indicated below) reflect the fact that they have not been raised for quite some time and is designed to align the thresholds with inflation and economic growth. The changes are also intended to recognise the valuable contribution of migrant workers to the Irish workforce and society by ensuring they are offered good quality employment in Ireland. The changes will also align permit holders with the minimum salary requirement to avail of family reunification.

• The minimum salary requirement for Critical Skills Employment Permit applications will increase from €32,000 to €38,000, effective as of 17 January 2024, with no change for Critical Skills Employment Permit applicants with no relevant degree/third level qualification, where the minimum salary remains at €64,000.
• The minimum salary requirement for most General Employment Permit applications will increase from €30,000 to €34,000, effective as of 17 January 2024.
• For Intra Company Transfer Employment Permit applications, the minimum salary requirement will increase from €30,000 to €34,000 for trainee applications, effective as of 17 January 2024 and from €40,000 to €46,000 for all other such applications.
• For Contract for Services Employment Permit applications, the minimum salary requirement will increase from €40,000 to €46,000, effective as of 17 January 2024.
• The minimum salary requirement for healthcare assistant and home carer roles will increase from €27,000 to €30,000, effective as of 17 January 2024, in line with the existing family reunification salary threshold.
• The minimum salary requirement for horticultural workers and meat processor roles will increase from €22,916 to €30,000, effective as of 17 January 2024, in line with the existing family reunification salary threshold.

Where a Labour Market Needs Test is required for a General Employment Permit application, it will need to reflect these revised salary thresholds. This will cause issues for employers, where they have already advertised to comply with the Labour Market Needs Test, where salary thresholds need to exactly align with those advertised. Where this occurs, the employer will need to either re-advertise or ensure that they submit the relevant applications in advance of January 17, 2024.

From an employer perspective, the salary changes will affect 2024 and future budgetary considerations when making job offers where a permit is required. As above, employers should also submit any existing permit applications, where the new salary thresholds cannot be met, in advance of January 17,2024 and also note that there may be a spike in applications in January 2024 which may, in turn, temporarily increase processing times.

Employers should also keep in mind that the thresholds will increase on a rolling basis in 2025 and 2026. While the thresholds are set to increase year on year to allow businesses to prepare for the impact of these changes, the increased salaries will be introduced on a phased basis.

See the following official table for the roadmap for minimum salary changes in 2024 (effective as of January 17, 2024), 2025 and 2026, although it should be noted that the 2025 and 2026 figures are preliminary and may be subject to future change:

* January ’25 and January ’26 figures are preliminary, based on most recent CSO data and subject to change with further releases 

** Changes to the salary requirements are effective as of January 17, 2024. 

*** Extension of existing quotas are effective as of January 17, 2024. 

Extension of Existing Quotas

Existing employment permit quotas are increased for dairy farm assistants, butchers/deboners, meat processors and horticultural workers effective as of January 17, 2024. The new quotas are as follows:  

• 1,000 General Employment Permits for meat processing operatives. 
• 350 General Employment Permits  for butcher/deboners. 
• 350 General Employment Permits  for dairy farm assistants. 
• 1,000 General Employment Permits  have been provided for horticultural workers to support the sector until the introduction of the Seasonal Employment Permit which is expected to occur in 2024. 

We hope that this update is helpful for our Irish and Global clients. For any questions on these new policies or on Irish immigration in general, don’t hesitate to contact us at: [email protected]

This immigration update is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for legal or scenario-specific advice. Furthermore, it is important to note that immigration announcements are subject to sudden and unexpected changes. Readers are encouraged to reach out to Newland Chase for any case or company-specific assessments.