Change is Coming for Employment Permits - New Rules Announced - April '09

On 15th April 2009, the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise Trade and Employment, Ms. Mary Coughlan, announced that in light of increased levels of unemployment, the rules governing the issue and renewal of Employment Permits in Ireland is set to change. The Employment Permit process has always been designed to supply Ireland with migrant labour in areas where it lacked sufficient labour to fill certain roles within the European Economic Area (EEA). As levels of unemployment soar across the EEA, particularly in skilled roles, the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment have decided to revise the qualifying conditions for both new employment permit applications and applications for renewals.

In summary, the main changes to take effect on 1st June 2009 for Work Permits are:

  1. No Work Permits will be granted to roles where the salary is less than €30,000 per annum;
  2. The list of "Ineligible Job Categories" for which a Work permit will not be granted has been expanded to include work riders (horse racing), domestic workers and HGV drivers;
  3. The requirement to advertise a role through EURES/FAS prior to applying for a Work Permit has increased from 4 to 8 weeks;
  4. In addition, the role must be advertised in the Irish national press for 6 days, rather than the current 3 days;
  5. Spouses and Dependants of existing Employment Permit holders will have to apply as normal through the Work Permit;
  6. The Labour Market Needs Test will now have to be completed each time a Work Permit is up for renewal;
  7. The fees for renewing a Work Permit for 36 months will increase from €1,500 to €2,250.

The Minister also announced changes to the Green Card system whereby it will no longer be possible to obtain a Green Card for a number of roles including Quantity Surveyors, Building Managers, Registered Midwives, Psychologists, Economists, Fund Accountants and Marketing Managers. For a full list of these ineligible categories, please see:

http://www.entemp.ie/publications/labour/2009/guidelines-greencards-sept2009.pdf

These restrictions only apply where the role has a basic salary of €30,000 - €59,999. All roles which attract a salary of €60,000 or above can be filled by a Green Card Holder, provided they are entitled to such a permit.

The Renewal Fees for a Green Card remain the same at €1,000 for up to 24 months. However, it would seem at this point that announcements made in December 2008 by the Department allowing Green Card Holders to automatically extend their permit by 12-months through the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) will continue to remain. Therefore, if you have a member of staff on a Green Card that is coming up for renewal shortly, it is advisable to contact the Work Permits Section of the Department prior to the renewal date or a Graphite Consultant that will advise you accordingly.