Coming to work in Ireland

Information

If you intend to come to work in Ireland you need to know the rules about the formalities involved in travelling to Ireland, the rules about permission to land in Ireland. It would be helpful to know general information about who is entitled to come to Ireland and about living in Ireland before you come here.

Rules

Finding a job in Ireland

You may find out about job vacancies in Ireland and how to begin the process of finding a job in Ireland.

Visas

Citizens of certain countries need a visa in order to come to Ireland. You may apply for an Irish visa to your nearest Irish embassy or consulate. A visa does not confer any right to live or work in Ireland.

Right to work in Ireland

EU/EEA/Swiss citizens: If you are from an EU member state or one of the countries of the EEA or Switzerland, you are entitled to come to work in Ireland. You do not need an employment permit. You are entitled to have your dependants come to live with you, provided they are arriving from another EU state where they were legally resident. If you are a spouse of an EU/EEA/Swiss national who is exercising the right of free movement, then you have similar rights to work and live in Ireland.

If you are an EEA or Swiss national, you are entitled to be treated in the same way as Irish citizens when you apply for work in Ireland. You are free to apply for any job vacancy, including jobs in the public sector. These include jobs in the Irish army and the Irish police force (An Garda Síochána), but not the Irish diplomatic service.
There is a system of mutual recognition of qualifications between the EEA countries.

Other countries: If you are from another country then generally you need an employment permit - see exceptions below. There are four different types of employment permit: Green Card permit, work permit, intra-company transfer permit,spousal/dependant work permit - see below.

Who does not need an employment permit?

You do not need an employment permit in order to work legally in Ireland if you are in one of the following categories:

• Citizens of the EEA member states (other than Romania and Bulgaria) and Switzerland, and their spouses and dependants (regardless of their nationality)
• People who have been granted refugee status in Ireland
• People who have been refused refugee status but have been given leave to remain on humanitarian grounds
• People who have been given leave to remain because they are the spouse or parent of an Irish citizen
• Postgraduate students where the work is an integral part of the course of study being undertaken
• From 12 October 2007 non-EEA nationals carrying out scientific research for an approved research organisation 

Students

If you are from a country whose nationals normally require an employment permit and you are studying in Ireland on an approved course, you may take up casual work – a maximum of 20 hours a week in term time and full time during the holidays – without an employment permit. An approved course is one of at least one year’s duration leading to a qualification recognised by the Department of Education and Science. (Towards 2016 includes a commitment that the employment of non-EEA students should be the subject of an employment permit application but this has not yet been implemented.)

Since 10 April 2007 the Third Level Graduate Scheme (pdf) allows non-EEA students who have graduated on or after 1 January 2007 with a primary, master's or doctorate degree to remain in Ireland for 6 months so they can find employment and apply for a work permit or Green Card permit.

Working holiday visas

Working holiday visas may be issued to nationals of Canadia Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Argentina and Hong Kong as part of a reciprocal agreement between these countries and Ireland. From 6 June 2006 if you are on a working holiday visa you can no longer transfer over to a work permit.

General rules about employment permits

There are general rules which apply to all employment permits. Either the prospective employee or prospective employer may apply for the permit – see 'How to apply'.

Refusal of employment permit: If you are refused an employment permit, you may ask for an internal review. You should ask for a review within 21 days of being notified of a refusal.

Employers who want to employ people who need employment permits have to meet certain requirements. They must be legally trading in Ireland – this means they must be registered with the Revenue Commissioners and with the Companies Registration Office (CRO) if the employer is a company. You can check the registration at the CRO at: www.cro.ie

The employer must employ you directly – this means that applications from recruitment agencies, agents, intermediaries or companies who intend to outsource or subcontract you to work in another company are not accepted.

There is a limit to the proportion of the workforce who can be employment permit holders. Permits are not granted to employers where a result of granting the permit would be that more than 50% of employees in the firm would be non-EEA nationals.

Employees who have employment permits are obliged to abide by the immigration rules. This means that you may need a visa in order to come here and you must register with the immigration authorities.

Family reunification

Your right to have your family come and live with you in Ireland depends on the type of permit you have. You can find out about the residence rights of family members.

Types of employment permit

Green Card permit: this employment permit is for highly skilled migrant workers. It has replaced the previous working visa/work authorisation system. The previous working visa/authorisations remain valid for the duration covered by them and the people who hold them may renew under the new system.

Green Card permits are granted to 2 groups of people: people with specified skills in a restricted list of occupations in the salary range of €30,000 to €60,000 and people in almost any occupation where the salary range is above €60,000.  There are further details in the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment's Guide to Green Card Permits (pdf). 

Work permits: may be issued to foreign nationals who need employment permits for those occupations to which the Green Card permit does not apply and where the salary is €30,000 or more. There are certain occupations for which work permits are not considered. Further details about work permits are in the Department of Enterprise Trade and Employment's Guide to Work Permits (pdf).

Intra-company transfer scheme: this scheme is designed to facilitate the transfer of senior management, key personnel or trainees who are foreign nationals (who need an employment permit) from an overseas branch of a multinational corporation to its Irish branch. There is further information in the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment's Guide to Intra-Company Transfer Scheme (pdf).

Spousal/dependant work permits: spouses and dependants of employment permit holders may be granted a work permit. Further details are in the Department of Enterprise Trade and Employment's Guide to Work Permits for Spouses and Dependants of Employment Permit Holders (pdf).

Protection for migrant workers

Foreign nationals who are legally working in Ireland have exactly the same rights under employment legislation as Irish working here.

The new employment permits are given to the employee. The permit contains a statement of the rights and entitlements of the worker. The statement of rights includes the information about when and how the worker may change employment. The statement also includes details of pay, rights under the national minimum wage legislation and any deductions which it is proposed to make from that pay – for example, for accommodation. The national minimum wage legislation allows for certain deductions to be made from the statutory minimum pay of an employee if the employee is provided with board and/or lodgings. 

Employers are not allowed to deduct expenses associated with recruitment from the employee's pay and are not allowed retain any of the worker’s personal documents.

Rates

Green Card: The fee for an initial application is €1,000.  

Fees for work permit applications and intra-company transfer:

How to apply

Applications for work permits or Green Cards can be made by you or your prospective employer to the Employment Permits Section of the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment using the new employment permit application form (pdf). There is a separate application form for an intra-company transfer permit (pdf). You should allow two to three months for the application to be processed.

If you are in Ireland and you need English translations of documents you can contact the embassy or consulate of your country for assistance.

Where to apply