Nationals of countries outside the European Economic Area (EEA) (the EU plus Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein), UK and Switzerland (Third Country Nationals) must, unless their particular circumstances otherwise allow, obtain prior permission to work if they will work in Ireland for more than 14 days.

For periods of employment up to three months in Ireland, a Third Country National must generally first obtain permission via the Atypical Working Scheme (AWS). For periods of work longer than three months, a Third Country National must generally first obtain an employment permit.

Separately, Third Country Nationals must obtain permission from relevant authorities to enter and remain in Ireland when they arrive in the country. Certain Third Country Nationals must obtain an entry visa before travelling to Ireland regardless of the length of time they intend to work in Ireland. This application may be made once any employment permit or AWS permission has issued (if applicable). The granting of an employment permit or other work permission does not guarantee that an entry visa will be granted. An entry visa gives the holder permission to present themselves to Irish border control. An entry visa does not give permission to enter Ireland.

Third Country Nationals should note that Border Control Officers have wide discretion to grant or refuse entry to Ireland. If Border Control grant a Third Country National permission to enter Ireland, they will generally place a temporary residence stamp in the Third Country National’s passport allowing for up to 90 days residence in Ireland.

If Third Country Nationals who are 16 years or older remain in Ireland for more than three months, they must register their residence permission to stay in Ireland with the relevant authorities. They must do this before the temporary residence permission granted on entry expires. The process of registering a residence permission for the first time differs depending on the county where the Third Country National will live in Ireland.

This obligation applies in addition to the requirement to hold a valid work permission, such as an employment permit. Third Country Nationals must comply with the conditions of their residence permission. They may be required to leave Ireland if they do not do so.

Employment permits

In some circumstances, Third Country Nationals may obtain permission to live and work in Ireland without needing an employment permit. This can arise for example where the Third Country National is a spouse or partner of an Irish/UK/EEA national.

There are several types of employment permits available in Ireland. Employment permits such as the Critical Skills Employment Permit (CSEP), General Employment Permit (GEP) and Reactivation Employment Permit (REP) allow Third Country Nationals to be employed directly by a company operating in Ireland. Other employment permits, such as the Intra Company Transfer Employment Permit (ICTP) allow Third Country Nationals to work for a company operating in Ireland but continue to be employed by another company. Eligibility requirements and documentary proofs differ depending on the employment permit which is being applied for.

The Irish government has recently introduced a new Seasonal Employment Permit (SEP). Under the SEP, Third Country Nationals will be eligible to work for a maximum of seven months in each year in a seasonally recurrent employment in certain targeted economic sectors, such as horticulture and agriculture. The SEP is due to launch by way of a pilot scheme in 2025.

Applications for an employment permit must be submitted to the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (the DETE).

It is suggested to allow two to three weeks to assemble the necessary documents and prepare an employment permit application for submission to the DETE. This period will be longer in the case of an application for a GEP and a SEP, which require proof that a labour market needs test has been carried out prior to submitting the permit application. Once submitted, applications currently take between four and eight weeks to process. This may change from time to time. The processing time is usually shorter for employers with trusted partner status, which is granted on a discretionary basis by the DETE to frequent users of the employment permit system.

There are two lists of which to be aware in relation to the employment permit system in Ireland:

• The Ineligible List of Occupations – this list sets out the jobs for which an application cannot be made for an employment permit. This list does not apply to applications for an ICTP where a Third Country National will work for a company operating in Ireland but continue to be employed by another group company.
• The Critical Skills List of Occupations – this list sets out the jobs for which there is a skills shortage in Ireland. Applications may be made for a CSEP for jobs on this list or if the salary for a job is €64,000 or more (so long as the job does not appear on the Ineligible List of Occupations).

In most cases, an employer must employ at least 50% EEA, UK and Swiss nationals at the time of submitting the employment permit application. There are some limited exceptions to this requirement. For example, new companies in Ireland which are IDA or Enterprise Ireland clients do not always have to meet this requirement at start up stage.

An employment permit application cannot be made until:

• a job offer is in place and the employment contract/the secondment agreement is signed;
• the Irish entity is registered for employment taxes in Ireland; and
• the business premises at which the proposed employment permit applicant will work is confirmed.

We advise all employers to consider on a case-by-case basis the most appropriate work permission option available to them. For further guidance or more information please contact your usual William Fry contact.