25% fall in visas for foreigners to work here last year

The number of work permit visas issued to foreign nationals fell by over 25% in 2012 and is expected to fall again this year.

According to visa specialists Visafirst.com, 4,005 work permits were issued to companies in Ireland last year — down from 5,200 in 2011. Just 3,276 visas have been issued so far this year.

However, the migration specialists pointed out that despite the falling numbers of permits being issued, Dublin is getting a growing percentage of any permits issued. Cork is also seeing an increasing share of the work permits but at a far smaller scale to Dublin.