Foreign doctors may leave if they don't get critical skills permit

Under current rules, prospective employees must have a contract of two years to obtain a CSEP. However, international non-consultant hospital doctors (NCHDs) who are not on training schemes are on six-month contracts, thus making them ineligible for the permits.

A campaign group for international doctors has called for a change to HSE contracts to ensure every doctor can obtain a critical skills employment permit (CSEP).

Under current rules, prospective employees must have a contract of two years to obtain a CSEP. However, international non-consultant hospital doctors (NCHDs) who are not on training schemes are on six-month contracts, thus making them ineligible for the permits.

The CSEP is designed to attract highly skilled people into the labour market with the aim of encouraging them to take up permanent residence in the State.

It has a number of benefits, including being able to apply for immediate family reunification, access to the labour market for spouses and dependents, and easier access to long-term residency after two years.

Dr Liqa ur Rehman, co-founder of Train Us For Ireland campaign group, called for equitable access to the permits, adding that the discrepancy will result in international doctors choosing to move abroad for job security.

“The main problem is they [people with CSEPs] have job security. Doctors who don’t have to move around every six months. That’s why people are leaving,” he said.

It feels like they are pushing us to leave this country. The perception is they don’t want us to stay and work here. We’re really looking to Government and policymakers to move faster on this

Dr ur Rehman added that doctors are “strongly thinking” of organising a protest over the issue if it is not addressed.

The campaign group has written an open letter to the HSE on the matter, which has received more than 600 signatures to date.

Paul Maier, senior industrial relations officer with the Irish Medical Organisation (IMO), said it is Government policy that these permits should be made available to doctors.

“The reason why they’re not provided to doctors, and specifically NCHDs, is because of the fixed-term nature of their contract. It is a technical reason. The primary unfairness of it is really they ought to be entitled to it,” he said.

“Doctors have to wait and bounce from job to job and have tremendous job insecurity and they don't have access to training as well. If they were given [the CSEP] they would have a two-year commitment to their education and training and employment."

Employment permits

A spokeswoman for the HSE said since last year there are two types of employment permits available to NCHDs.

“A general employment permit is typically granted for NCHDs, as an offer of employment for two years is not required. A critical skills permit may now be granted to an NCHD where an employer is offering employment for two years,” the spokeswoman said.

However, the spokeswoman confirmed that to qualify for the critical skills permit, the NCHD must be on a training programme that is at least two years in duration or a vacancy exists for the duration of the permit, and that the post will not be required for a training scheme for the duration it is occupied by the doctor.

In a written reply on the matter earlier this month, Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said the new Employment Permits (Consolidation and Amendment) Bill proposes to include provisions to streamline employment permit processes and will move some of the operational details from primary legislation to regulation including duration of an employment permit.

He added that this change would allow “adjustment to be made more easily in response to changes in industry practices”.