Nearly 31,000 employment permits issued to non-EEA workers last year

Occupations on the critical skills permit list include engineering professionals, ICT professionals, registered nurses and registered midwives.

Nearly 31,000 employment permits were issued by the Department of Enterprise last year, according to latest figures.

Of those, 2,613 permits were issued for non-European Economic Area (EEA) workers based in Cork and 384 in Kerry. Dublin saw 15,041 permits issued, the highest in the country. 

Non-EEA nationals who want to work in Ireland are required to hold a valid employment permit or hold a relevant immigration permission which allows them to reside and work in the State without the need for a permit.

There are nine different permits available from the Department of Enterprise which includes the critical skills permit and the general employment permit.

The critical skills permit, for example, is targeted at highly skilled people with the aim of “encouraging them to take up permanent residence in Ireland”.

Occupations on this list include engineering professionals, ICT professionals, registered nurses and registered midwives.

The figures available from the Department of Enterprise include new applications and renewals made in 2023. 

A total of 33,197 applications were made last year. Of these, 1,575 were refused while 641 were withdrawn. A total of 30,981 work permits were issued.

Breaking it down by nationality, 11,893 permits were issued to Indian nationals. It was followed by Brazilian nationals, with 2,632 permits being issued by the Department of Enterprise.

A majority of the permits issued were for those working in the health and social work sector, with 10,037 applications being granted last year. 

A further, 5,009 permits were issued for those working in the information and communication activities sector.

The figures come as the Department of Enterprise announced a new expansion into the employment permit process in December. 

Salary requirements are set to increase for most new general work permits, from €30,000 to €34,000 from this month onwards. 

Horticultural workers and meat processors’ salaries have increased from €22,000 to €30,000 — bringing them in line with family reunification thresholds.

Furthermore from next week onwards, any application made for a general work permit for a home carer or a healthcare assistant will see the salary requirement increase from €27,000 to €30,000.

This is then expected to increase to €34,000 in January 2025, before hiking another €5,000 in January 2026 to €39,999.