Work permits for Non EU Members

In general, non-European Economic Area (EU member states together with Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein) nationals who wish to work in Ireland must have work permits. In addition, apart from some long-standing asylum seekers, people who are applying for refugee status are not entitled to work at all.

Rules

Work permits are issued by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment. The prospective employer must apply for the permit.

From 2 January 2002, new applications for work permits from employers will not be accepted by the department unless they are accompanied by a letter from F�S confirming that all reasonable efforts have been made by the employer, in co-operation with the F�S Employment Services, to fill the vacancy through the domestic or wider European Economic Area (EEA) labour market.

Applications for work permits that are already on hand and applications received before 2 January 2002 will be processed in the normal way but will be subjected to a closer level of scrutiny. Employers may, where necessary, be asked to demonstrate more clearly the efforts they have made to recruit staff from within the EEA area.

If an employer applies for a work permit in respect of a former employee who has left the state, this will be considered a new application.

Renewal of Work Permits

If an employer applies to renew a work permit in respect of an existing employee, this will be facilitated. The requirement to engage with the FAS Employment Services will not be applied in these cases.

Work permit not necessary

As a non-national, you do not need a work permit if you are in one of the following categories:

• EEA citizen and your spouse (whether he/she is a European Economic Area citizen or not) and your dependant children.
• Person who has been granted refugee status - whether through the normal process or as a programme refugee.
• Postgraduate student where the work is an integral part of the course of study being undertaken.
• Person who has been given permission to stay in the country because you are the spouse of an Irish citizen or the parent of an Irish citizen.
• Person who has been refused refugee status but has been granted leave to remain on humanitarian grounds.
• Person who is posted on a corporate transfer/secondment for a maximum period of four years to an establishment or undertaking in Ireland that is owned by a company or group that operates in more than one state. You will be expected to produce evidence that you come within this category. Appropriate evidence would be an original letter from the company headquarters, clearly stating that you are being posted for a particular purpose and period of time, not exceeding the maximum.
• Person coming to Ireland from an overseas company for a maximum period of three years for training, whether or not it entails paid work, at an Irish-based company. Evidence in the form of original letters from your overseas employer and your Irish host will be required. The letters should relate to you and give details of the training and its duration.

Work permit necessary

You require a work permit if you do not come within one of the categories mentioned above and you are a non-European Economic Area national who wishes to work in Ireland.

However, although you will still need a work permit, it will be granted without the need to establish that there is no suitable Irish/European Economic Area national available, if you are:

• A doctor who has full medical registration from the Irish Medical Council and who has been offered a specified position in a hospital recognised by the Irish Medical Council. Doctors with temporary registration are classified by the Immigration Authorities as postgraduate students and a work permit is not required.
• An entertainer who is coming to Ireland to perform at a particular event - this includes performers and their back up crews and film crews.
• A professional sportsperson and the granting of the permit would comply with the terms of an agreement made between the Department and the relevant sporting organisation.
• A participant in an exchange programme recognised by the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment.
• Entitled to take up employment in Ireland under the terms of any international teral agreement ratified by Ireland.

Refusal of work permits

You will be refused a work permit where you:

• Entered the state on the basis that you are not taking up employment, for example, as a visitor.
• Are in the state illegally or you no longer comply with the conditions under which you were admitted.
• Have been asked by the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform to leave the state.
• Are in the process of being deported.
• Are seeking employment with a non-European Economic Area employer who is operating in the state without business permission from the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform.

Asylum seekers

If you are in the process of seeking refugee status, you are not, in general, entitled to work. If you can find a job and the employer applies for, and gets a work permit, then you can withdraw your application for asylum and become a resident non-national with a work permit. There is an exception to the general rule if you applied for refugee status before July 26th 1999 and your application is already more than a year being processed. In such circumstances, you may be granted a work permit.

Other categories to note

Prospective employers should also note that:

• It is a primary condition of entry into the state for students that they are in a position to maintain themselves while studying here. Students who are non European Economic Area nationals are entitled to take up casual employment (defined as up to 20 hours part-time work per week or full-time work during holiday periods) for the duration of their permitted stay in Ireland. Students who want to continue working after their course of study ends will need a work permit to do so.
• A very restrictive policy operates regarding the issue of work permits for domestic staff. Applications will be entertained only where it has been established that the person has been in employment with a family abroad for at least one year, prior to the date of applying for a work permit. Permits, where issued, are subject to strict conditions.
• Because of the specialist nature of ethnic restaurants, some permits per branch may be granted in respect of qualified chefs/catering staff. The number of permits granted will depend upon the nature and scope of the restaurant and the number of European Economic Area nationals employed in the business concerned.

Changing employment

If you have a work permit and wish to change employment, the new employer must apply for a new work permit and you cannot start the new job until the permit is issued.

Registration and further permission to remain

If you are a non-European Union national and you intend to remain for longer than 90 days, you must register with your local Garda Registration Officer. If you come within the category of intra-company transfers/secondment or the category of coming to Ireland for training, you should make the application together with the evidence required and referred to above.

The Garda Registration Officer will place an immigration stamp on you passport and registration document.

Visas

If you are a national who requires a visa, this is still a requirement even if you do not need a work permit. You should obtain a visa before travelling to Ireland.

Rates

A new schedule of fees will apply to all work permit applications received by the Department on or after 2 January 2002. In some circumstances, the fee may be waived, for example in the case where reciprocal international agreements exist between Ireland and another country.

How to apply

Applications for work permits should be made by the prospective employer to the Employment Regulation Section of the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment. Applications must be made on the specified form, which is available from the Employment Regulation Section. It must be accompanied by two recently taken passport-sized photographs of the person whose employment is sought as well as documentary evidence of the employer's efforts to recruit an Irish/European Economic Area national.

The application will then be examined by reference to the rules for work permits. Depending on the circumstances, consultation may be necessary with other Departments and/or organisations, for example, professional associations. Further information/documentation may also be sought from the applicant.

Where a person who is the subject of a work permit application is married to a European Union/European Economic Area national, the following documents must be presented:

• the birth certificate/copy of passport/certificate of naturalisation
• the marriage certificate of the subject's spouse.

Where the subject of a work permit is a dependant child or a child under 21 years of age of a European Union/European Economic Area national, the application must be accompanied by:

• the birth certificate of the child, which states the full name of the parent who is a European Union/European Economic Area national
• documentary proof that the parent is such a national. Original documents that are not in English must have a translation supplied and certified by a reputable authority.

Where the subject of a work permit application has an Irish born child, who is dependent on the applicant, the birth certificate of the child should be presented.

Download an application form for a work permit currently available in the following languages:English (pdf), Czech (rtf), Chinese (pdf), Hungarian (rtf), Latvian (rtf), Lithuanian (rtf), Polish (rtf), Portuguese (rtf) and Russian (rtf). Copies of this form are also available from the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment at the address below.

Where to apply

Work Permits Section

All information received from www.oasis.gov.ie