What is the change?

The Minister of State for Business, Employment and Retail has announced changes to the employment permits system which includes adding some roles to the Critical Skills Occupation list and removing quota limits on certain roles.

Additionally, the occupations of Bricklayers and Plasterers for General Employment Permits are no longer subject to any quota limitations. Furthermore, a final quota extension of 425 Meat Processing Operatives for General Employment Permits has been approved.

Key points:

• Implementation time frame: Effective immediately.
• Who is affected: Employers within the health, construction and agri-food sector.
• Next Steps: Employers hiring within the below mentioned sectors may now consider these roles as critical skills occupations:
  • Pharmacist
  • Cardiac Physiologist
  • Medical Scientist
  • Occupational Therapist
  • Physiotherapist
  • Podiatrist/Chiropodist
  • Psychologist and Speech and Language Therapist

This means that, providing all other eligibility criteria is met, these roles will be eligible for Critical Skills Employment Permits CSEP. There are additional benefits for employees on a CSEP, including: immediate family reunification; faster route to access Stamp 4 permission.

In addition to the above, the below roles (which were previously removed from the ineligible occupations list) are no longer subject to a limited quota.

• Bricklayer
  
•  Plasterer

Finally, a final quota extension of 425 Meat Processing Operatives has been approved.

Analysis & Comments:

The changes announced by the Minister will help to address skill and labour shortages in the health, construction and agri-food sector. Deloitte welcome the news that such skilled hires will be able to avail of Critical Skills Employment Permits.

If you require any assistance on this matter, please do not hesitate to contact our team.