Our Immigration Team hosted our first client webinar of 2022 last week! It was fantastic to be joined by so many of our clients and to provide greater clarity on what is expected in Irish Immigration in the coming months.

We looked back at the challenges that our clients faced in 2021, as the Irish employment permit application processing times increased dramatically. In 2021 the Department of Enterprise, Trade & Employment (DETE) saw a 70% increase in employment permit submissions. We understand that this along with the ramifications of the HSE cyber attack, have contributed to the increase in the processing times. By exploring some of the data, indicating the number of applications filed for each month in 2021, we were able to provide some insight into the processing time patterns for the coming months ahead in 2022.

The DETE confirmed they are aware of the challenges that the increase in processing times poses to Irish employers and that they are working towards improving the processing times currently. Some of these improvements include additional resourcing, reviewing technology solutions along with liaising with stakeholders and immigration providers. We discussed how we continue to work with IDA, AMCHAM and other stakeholders in order to support Irish employers in working with the Irish immigration system, and to push for innovative solutions and approaches to the immigration process. Some of the ambitions for Irish immigration for 2022 discussed include:

• Clarity and updates on various immigration policies (such as right to work when applying for a second CSEP; and remote work policy updates for employees on employment permits wishing to work remotely on a permanent basis)
• New innovative solutions to manage increases in volumes and therefore processing times – automatic granting of certain permissions where thresholds exceeded or concurrent processing of immigration applications
• Retention of the electronic filing and electronic permission issuance that was created during the pandemic
• Consistency in visa application process across embassies and consulates
• Supporting foreign nationals with registration process for first time applicants and IRP renewals in and outside of Dublin 

In 2022, we hope to see further positive developments in Irish Immigration policy. In the meantime, Deloitte will continue to work with both our clients and the government bodies to communicate issues and potential updates to improve the immigration experience for employers and their employees.