Latest employment permit and visa permission developments
Notice regarding 'Return and Refund' process
The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment has announced that commencing 16 January 2023, all General Employment Permit applications will be initially screened across a small number of key mandatory criteria to ensure compliance with the requirements of this permit type, prior to it being accepted for formal processing. Read more here
Employment Permits Checklists
Checklists to assist with employment permit applications were updated by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment on 20 December. Access here
Changes to atypical working scheme
The Department of Justice has announced a number of amendments to the Atypical Working Scheme. The scheme was designed to facilitate specialised, highly-skilled employment of a short term nature (generally less than 90 days).
Following a period of consultation, a number of amendments to the terms and conditions of the scheme have been agreed. The changes set out below take effect from the 1 January 2023 and apply to any new application received on or after this date:
- The salary threshold is revised to align with the salary requirement for a general employment permit i.e. €30,000
- The 90 days of permission under the scheme can be used to support intermittent travel in and out of the State to a maximum of 90 days over a 6 month period
- The waiting time to apply for a new Atypical Working Scheme is reduced to one month. Previously, only one Atypical Working Scheme could be sought in any 12-month period.
For further information on the changes to the Atypical Working Scheme click here.
For more information on the Atypical Working Scheme click here.
Immigration statistics released for January to June 2022
On the 5th January 2023, the Department of Justice released statistics relating to residency, EU Treaty Rights, Citizenship, International Protection and Repatriation. The statistics provide some interesting findings into the numbers of permissions issued divided by nationality, gender and age. The mid-year review of statistics can be found here.
Processing times and decisions at the Dublin visa office
The Department of Justice has developed a webpage displaying the processing times and decisions at the Dublin visa office. The webpage sets out the visa applications and visa appeals that are currently being processed based on the date they were received.
The webpage also lists out the applications that were received in the Dublin office and whether they were approved or refused. These applications are listed based on the application number.
The details provided are only relevant to Dublin based applications. If an application was sent to a visa office outside of Dublin, the Department are advising to contact that office for processing information.
Dates are updated every Tuesday. To access the webpage, click here.
