10th March 2025
The Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, Peter Burke, announced changes to the employment permits system to address skills shortages in Ireland’s planning and home care sectors. The changes will come into effect on Monday, 10 March.
Minister Burke said:
“I am delighted to announce further changes to the employment permit system that will help ease the recruitment challenges being experienced in the construction and home care sectors. As we have reached full employment with over 2.7 million people at work here, there are some skills that are increasingly difficult for employers to access in Ireland and across the EEA, and these sectors are prime examples.”
The quota for home carers will be increased by 1,000
"In a continuation of our efforts to support services for those needing care in the home, I have approved an extension of 1000 General Employment Permits to the current quota for the role of care workers and carers in the home. Extending this quota will help alleviate labour shortages in this important sector and ensure people can access the services they need, where and when they need them. The role of care worker and home carer is eligible for a General Employment Permit with a minimum salary requirement of €30,000."
Town planners added to the Critical Skills Occupations List
Minister Burke went on to say:
“I am also delighted to announce that I have made the role of town planning officer eligible for a critical skills permit. This follows engagement with the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage and seeks to address the ongoing critical infrastructure bottlenecks experienced in the housing and broader construction sector. This change will place the State in a stronger position to attract a higher number of qualified and skilled planners to address shortages. This change will place the State in a better position to attract a higher number of qualified and skilled planners to address shortages, and continue the ramp up in housing delivery which is a critical Government priority”.
The planning system is critical to and underpins the delivery of public policy, societal, economic, and environmental objectives including an adequate supply of good quality housing and the timely delivery of public infrastructure like energy, transport, water, flood defences and climate resilience.
Minister of State for Small Businesses, Retail and Employment, Alan Dillon said:
“Migrant workers play a vital role in Irish society in a number of industries, particularly in the health care and construction sectors. The increase of the quota for home carers will continue to support vital services for patients in Ireland and ensure some of the most vulnerable members of society can access the care they need. The addition of town planning officer to the Critical Skills Occupations List will ensure that this vital role is open to skilled workers from outside of the EEA and will provide much needed support to Ireland’s planning system.”
ENDS
Notes for editor
The Employment Permits System
Ireland’s policy is to promote the sourcing of labour and skills needs from within the workforce of Ireland, the European Union and other European Economic Area (EEA) states. Policy in relation to applications for employment permits remains focused on facilitating the recruitment from outside the EEA of skilled and highly skilled personnel, where the requisite skills cannot be met by normal recruitment or by training. Employment permit policy is part of the response to addressing skills deficits which exist and are likely to continue into the medium term, but it is not intended over the longer term to act as a substitute for meeting the challenge of up-skilling the State’s resident workforce, with an emphasis on the process of lifelong learning, and on maximising the potential of EEA nationals to fill our skills deficits.
The Occupations Lists
For the purposes of the employment permits system, occupations fall into three categories:
- Occupations listed on the Critical Skills Occupations List are highly skilled professional roles that are in high demand and are not always available in the resident labour force. Occupations on this list are eligible for a Critical Skills Employment Permit (CSEP) and include roles such as medicine, ICT, sciences, finance, and business.
- Ineligible occupations are those with evidence suggesting there are sufficient Irish/EEA workers to fill such vacancies. Employment permits are not granted for these occupations.
- Every other job in the labour market, where an employer cannot find a worker, is eligible for an employment permit. For these occupations, the employer is required to undertake a Labour Market Needs Test and if no-one suitable applies for the job, the employer is free to apply for an employment permit. Occupations such as these may be skills of a more general nature and are eligible for a General Employment Permit (GEP).
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