Irish officials officially welcomed the Employment Permits Act 2024 into law, bringing changes to the Employment Permits System.

Key Points:

• As BAL previously reported, the new act, which was signed into law on June 25, aims to consolidate and modernize existing law on the Employment Permit System within the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment.
• The act contains several key provisions to introduce a new employment permit for seasonal workers and dependents, streamline the labor market testing process and modify change of employer rules, among other changes.
• Officials provided additional details regarding these new provisions, including:
• The new seasonal employment permit will allow seasonal workers to be employed for seven months out of a calendar year.
• Employers are required to advertise positions on two online platforms, one of which is EURES (JobsIreland.ie), and both advertisements must be published for at least 28 days.
• Finally, employees on their first employment permit will be able to apply for a new work permit after nine months of working for their first employer.

Additional Information: Irish authorities are currently undertaking the largest ever expansion of the Employment Permits System and announced sweeping changes to key immigration programs to make it easier for non-EU/EEA nationals to work in key jobs. The government continues to make significant changes to their employment-based immigration system to modernize its systems and relax certain restrictive policies. The new act, now that it has been implemented, should make it easier for employers to attract international talent.