Ireland Critical Skills Employment Work Permit Visa

For those foreign national who are not from the EU, EEA, or Switzerland and they want to settle in Ireland. They can get an employment permit for the country. The Irish Department of Business, Enterprise, and Innovation (DBEI) issues the work permits.

The Employment Permit for Ireland is subject to some rules, which include that one should be assessed if he is suitable for the job or not.

With the help of work permits, Ireland can also fill the position and meet the labour market demand. This is where the Critical Skills Employment Permit comes in.

Critical Skills Permit

They are very important for the country's economic growth as they help meet the labour market demand. The employment letter is given to foreign nationals who are highly skilled and they can contribute to the development of Irish economy.

Irish employers have the right to hire individuals who are highly skilled workers without the need to pass a Labour Market Needs Test. However, they will have to prove that they couldn’t find any other suitable candidate for the job.

The long stay visa – D visa is given to applicants depending on their nationalities. The applicant is free to apply for the work visa once they have received the employment permit from DBEI.

Critical Skills Employment Permit eligibility

If you wish to be eligible for the Critical Skills Employment Permit, your occupation needs to be a part of the “Highly Skilled Eligible Occupations List” of DBEI.

According to the DBEI, the applicant becomes eligible for the Critical Skills Employment permit if he/ she is a highly skilled professional in the following fields/occupations:

• Natural and Social Science (chemists, biologists, biochemists, physicists, and medical laboratory scientists)
• Design
• Sports and Fitness
• Sales, Marketing and Related Associate
• Engineering
• Orthoptics
• Health Associate (prosthetists, orthotists)
• Teaching and Education (Academics with the equivalent of an NFQ level 10 (Doctoral degree))
• Business, Research and Administration
• Architecture (Town Planners and Surveyors)
• Quality and Regulatory

Information and communications technology (ICT)

• Health (Medical practitioners, pharmacists, etc
• Health and Social Services (Managers and Directors)
• Nursing and Midwifery
• Media (Art Director in 2D or 3D animation)
• Artistic, Literary and Media

Apart from these, there are some requirements that need to be filled by the applicant -

• Your salary. There are two categories with respect to the minimum annual salary that the applicant is expected to have:
• €32,000 per year for occupations included on DBEI’s “Highly Skilled Eligible Occupations List”
• €64,000 for all other occupations unless they are considered ineligible by the DBEI.
• The applicant needs to have a contract job where a job offer for a minimum of two years duration should be with the applicant.
• The applicant needs to have adequate qualifications, skills and experience.
• The EU/ EEA nationals in the company should be at least 50% of the company’s employers when they hire you. Further, you will have to stay with your employer for at least 12 months with a Critical Skills Employment Permit. Afterwards, you are allowed to change employers.

What are the Critical Skills Employment Permit Requirements?

The documents needed to apply for the Critical Skills Employment Permit are –

• Passport size photographs
• Passport
• A signed copy of the contract between you and your employer
• Contact details: Address, PIN, Position in company, etc
• Copy of the letter of support by IDA/Enterprise Ireland, if applicable.
• Details of any previous visas you have received/been rejected, if applicable.
• Details of your employer: Registered and trading name of their company/business, Details on the type and nature of their company/business. And Registration number of the employer and the company name and address
• Details of your employment: Your title, duties and responsibilities. The location and Duration of your employment.