Tag Archive for: IMMIGRATION IRELAND

UPDATES TO EMPLOYMENT PERMITS SYSTEM TO ADDRESS ONGOING SKILLS AND LABOUR SHORTAGES ACROSS KEY SECTORS ANNOUNCED

UPDATES TO EMPLOYMENT PERMITS SYSTEM TO ADDRESS ONGOING SKILLS AND LABOUR SHORTAGES ACROSS KEY SECTORS ANNOUNCED

The Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment Peter Burke, and Minister of State with Special Responsibility for Retail, Small Businesses and Employment Alan Dillon, have announced updates to Ireland’s employment permits system.

These updates, published on 28th May 2026, aim to address ongoing skills and labour shortages across key sectors, in the EU construction sector, the healthcare sector, the transport sector, and the agri-food sectors.

6 roles have been recommended to be made eligible for Critical Skills Employment Permits (CSEPs), whilst 9 roles are recommended to be made eligible for General Employment Permits (GEPs).

2 roles have also been recommended to be made eligible for GEPs subject to newly established quotas. 15 roles are recommended to have their existing GEP quotas renewed.

The Government has also approved a proposal to begin preparations to amend the Employment Permits Act 2024. The amendments relate to the criteria that restricts the number of employment permits individual employers can hold, known as the “50:50” rule. The “50:50 rule” means an employer must ensure at least 50% of its workforce are UK/EEA nationals.

For Healthcare Assistants, in Nursing Homes, Disability Care, and Homecare, the findings of an internal review of the impact of this rule on this sector found that flexibility of the 50:50 rule is required to sustain long-term care capacity.

A summary of the changes to the CSEP and GEP procedure is below:

Occupations added to Critical Skills Occupation List:

  • Agronomist
  • Construction Planner/Scheduler
  • Community Eye Care
  • Intellectual Property Professionals
  • Geospatial Surveyor (also known as Land Surveyor and Geomatics Surveyor)
  • Riggers (within the Games Industry)

Occupations removed from Ineligible Occupations List, making them eligible for a General Employment Permit:

  • Pharmaceutical Technicians (Healthcare specific)
  • Dentistry – Dental Hygienist
  • Plastic Lining Technicians
  • Steel Fixers
  • Fencing Operators / Erectors
  • Curtain Wallers
  • Printers
  • Industrial Machine Knitter
  • Concrete Pump Operator

Occupations eligible for a General Employment Permit under Quota 

New Quota:

  • Fish Filleters
  • Seafood Operative

Renewed Quota:

  • Hotel and accommodation managers and proprietors
  • Restaurant / catering establishment managers and proprietors
  • Publicans and managers of licensed premises
  • Catering and Bar Managers
  • Support Worker
  • HGV/Bus Mechanics
  • Car/ Motor Mechanic, Auto Electrician, Vehicle Technician
  • Vehicle Body Builders / Repairers / Body Shop Panel Beaters
  • Vehicle Paint Technicians
  • Automotive Technician
  • Butcher
  • Home Support Services
  • Meat Processor Operative (Dec 2025)
  • Farm Workers – Dairy Farm Assistants (Dec 2025)
  • Horticulture Operative

The full report can be found here: Employment Permits Occupations Lists: Report of the Review 2025

If you have any queries relating to Employment Permits please contact Berkeley Solicitors to arrange a consultation with one of our experienced legal advisors.

This blog article has been prepared on the basis of current immigration law and policy, which is subject to change. Please keep an eye on our blog and Facebook page where articles relating to updates and changes in immigration law and policy are regularly posted.

NEW POLICY DOCUMENT ON NON-EEA FAMILY REUNIFICATION INTRODUCES REQUIREMENTS TO PROVIDE EVIDENCE OF SUITABLE ACCOMMODATION AND ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR CATEGORY C SPONSORS

NEW POLICY DOCUMENT ON NON-EEA FAMILY REUNIFICATION INTRODUCES REQUIREMENTS TO PROVIDE EVIDENCE OF SUITABLE ACCOMMODATION AND ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR CATEGORY C SPONSORS

The Department of Justice has published a new Policy Document on Non-EEA Family Reunification on 12th June 2026.

This Policy Document has introduced substantial amendments to the visa application procedure for all categories of Sponsor intending to sponsor a visa application for a non-EEA family member to join them in Ireland.

Category C Sponsors are defined by the Policy Document as follows:

  1. General Employment Permit holders,
  2. Reactivation Employment Permit holders,
  3. Stamp 4 holders not covered by other categories set out in Category B, who are eligible to sponsor a family reunification application.

Refugees and beneficiaries of subsidiary protection who are eligible to apply for a visa under the Policy are also now considered Category C Sponsors.

The new Policy Document has introduced additional requirements for Category C Sponsors to show they have suitable accommodation to accommodate their family members in Ireland should the visa be approved.

Paragraph 9.3 of the new Policy Document states as follows:

‘Category C sponsors must present documentary evidence that they can provide suitable accommodation for their family members, both in terms of its size in relation to the number of family members applied for and any other financial/housing obligations, without recourse to public funds.’

The new Policy Document sets out at Appendix E that, at a minimum, the sponsor must provide evidence of suitable accommodation such that family members will not be living in overcrowded conditions. In practice, there should be at least:

  • One bedroom, which the sponsor and spouse/partner may share;
  • One additional bedroom for every two (2) children; and
  • Enough bedrooms such that no child over ten years old must sleep in the same room with a child of the opposite sex.

The new Policy Document also states that, where children are concerned, there must not be any unrelated adults at the property, and the entire unit must be rented/owned by the Sponsor. Tenancies must also be registered with the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB), and a copy of the Registration Confirmation Letter issued by the RTB and a completed ACCOM1 form must be provided.

The Policy provides that proof of suitable accommodation is not required at the initial point of application, but the visa officer may request this at a later stage. If the sponsor does not provide proof of suitable accommodation within 6 months of it being requested, the application may be refused.

The new Policy Document also provides that Sponsors in all categories must not be resident in homeless accommodation, other State funded emergency accommodation, accommodation provided by the International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS), social housing or local authority housing. Where a sponsor is in receipt of a social housing support, such as the Housing Assistance Payment, they also may not meet the requirements of the Policy.

For applications involving minor children, the Policy Document has provided updated minimum net income thresholds in line with the updated Working Family Payment (WFP).

Berkeley Solicitors is available to provide advice and support for anyone commencing the visa application process.

This blog article has been prepared on the basis of current immigration law and policy, which is subject to change. Please keep an eye on our blog and Facebook page where articles relating to updates and changes in immigration law and policy are regularly posted.

NEW POLICY DOCUMENT ON NON-EEA FAMILY REUNIFICATION INTRODUCES REQUIREMENTS TO PROVIDE EVIDENCE OF SUITABLE ACCOMMODATION AND ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR CATEGORY C SPONSORS

NEW POLICY DOCUMENT ON NON-EEA FAMILY REUNIFICATION PUBLISHED 12TH JUNE 2026 INTRODUCES SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES FOR REFUGEES AND BENEFICIARIES OF SUBSIDIARY PROTECTION

The Department of Justice has published a new Policy Document on Non-EEA Family Reunification on 12th June 2026.

This Policy Document has introduced substantial amendments to the visa application procedure for all categories of Sponsor intending to sponsor a visa application for a non-EEA family member to join them in Ireland.

The new Policy Document provides that refugees and beneficiaries of subsidiary protection will only be able to apply for family members under this Policy where their application does not fall within the scope of the International Protection Act 2026.

Such Sponsors may only apply under this Policy Document where there has been a minimum waiting period of 2 years from the date they were granted International Protection. Such Sponsors can only apply under this Policy where the application is regarding a relationship that formed after the sponsor’s entry to Ireland.

Refugees and subsidiary protection holders who meet the above criteria will be assessed under the Policy Document as Category C Sponsors.

The new Policy Document also provides that Sponsors in all categories must not be resident in homeless accommodation, other State funded emergency accommodation, accommodation provided by the International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS), social housing or local authority housing. Where a sponsor is in receipt of a social housing support, such as the Housing Assistance Payment, they also may not meet the requirements of the Policy.

Any application concerning a family member where the relationship was formed prior to the Sponsor’s entry to Ireland must be submitted under the International Protection Act 2026.

Berkeley Solicitors is available to provide advice and support for refugees commencing the Family Reunification application process.

This blog article has been prepared on the basis of current immigration law and policy, which is subject to change. Please keep an eye on our blog and Facebook page where articles relating to updates and changes in immigration law and policy are regularly posted.

Clients of Berkeley Solicitors win their judicial review case before the High Court in N.I. V MJE 2022 / 442 /JR

Clients of Berkeley Solicitors win their judicial review case before the High Court in N.I. V MJE 2022 / 442 /JR

Berkeley Solicitors would like to congratulate our clients who have received a positive judgement from the High Court today in their Judicial review proceedings.

The applicant, a minor Somali citizen, issued proceedings through her aunt and next friend challenging a decision of the Minister for Justice to refuse the her visa appeal to join her aunt and family in Ireland following the death of both her parents in Somalia.

We argued on behalf of our clients that the Minister acted in breach of fair procedures on a number of grounds. In refusing to grant the visa, it was submitted that the Minister failed to fully consider the best interests of the applicant in light of her particularly vulnerable position as a 14-year-old orphan residing outside her country of origin, without familial support.

It was submitted by the Respondent that the Applicant had failed to show sufficient evidence of a familial link between the applicant and the sponsor. Furthermore, it was submitted that the sponsor did not prove that she ‘is, or ever had been, socially or financially dependent on the sponsor’. The Minister also considered that the adoption of the Applicant was not recognisable under Irish law in light of the fact that there is no bilateral treaty in existence between Ireland and Somalia governing adoptions and similarly, that Somalia is not a party to the Hague Convention.

As a result, the Minister held that neither Article 41 of the Constitution nor Article 8 of the ECHR protecting the right to family life were applicable to the Applicant and the sponsor.
In setting aside the decision of the Minister, Mr Justice Barr held that the decision maker erred on a number of grounds in failing to recognise that a 14-year old orphan, ‘without any family support in a very unstable country, was not in an extremely vulnerable position, such that it constituted exceptional circumstances’.

Acknowledging the importance of family reunification in situations where individuals had fled persecution, Justice Barr held the Respondent was wrong in concluding that ‘there was no documentary evidence of familial relationship between the applicant and sponsor’. It was accepted that a number of important documents to this effect had been submitted by the Applicant, including a court order transferring guardianship of the application to the sponsor.

Furthermore, the emphasis placed by the decision maker on the issue of adoption as a basis for refusal, ‘an argument that was never put forward by the applicant, nor was put to her for comment’, was held to have breached the applicants right to fair procedure, rendering the decision ‘fatally flawed’.

Referring to the case of Tanda-Muzinga v France (2260/2010), the following passage was highlighted by the Court:
‘there exists a consensus at international and European level on the need for refugees to benefit from a family reunification procedure that is more favourable than that foreseen for other aliens, as evidenced by the remit and the activities of the UNHCR and the standards set out in Directive 2003/86 EC of the European Union’.

It was highlighted by the Court that this obligation is envisioned under Irish law in s.56 of the International Protection Act, 2015. Similarly, in line with our duties under Article 10.1 of the Convention of the Rights of the Child, that ‘applications by a child or his or her parents to enter or leave a State Party for the purpose of family reunification shall be dealt with by States Parties in a positive, humane and expeditious manner’.

Significantly, it was held that the Appeals officer hadn’t sufficiently considered ‘the extremely adverse consequences’ the refusal decision represented for the applicant. As a result, the Court held that the decision clearly constituted ‘exceptional circumstances of a humanitarian nature, which would have justified a departure from the financial requirements of the policy’.
The Judgement will be available on the High Court webpage in the coming days.

Our office wishes to congratulate our clients on this positive development in their case today and would also like to thank our counsel for their dedicated work on this case.

UPDATED INFORMATION ISSUED BY THE IMMIGRATION SERVICE DELIVERY RELATING TO SHORT STAY VISAS AND STAMP 3 PERMISSION HOLDERS

The Immigration Service Delivery has recently updated their set of frequently asked questions relating to Covid-19 and its effects on immigration permissions in the State.

The set of questions has addressed concerns of those regarding their ability to financially support themselves in the State whilst holding visitor visas and Stamp 3 permission that has been extended during Covid-19.

Addressing the query of such permission holder’s ability to take up employment, the ISD have reiterated that the renewal of permission allows you to remain in the State on the “current conditions” in which you are resident in the State and therefore may not take up employment if you are here on a visitor visa or on Stamp 3.

However, the ISD have mentioned a possible exception to this rule confirming that people on visitor permissions may apply for a change of status, stating that “in light of the current COVID-19 crisis, the Minister for Justice and Equality may examine a situation on a case by case basis in which a person in the State wishes to change permission to allow them to take up employment with the HSE, as per the HSE’s “Be on Call for Ireland” campaign. The person would have to show the Minister evidence of a job offer from the HSE, where the job offer is for a period beyond the two-month extension referred to”.

Referring to the “Be On Call for Ireland” Campaign, the updated notice details that if you are on Stamp 3 and have experience in the area of healthcare you are encouraged to contact the HSE in this regard. Should you qualify under the campaign, you are asked to provide written confirmation of same to INIS in order to apply for change of immigration permission.

This is a very encouraging clarification and we would submit that the Minister should continue to promote self-sufficiency in the State to those who are able to take up employment. These possible avenues to apply for a change of status provides an opportunity for people to contribute to the State in a positive way, especially during the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

We submit that during the present pandemic, the importance of employment and the dignity attached to work and employment has been highlighted. We submit that Stamp 3 is always an inappropriate stamp for an adult person who is willing and able to work. 

We at Berkeley Solicitors are happy to advise anyone on their queries relating to their immigration Status in the State or on any possible avenue to making a change of status application during Covid-19.

The Be On Call for Ireland Campaign can be accessed here.

The full updated set of FAQs can be read in full here.