Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 21 April 2026
474. Deputy Michael Murphy asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment the engagement he has had with employer representative bodies regarding difficulties in recruiting staff due to restrictive employment permit criteria; whether his Department is considering reforms to better align the permit system with current labour market demands; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28567/26]
View answerThe purpose of the employment permits system is to support enterprise growth and economic activity, while at the same time ensuring that employment opportunities for the domestic and EEA workforce are protected. The system is designed to strike an appropriate balance between facilitating access to international labour where genuine shortages exist and maintaining safeguards for the domestic and EEA workforce.
I am acutely aware of the challenges experienced by employers across the economy in securing sufficient labour. My Department takes an integrated approach to addressing labour and skills shortages through periodic reviews of the eligibility of occupations for employment permits, ongoing engagement with government departments, sector representatives, and research experts.
The employment permits system is flexible and adjustment to eligibility is based on evidence and data on the workforce, shortages, challenges and current and future expansion plans of a sector. The reasoning and decision making process in determining changes or extensions to quotas is considered by the Interdepartmental Group on Economic Migration Policy which includes representatives of key policy government departments.
Through this engagement, a key mechanism for achieving this responsiveness is the periodic reviews of the Critical Skills Occupations List and the Ineligible Occupations List. These reviews are informed by labour market data, vacancy and earnings trends, analysis from relevant skills bodies, and submissions received from stakeholders. This includes research and analysis from bodies such as the SOLAS Skills and Labour Market Research Unit (SLMRU), and the Expert Group on Future Skills Needs (EGFSN). This ongoing analysis, incorporating stakeholder participation, informs policy development and supports efforts to ensure that the permits system remains responsive to current and emerging skills and workforce requirements, particularly where shortages are sustained or structural in nature.
An occupation may be considered for change on the occupations lists, or provision by quota, on the basis of evidence and provided:
• there are no suitable Irish/EEA nationals available to undertake the work;
• development opportunities for Irish/EEA nationals are not undermined;
• genuine skills shortage exists and that it is not a recruitment or retention problem;
• education, training, employment and economic development policies are supported; and
• the skill shortage exists across the occupation, despite attempts by industry to train and attract Irish/EEA nationals to available jobs.
Applicants for an employment permit are subject to a range of conditions including a bone fide offer of employment, minimum remuneration, appropriate skills and qualifications, minimum hours of work. A measured approach, such as the use of quotas, can also be taken to the grant of non-EEA labour supply in certain sectors or subsectors to ensure the testing of the labour market and the integration of a new cohort of workers in a balanced manner.
It is important to note that employment permit policy is part of the response to addressing skills deficits which exist and are likely to continue into the medium term. It is not intended to act as a long term substitute for meeting the challenge of up-skilling Ireland’s resident workforce, and is instead focused on maximising the potential of EEA nationals to fill our skills deficits.
In this context, my Department has recently concluded a review of the occupations lists, following a public consultation conducted last year. This review examined a broad range of occupations and sectors where recruitment challenges have been identified. The findings of the review are currently being finalised and will be reported shortly, with any approved changes to the occupations lists to be implemented in line with established procedures.
My Department will continue to engage closely with stakeholders and will actively review and refine the employment permits system to ensure that it meets labour market demands, supports enterprise and economic growth, and remains fair, responsive and aligned with Ireland’s wider economic and social needs.
