Ireland's New Employment Permit Arrangements

February 2007POEA MARKET UPDATE NO. 08-07IRELAND'S NEW EMPLOYMENT PERMIT ARRANGEMENTSOn 1 February 2007, Ireland implemented new economic and employment permit arrangements which catered to highly skilled workers under Employment Permits Act of 2003 and 2006. The employment arrangement replaced the work visa/work authorization system introduced in 2000. The new arrangement reflected a shift in the economic regulation policy of Ireland, to help the country meet its objective of becoming an innovation-driven and knowledge-based economy.The new categories of employment permits under the Irish Employment Permits Act are:• The Green Card Scheme is intended for occupations where Ireland has strategically important high level skills shortages. The scheme is available for an extensive list of occupations with annual salaries of €60,000 and above, and for a specified list of occupations with salaries between €30,000 and €60,000. The list includes professional and associate professional occupations such as information and communications technology, health care, construction, engineering, financial services, and research sectors. The green cards are issued initially for 2 years and normally lead to the granting of permanent or long-term...