Rules

Work permits are issued by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Innovation. Either the employer or the employee can apply for the permit which must be based on an offer of employment – see 'How to apply' below.

Applications for work permits fall into 2 categories as follows:
(a) Jobs with an annual salary of €30,000 or more
(b) Jobs with an annual salary of less than €30,000 - these are only considered in exceptional cases
However applications for jobs in either category will not be considered if they are for occupations listed as ineligible - see list below.
Bulgarian and Romanian nationals: the 2007 eligibility requirements and 2007 ineligible categories list (pdf) apply to work permit applications by Bulgarian and Romanian nationals. The 2009 changes to work permits do not apply to them.