(Ireland’s Employment Permits (Amendment) Act is set to take effect Oct. 1. In a series of alerts, BAL will highlight the major changes to help prepare employers for this overhaul of Ireland’s employment permit regime.)

IMPACT – HIGH

What is the change? The Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation (DJEI) will roll out new application forms for the nine new employment permit categories and will not provide a grace period after it is introduced Oct. 1.

What does the change mean? Companies sponsoring foreign work permits must submit applications on the new forms starting Oct. 1.

  • Implementation timeframe: Oct. 1.
  • Visas/permits affected: Employment permits.
  • Who is affected: Employers and foreign nationals applying and renewing employment permits.
  • Impact on processing times: Delays are anticipated with the rollout of the new form, which will not be available until Oct. 1.
  • Business impact: Employers should be prepared for congestion and delays as everyone adjusts to the new system.
  • Next steps: In addition to the new employment permit application forms, companies should also be aware that starting Oct. 1, only electronic payment will be accepted.

Background: Starting Oct. 1, DJEI will make available online the new application forms corresponding to the nine new employment permit categories and will accept only the new forms.

Applicants who submitted the old application form and who have passed the pre-check process by Sept. 30 will still be processed after Oct. 1.

BAL Analysis: Employers who want to pass pre-check before Sept. 30 must work with their BAL attorney to submit a completed and fully authorized form with a payment check this week; otherwise they will have to wait until Oct. 1 and submit their application using the new forms.

This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice group in the United Kingdom. For additional information, please contact uk@bal.com.

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