Employment Permits Act 2024 - New legislation comes into effect on 2 September 2024

On 28 August 2024, the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Peter Burke TD, signed the commencement order and regulations for the Employment Permits Act 2024, with the legislation to come into effect on Monday 2 September 2024.

The Act applies to non-EEA nationals who seek eligible employment and residence in the State. The new Act consolidates and modernises legislation in the employment permits space in the interests of both permit holders and employers.

A non-exhaustive overview of key developments is set out below. The Department has provided further guidance in an information note published on its website:
Employment Permits Act 2024: Information note on key changes

• Streamlined Labour Market Needs Test: A simplified process reflective of modern advertising practices, dispensing with the need for a role to be advertised in print media across the EEA prior to a permit being sought. Vacancies can now be published online only.
  
• Change of Employer – GEP (General Employment Permit) and CSEP (Critical Skills Employment Permit): Provision now for these permit holders to change their permit employer to another employer after nine months (previously 12 months) on their first permit in the State.
  
  Provisions include that a GEP holder can apply to change to an employer within the same type of employment – e.g. a meat processing operative can move to another meat processing role. The holder of a CSEP can change to an employer across a broader range of employments, for example, different engineering roles.
  
  
• Progression within the role: removal of the requirement for the permit holder to undertake a new employment permit application process where they have been granted a promotion or uplift with the current employer.

• Dependent Employment Permit: The Dependent/Partner/Spouse Employment Permit has been amended to facilitate dependents of Critical Skills Employment Permit holders and Researchers under Directive 2005/71/EC. Spouses and partners of these non-EEA nationals can apply to the Department of Justice for immigration permission giving them access to the labour market without the need to hold an employment permit.

• Index of minimum annual remuneration: The legislation allows the Minister to carry out an annual remuneration review. This new provision aims to keep remuneration thresholds in line with average wage growth and to prevent stagnation.

• Seasonal Employment Permit (SEP): This is a new short-term employment permit for a non-EEA national to work for a maximum of 7 months per calendar year in a seasonally recurrent employment, such as soft fruit picking. It is designed to support particular sectors, such as horticulture and agriculture, in meeting labour shortages. It will be renewable across multiple years for the set calendar season. Appropriate arrangements for the provision of accommodation and health insurance will be included in the scheme. The permit will be introduced in a limited pilot scheme for the horticulture sector in 2025. In order to access the scheme, employers will be required to apply annually to become registered pre-approved seasonal employers. The scheme also provides the option for SEP holders to transfer their SEP to another Approved Seasonal Employer.

• In a separate welcome development, a new quota of 500 permits will be granted to the home care sector – for home carers. This is a timely measure given our ageing population and the demand for home-carers, and the stated commitment in both Sláintecare and the Programme for Government to offering the right care, in the right place at the right time and enabling older people to remain living as independently as possible in their own homes for as long as they can.

Skills and Social Policy, Ibec
29/08/24