Green Card Permits

16-02-10

The Green Card permit is an employment permit for most occupations with annual salaries of over €60,000 or certain occupations where there are skill shortages.  The Green Card permit replaces the working visa and work authorisation which have been discontinued.

The main features of the Green Card scheme are:

• The Green Card permit is available for occupations with annual salaries of €60,000 or more
• It is also available for a restricted list of occupations with annual salaries of €30,000 to €59,999 in the following sectors of employment:
  • information and communications technology
  • healthcare
  • financial services and research
• There is no requirement for a labour market needs test
• The Green Card permit is issued for 2 years and a renewal permit is not required as it is intended to lead to the granting of long-term residence 
• Holders of a Green Card permit can have their spouses and families join them immediately
• Either the employer or the employee can apply for the employment permit, based on an offer of employment
• The permit is granted to the employee and includes a statement of the employee’s rights and entitlements
• A copy of the permit is sent to the employer
• The employer is prohibited from deducting recruitment expenses from the employee’s pay or retaining the employee’s personal documents

Employees working on employment permits are protected by employment legislation in exactly the same way as other employees.

Rules

Job offer

Non-EEA nationals must have a job offer from a company or employer who is registered with the Revenue Commissioners, trading in Ireland and registered with the Companies Registration Office.  They must be directly employed and paid by their employer in Ireland. Job offers from recruitment agencies and other intermediaries are not acceptable under the scheme. The job offer must be for 2 years or more.

Labour market needs test

As a labour market needs test is not required, employers do not need to advertise the job with FÁS/EURES or in newspapers. However, an employment permit will not be granted to companies if the granting of the permit would mean that more than 50% of the employees would be non-EEA nationals.

Qualifications

Non-EEA nationals must have the relevant qualifications, skills and experience required for the job.

Eligible occupations

There are 2 categories of eligible occupations as follows:

1. For jobs with annual salaries of €60,000 or more the Green Card permit is available for all occupations (other than certain ineligible job categories and those which are contrary to the public interest)
2. For jobs with annual salaries of €30,000 – €59,999 Green Card applications may be made for the following occupations listed below:

Eligible occupations (annual salary between €30,000 – €59,999)

Economic Sector	Occupation	Job Titles
Information Technology	ICT professional	Computer systems managers, Computer analysts, Computer programmers, Computer testers
Healthcare	Health professionals	Registered nurses, Medical practitioners, Specialist nurses, Pharmacists/Pharmacologists, Dental practitioners
Healthcare	Health associate professionals	Dieticians, Occupational therapists, Orthoptists, Medical scientists, ECG technicians, Neurophysiological measurement technicians, Cardiac catheterisation technicians, Vascular technicians, Respiratory technicians, GI function technicians, Audiologists, Biochemists, Medical radiographers
Industry	Professional engineers and technologists	Electrical, Software, Chemical, Design and development, Planning and quality control, Network, Validation, Product development, Process and Equality
Education/Healthcare/Industry	Researchers and natural scientists	Researchers, Chemists, Natural scientists, Biological scientists, Physicists, Material scientists
Financial	Business and financial professionals and associate professionals	Chartered and certified accountants, Actuaries, Management consultants, Business analysts, Risk professionals, Compliance specialists, Risk specialists, Tax experts, Legal experts

Intra-company transfer scheme

Since 1 February 2007 a new intra-company transfer scheme has been introduced. This scheme allows senior management, key personnel and trainees who are foreign nationals working in an overseas branch of a multi-national company to transfer to the Irish branch. The employee must be earning at least €40,000 a year and have been working for the company for a minimum of 12 months. An intra-company transfer permit may be granted for a maximum of 2 years initially and may be extended to a maximum of 5 years.  Applications for an intra-company transfer permit should be made by the host organisation in Ireland .

The fees for an intra-company transfer permit are as follows:

Permit	Fee	Duration
New	€500	Up to 6 months
New	€1,000	Up to 2 years
Renewal	€1,500	Up to 3 years

Changing job

In Ireland Green Card permit holders are expected to remain with their first employer for 12 months (unless there are exceptional circumstances). After that they may change employer provided that a new application for a Green Card permit is made.

Expiry of Green Card permit

Under the Immigration, Residence and Protection Bill 2008 it is proposed that non-EEA nationals should apply for long-term residence. Until this legislation is implemented there are temporary arrangements for Green Card permit holders.  Within 2 weeks of the expiry of a Green Card permit non-EEA nationals should apply to renew their permission to remain by registering with their local immigration officer.  The following documents are required: 

• Passport
• Certificate of Registration (GNIB card)
• Your Green Card permit
• Your most recent pay slip 

Provided that non-EEA nationals are still working in the same occupation, for the same employer and for at least the same salary as stated on their Green Card permit they will be given a Stamp 4 permission for one year. This allows them to work in Ireland without a permit. This is an interim arrangement. When the above legislation is implemented non-EEA nationals will still need to apply for long-term residence. 

If the immigration officer is not satisfied that you meet the qualifying criteria you will be given a Stamp 1 permission for 3 months and referred to the Employment Permits Section of the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment.  You should send a completed referral form to the Employment Permits Sections together with copies of documents such as your P60 and your last 3 pay slips.

It is recommended that employers conduct regular permit audits to ensure all employee permits are in date and are valid Irish work permits.  Employers should aim to have a photo ID on file for each member of staff e.g. copy of passport or drivers licence.   

For information on our HR Audit service or on Green card permits please contact HRP on 01 676 0006

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