S.I. No. 643/2025 - Employment Permits (Amendment) (No. 5) Regulations 2025

Notice of the making of this Statutory Instrument was published in

“Iris Oifigiúil” of 30th December, 2025.

I, ALAN DILLON, Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by sections 4 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 15 , 18 , 19 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 , 49 , 50 and 63 of the Employment Permits Act 2024 (No. 17 of 2024) (as adapted by the Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Alteration of Name of Department and Title of Minister) Order 2020 ( S.I. No. 519 of 2020 )) and the Enterprise, Tourism and Employment (Delegation of Ministerial Functions) Order 2025 ( S.I. No. 240 of 2025 ), hereby make the following regulations:

Citation

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Employment Permits (Amendment) (No. 5) Regulations 2025.

Commencement

2. (a) These Regulations (other than Regulations 18, 19 and 20) come into operation on 1 March 2026.

(b) Regulations 18, 19 and 20 come into operation on the day they are made.

Definitions

3. In these Regulations—

“Principal Regulations” means the Employment Permits Regulations 2024 ( S.I. No. 444 of 2024 );

“Regulations of 2024” means the Employment Permits (Amendment) (No. 4) Regulations 2024 ( S.I. No. 598 of 2024 ).

Amendment of Regulation 9 of Principal Regulations

4. Regulation 9(5)(b) of the Principal Regulations is amended by substituting “€68,911” for “€64,000”.

Amendment of Regulation 25 of Principal Regulations

5. The Principal Regulations are amended by substituting for Regulation 25 the following:

“Eligible employments for critical skills employment permit

25. The employments for which a critical skills employment permit may be granted are all employments other than employments listed in Schedule 4.”.

Amendment of Regulation 26 of Principal Regulations

6. Regulation 26 of the Principal Regulations is amended by substituting for paragraphs (a) and (b) the following:

“(a) the applicable annual remuneration and hourly rate of remuneration set out in Columns 2 and 3 of the table in Part 1 of Schedule 8, or

(b) in the case of employments listed in Schedule 3 which are bound by—

(i) a public sector pay agreement for employments in the public sector, including in organisations subject to funding under section 38 of the Health Act 2004 (No. 42 of 2004), or

(ii) a Workplace Relations Commission pay agreement linked to a public sector pay agreement for community and voluntary organisation employments,

the applicable annual remuneration and hourly rate of pay provided for in such agreement.”.

Amendment of Regulation 27 of Principal Regulations

7. Regulation 27 of the Principal Regulations is amended—

(a) in paragraph (1), by substituting “listed in Schedule 3” for “referred to in Regulation 25(a)”, and

(b) in paragraph (2), by substituting “all other employments other than those listed in Schedule 4” for “employments referred to in Regulation 25(b)”.

Amendment of Regulation 32 of Principal Regulations

8. The Principal Regulations are amended by substituting for Regulation 32 the following:

“Minimum amount of remuneration payable under dependant employment permit

32. The minimum amount of remuneration payable in respect of an employment, as a condition for the grant of a dependant employment permit in respect of it, is the applicable hourly rate of remuneration set out in Column 2 of the table in Part 2 of Schedule 8.”.

Amendment of Regulation 38 of Principal Regulations

9. The Principal Regulations are amended by substituting for Regulation 38 the following:

“Minimum amount of remuneration payable under general employment permit

38. The minimum amount of remuneration payable in respect of an employment, as a condition for the grant of a general employment permit in respect of it, is the applicable annual remuneration and hourly rate of remuneration set out in Columns 2 and 3 of the table in Part 3 of Schedule 8.”.

Amendment of Regulation 42 of Principal Regulations

10. Regulation 42(1)(a) of the Principal Regulations is amended by deleting “and for which the minimum annual remuneration is €46,000 and in respect of which the minimum hourly rate is €22.68, and”.

Amendment of Regulation 43 of Principal Regulations

11. The Principal Regulations are amended by substituting for Regulation 43 (as amended by Regulation 4 of the Regulations of 2024) the following:

“Minimum amount of remuneration payable under intra-company transfer employment permit

43. The minimum amount of remuneration payable in respect of an employment, as a condition for the grant of an intra-company transfer employment permit in respect of it, is the applicable annual remuneration and hourly rate of remuneration set out in Columns 2 and 3 of the table in Part 4 of Schedule 8.”.

Amendment of Regulation 51 of Principal Regulations

12. The Principal Regulations are amended by substituting for Regulation 51 the following:

“Minimum amount of remuneration payable under contract for service employment permit

51. The minimum amount of remuneration payable in respect of an employment, as a condition for the grant of a contract for service employment permit in respect of it, is the applicable annual remuneration and hourly rate of remuneration set out in Columns 2 and 3 of the table in Part 5 of Schedule 8.”.

Amendment of Regulation 58 of Principal Regulations

13. The Principal Regulations are amended by substituting for Regulation 58 the following:

“Minimum amount of remuneration payable under reactivation employment permit

58. The minimum amount of remuneration payable in respect of an employment, as a condition for the grant of a reactivation employment permit in respect of it, is the applicable hourly rate of remuneration set out in Column 2 of the table in Part 6 of Schedule 8.”.

Amendment of Regulation 62 of Principal Regulations

14. The Principal Regulations are amended by substituting for Regulation 62 the following:

“Minimum amount of remuneration payable under exchange agreement employment permit

62. The minimum amount of remuneration payable in respect of an employment, as a condition for the grant of an exchange agreement employment permit in respect of it, is the applicable hourly rate of remuneration set out in Column 2 of the table in Part 7 of Schedule 8.”.

Amendment of Regulation 66 of Principal Regulations

15. The Principal Regulations (as amended by Regulation 5 of the Regulations of 2024) are amended by substituting for Regulation 66 the following:

“Minimum amount of remuneration payable under sports and cultural employment permit

66. The minimum amount of remuneration payable in respect of an employment, as a condition for the grant of a sports and cultural employment permit in respect of it, is the applicable hourly rate of remuneration set out in Column 2 of the table in Part 8 of Schedule 8.”.

Amendment of Regulation 69 of Principal Regulations

16. The Principal Regulations (as amended by Regulation 5 of the Regulations of 2024) are amended by substituting for Regulation 69 the following:

“Minimum amount of remuneration payable under internship employment permit

69. The minimum amount of remuneration payable in respect of an employment, as a condition for the grant of an internship employment permit in respect of it, is the applicable hourly rate of remuneration set out in Column 2 of the table in Part 9 of Schedule 8.”.

Amendment of Regulation 72E of Principal Regulations

17. The Principal Regulations are amended by substituting for Regulation 72E (inserted by Regulation 9 of the Employment Permit (Amendment) (Seasonal Employment) Regulations 2025 ( S.I. No. 33 of 2025 )) the following:

“Minimum amount of remuneration payable under seasonal employment permit

72E. The minimum amount of remuneration payable in respect of an employment, as a condition for the grant of a seasonal employment permit in respect of it, is the applicable annual remuneration and hourly rate of remuneration set out in Columns 2 and 3 of the table in Part 10 of Schedule 8.”.

Amendment of Schedule 2 of Principal Regulations

18. The Principal Regulations are amended by substituting for Part B of Schedule 2 the following:

“Part B

Regulatory bodies or Government Minister from which or whom a copy of the registration or recognition of qualifications is required

Profession	Regulatory body responsible for registration or recognition of qualifications
Clinical Dental Technician	Dental Council
Dentist	Dental Council
Dental Hygienist	Dental Council
Dietician	CORU
Dispensing Optician	CORU
Medical Scientist	CORU
Occupational Therapist	CORU
Optometrist	CORU
Paramedic / Advanced Paramedic / Emergency Medical Technician	Pre-Hospital Emergency Care Council
Pharmacist	The Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland
Physical Therapist	CORU
Physiotherapist	CORU
Podiatrist/Chiropodists	CORU
Radiation Therapist	CORU
Radiographer	CORU
Social Care Worker	CORU
Social Worker	CORU
Specialist Dentist in Oral Surgery	Dental Council
Specialist Dentist in Orthodontics	Dental Council
Speech and Language Therapist	CORU
Veterinary Practitioner	Veterinary Council of Ireland
Veterinary Nurse	Veterinary Council of Ireland
Occupations where regulation is for purposes of access to public sector employment only
Audiologist	Minister for Health
Biochemist, Clinical Biochemist	Minister for Health
Environmental Health Officer	Minister for Health
Orthoptist	Minister for Health
Psychologist	Minister for Health
Physiologist/Technologist: Cardiac, Gastrointestinal, Respiratory, Vascular	Irish Institute of Clinical Measurement Physiology on behalf of the Minister for Health

”.

Amendment of Schedule 3 of Principal Regulations

19. Schedule 3 to the Principal Regulations is amended—

(a) by substituting for the entry at SOC-3 number 221 the following entry:

“

221	Health Professionals	2211	Medical practitioners
		2212	Psychologist
		2213	Pharmacist/Industrial Pharmacists
		2214	Optometrist
		2217	□ Radiographers □ Radiation therapists □ Cardiac physiologist □ Vascular technologists/physiologists □ Gastro Intestinal technologists/physiologists □ Respiratory physiologist
		2218	Podiatrist/Chiropodist
		2219	□ Audiologists □ Perfusionists □ Dietician □ Medical Scientist

”, and

(b) in the entry at SOC-4 number 3218, by deleting “Respiratory physiologist”.

Amendment of Schedule 5 to Principal Regulations

20. Schedule 5 (as amended by Regulation 5 of the Employment Permits (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2025 ( S.I. No. 64 of 2025 )) to the Principal Regulations is amended—

(a) in the entry for “Dairy Farm Assistant”,

(i) in Column 2, by substituting “850” for “406”, and

(ii) in Column 3, by substituting “upon the coming into operation of Regulation 20 of the Employment Permits (Amendment) (No. 5) Regulations 2025” for “2nd September 2024”, and

(b) in the entry for “Meat Processor Operative”,

(i) in Column 2, by substituting “1,000” for “311”, and

(ii) in Column 3, by substituting “upon the coming into operation of Regulation 20 of the Employment Permits (Amendment) (No. 5) Regulations 2025” for “2nd September 2024”.

Insertion of Schedule 8 into Principal Regulations

21. The Principal Regulations are amended by inserting after Schedule 7 (as amended by Regulation 6 of the Employment Permits (Amendment) (No. 3) Regulations 2024 ( S.I. No. 328 of 2024 )) the following Schedule:

“Regulations 26, 32, 38, 43, 51, 58, 62, 66, 69 and 72E

Schedule 8

Minimum remuneration under employment permits

Part 1

Critical skills employment permits

Column 1	Column 2	Column 3
Employments/qualifications	Minimum annual remuneration	Minimum hourly rate of remuneration
Employments listed in Schedule 3, where the applicant has a qualification referred to in Regulation 27(1)(a) or (b)	€40,904	€20.17
Employments listed in Schedule 3, where the applicant has a qualification referred to in Regulation 27(1)(c), level 8 or higher, or equivalent, obtained within the 12 month period prior to the date of application for the employment permit	€36,848	€18.17
Employments listed in Schedule 3, where the applicant has a qualification referred to in Regulation 27(1)(c) obtained more than 12 months prior to the date of application for the employment permit	€40,904	€20.17
All other eligible employments referred to in Regulation 27(2)	€68,911	€33.98

Part 2

Dependant employment permits

Column 1	Column 2
Employments	Minimum hourly rate of remuneration
All eligible employments	Statutory minimum hourly rate of remuneration

Part 3

General employment permits

Column 1	Column 2	Column 3
Employments/qualifications	Minimum annual remuneration	Minimum hourly rate of remuneration
Health care assistant, care worker or home carer	€32,691	€16.12
Horticulture worker or meat processor operative	€32,691	€16.12
Other eligible employments, where the applicant has a third level degree qualification, level 8 or higher, included on the Irish Register of Qualifications, relevant to the employment concerned, awarded within the 12 month period prior to the date of application for the employment permit	€34,009	€16.77
All other eligible employments	€36,605	€18.05

Part 4

Intra-company transfer employment permits

Column 1	Column 2	Column 3
Employments	Minimum annual remuneration	Minimum hourly rate of remuneration
Employments referred to in Regulation 42(1)(a)	€49,523	€24.42
Employments referred to in Regulation 42(1)(b)	€36,605	€18.05

Part 5

Contract for services employment permits

Column 1	Column 2	Column 3
Employments	Minimum annual remuneration	Minimum hourly rate of remuneration
All eligible employments	€49,523	€24.42

Part 6

Reactivation employment permits

Column 1	Column 2
Employments	Minimum hourly rate of remuneration
All eligible employments	Statutory minimum hourly rate of remuneration

Part 7

Exchange agreement employment permits

Column 1	Column 2
Employments	Minimum hourly rate of remuneration
All eligible employments	Statutory minimum hourly rate of remuneration

Part 8

Sports and cultural employment permits

Column 1	Column 2
Employments	Minimum hourly rate of remuneration
All eligible employments	Statutory minimum hourly rate of remuneration

Part 9

Internship employment permits

Column 1	Column 2
Employments	Minimum hourly rate of remuneration
All eligible employments	Statutory minimum hourly rate of remuneration

Part 10

Seasonal employment permits

Column 1	Column 2	Column 3
Employments	Minimum annual remuneration	Minimum hourly rate of remuneration
All eligible employments	€30,000	€14.79

”.

GIVEN under my hand,

17 December 2025

ALAN DILLON,

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Instrument and does not purport to be a legal interpretation.)

These Regulations are made under the Employment Permits Act 2024 . They amend the Employment Permits Regulations 2024 by changing the minimum remuneration payable in respect of employment as a condition of certain employment permits, increasing the quota of General Employment Permits for employment as a dairy farm assistant and meat processor operative and updating Schedules 2 and 3.

These Regulations may be cited as the Employment Permits (Amendment) (No. 5) Regulations 2025.