How to find a job in Ireland as a foreigner

EU/EEA and Swiss citizens can live and work in Ireland without a work permit, on the same pay and conditions as Irish nationals. UK citizens can too, under the Common Travel Area, which still applies after Brexit. If that is you, you are competing on your CV alone, and you can start the moment you accept an offer.

Everyone else needs either an employment permit or an immigration permission that already allows work. The employment permit is tied to a specific job offer from an employer trading in Ireland, so the order is: offer first, permit second, travel third. The two main permits are the Critical Skills Employment Permit and the General Employment Permit. People who already hold Stamp 4, graduates on Stamp 1G and the spouses and partners of most permit holders can work without one.

Young people from ten countries, including Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the US and Japan, can also come on a Working Holiday Authorisation. The Ireland work permit guide compares every route, with salary thresholds and fees.

The clearest official signal is the Critical Skills Occupations List. It names the jobs the government considers in short supply, and those roles get the faster, more generous permit. The main groups are:

• ICT: software developers, IT architects and business analysts, project managers and web developers.
• Engineering: civil, structural, mechanical, electrical, electronics, process and quality engineers.
• Health: medical practitioners, registered nurses and midwives, pharmacists, radiographers, physiotherapists, occupational and speech and language therapists, paramedics.
• Finance and business: accountants and tax specialists, actuaries, statisticians and data analytics specialists.
• Construction and built environment: architects, quantity surveyors, construction project managers and planners, BIM coordinators.
• Science, social work and animation: chemical, biological and physical scientists in industry, social workers and 2D/3D animation artists.

The flip side is the Ineligible Occupations List. No permit is granted for most administrative, sales, retail, customer-service, cleaning, driving and elementary roles, or for many trades, whatever the salary. There are named exceptions, such as experienced chefs outside fast-food outlets. The lists change: a review confirmed in May 2026 added agronomists, construction planners and intellectual property professionals, among others, to the critical skills list. Check the current list before you apply, not a blog from last year.

Use one public portal, two big job boards and one channel specific to your field. Spreading yourself thinner rarely helps.

• JobsIreland.ie: the Department of Social Protection’s free job portal. Employers who need a labour market test for a permit must advertise here, so it is the first place many permit-eligible roles appear.
• IrishJobs.ie and Jobs.ie: long-established private job boards covering most sectors, from finance to operations.
• LinkedIn: used by many tech, pharma and multinational employers and by recruiters looking for candidates. Keep your location and headline current.
• publicjobs.ie: the recruitment service for the civil and public service. The HSE advertises health jobs on its own careers site.
• gradireland: graduate programmes and internships, if you are early in your career.
• Recruitment agencies: useful in finance, IT, engineering and healthcare. Agencies must be licensed and cannot charge you for registering.

Most private employers ask for a CV and cover letter, or an online application form. Public bodies almost always use forms with fixed questions and a strict closing date: a late form may not be considered at all. You only add a photo if the form asks for one. The Irish CV guide covers format, referees and cover letters.

You may be interviewed by one person or by a panel. Expect competency questions: “Tell us about a time you…”. Prepare five or six stories with a clear result, using the STAR method. Expect questions about your motivation for Ireland specifically, and have your right-to-work answer ready in one sentence.

Employers commonly check references before confirming an offer, so line up two referees before you start applying. If you are already employed in Ireland, the legal minimum notice your employer must give rises with service, starting at one week for 13 weeks to two years. Your contract may set longer notice, so check it before you agree a start date.

Many Irish employers have never applied for a permit and assume it is slow or risky. Make it easy for them. Either you or the employer can apply online, and the rules are published. Give the hiring manager a short brief:

• Which permit fits and why, for example “Critical Skills: my job is on the list and the salary is above €40,904”.
• For a General Employment Permit: the job must first be advertised with JobsIreland/EURES and one other online platform for 28 consecutive days, unless an exemption applies.
• The 50:50 rule: at least half of the company’s employees must be EEA nationals, with narrow exceptions for supported start-ups.
• The fee is €1,000 for a two-year permit, and an employer who applies may not recover it from your pay.

Do these in order. Each one makes the next easier.

• Register your immigration permission (non-EEA nationals). Book an appointment through the Immigration Service Delivery portal within 90 days of arrival. First registrations are at Burgh Quay in Dublin, appointments are normally available within 2–3 weeks, and the IRP card costs €300.
• Get a PPS number, your personal reference number for tax, social welfare and public services. You need your passport and proof of address dated within the last 3 months, such as a tenancy agreement or a letter from your landlord. With a basic MyGovID account you apply on MyWelfare, attend an in-person appointment and receive the number by post.
• Register your first job with Revenue. Sign up for myAccount and add the job under PAYE Services. Your employer needs your PPS number and the registered job to avoid deducting Emergency Tax from your first pay.
• Open an Irish bank account so your employer can pay your salary into it.

For EU/EEA and UK citizens, the search itself is the timeline: plan for several months in a competitive field, less in a shortage one. For everyone else, add the permit on top. On 11 September 2026 the Department was processing Critical Skills applications received on 3 September and new General Employment Permit applications received on 6 August. General Employment Permits also need the 28-day advertisement first, and the rules say to apply 12 weeks before the start date.

Budget for the gap between offer and first salary: flights, a rental deposit of up to a month’s rent, the IRP fee and a few weeks of living costs. Finding somewhere to live often takes longer than finding the job, so start looking before you arrive.

Fake offers aimed at people who need sponsorship are common. Walk away if you see any of these:

• A fee to “process your work permit” or “guarantee a visa”. Permits are decided by the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment through its own Employment Permits Online system, and an employer who applies may not recover the fee from you.
• An agency that charges you to register. Licensed agencies cannot charge job seekers for that basic service.
• An interview only by text message, or a conversation that moves from a company email to WhatsApp or Telegram.
• An offer that arrives before any real interview, or a salary far above the market for the role.

Check that the company exists and is trading in Ireland, and contact it through the website you found yourself, not the one in the message.

Intreo offices and EURES advisers help job seekers for free. EEA nationals have full access to the public employment service, though you may need a PPS number to use some Intreo services. Citizens Information explains permits, tax and rights at work in plain English and has local centres. Students should use their college careers service and the Irish Council for International Students. If you came to Ireland seeking protection, the refugee guide lists the organisations that help with the right to work and CVs.