Changes to the Employment Permit Regulations will be a welcome boost to businesses in Ireland, with more specialist roles now open to Irish immigration.
The changes focus on the restaurant and animation industries. Both areas have seen substantial success, but growth is being curbed by a lack of available talent.
A range of chefs roles have been removed from the ineligible list, provided that the individuals have substantial experience in that position. These include:
- Executive chef (min 5 years’ experience)
- Head chef (min 5 years’ experience)
- Sous chef (min 5 years’ experience)
- Chef de partie (min 2 years’ experience)
Employment permits to bring in these new staff have been limited to two per establishment. The national cap for all chefs permits has also been set at 610 to protect Irish and EEA workers.
A range of animation roles have also been added to the ‘highly skilled’ list, with a particular focus on individuals with design expertise. Positions include:
- 2D/3D Art director (min 1 years’ experience)
- 2D/3D Location designer (min 1 years’ experience)
- 2D/3D Character designer (min 1 years’ experience)
- 2D/3D Prop designer (min 1 years’ experience)
- 2D/3D Animation layout artist (min 1 years’ experience)
- 2D/3D Animation background and design artist (min 1 years’ experience)
The animation industry has experienced a considerable boom in Ireland, stoked by critically lauded animation studio Cartoon Saloon. The studio has notched an Academy Award nomination for each of its three films to date.
The restaurant industry meanwhile is booming. 45% of surveyed restaurants reported a rise in profits over 2017, and 48% expected 2018 to be a stronger year, even accounting for Brexit concerns.
In addition, 75% of respondents were either confident or very confident about the future of their business. To underline the point, however, 84% also stated that they were having difficulty filling job roles, particularly those of chefs.
We’ll endeavour to keep you up-to-date with the latest news in Irish immigration. For more information on emigrating to Ireland, starting a business in Ireland or any other formation requirements, don’t hesitate to get in touch.
