This section is for people who wish to find information about getting a student permit or a work permit or apply for long term residency (stamp 5).

• Student visa and permission
  • What do I do prior to my arrival in Ireland?

    Visa or Non-Visa required, there are a few steps to follow before coming to Ireland as a Student!

    You need to make sure to:
    ● Find the course that you would like to study
    ● Get in touch with the University and enroll on the course
    ● Pay the College fees
    ● Provide evidence of your English level (Except if you are registering for an English language course)

    I am Non-visa required: The above documentation is needed to inform the immigration officer at the airport of your intentions to study, and later to register for a Stamp 2 (see more information below).

    I am Visa required: The above documentation is needed to start the process of your Visa application. For more details about the documentation and information to provide for a Student Visa application, visit this page.

  • Arrival in Ireland – How do I register my permission Stamp 2 / Stamp 2A ?

    If you live in Dublin, you need to register with Burgh Quay. If you live outside of Dublin, you need to register with your local Garda Station. Find out more about the registration process on the “Registering with immigration” page.

    Non-EEA nationals coming to Ireland for the purpose of study are generally granted a Stamp 2:
    ● English language students
    ● Higher national diploma students
    ● Degree (undergraduate) students
    ● Master’s degree (postgraduate) students
    ● PhD students

    Stamp 2 allows you to be a full time student and to work for a maximum of 20 hours per week during school term and 40 hours per week during holidays. More information see page 11 of this document.

    If you are doing a Semester abroad at an Irish University for example, or if you are studying at a private secondary school in Ireland, you get a Stamp 2A. This indicates that you are not studying for a course from the official list.

    Find more information about modifying your student permission here.

    Find more information about stamp 2A here.

  • How do I renew my Stamp 2 ?

    Make sure to renew your Student permission before the expiry date. You need to be enrolled in the next year of your study and meet the criteria for being a student in order to renew your permission. Find out more about the renewal process on the “Registering with immigration” page.

• The Third Level Graduate Programme / Stamp 1G

  The purpose of the Graduate Programme is to give students, who graduated, time to find graduate level employment to apply for an employment permit or research hosting agreement. If successful, you are granted stamp 1G, allowing you to work full time without the need for an employment permit. However, before your stamp 1G permission expires you must get an employment permit. Unless you graduated level 9 or above, your stamp 1G is only valid for 1 year and is not renewable.

  Find more information on how to qualify for the Graduate Programme here.

• Work permits

  You need to make sure the job you are applying for is not on the Ineligible List of Occupations for Employment Permits. Check the link to make sure your job is not on the list.

  I am living outside of Ireland: You can apply for an employment permit following the process outlined below:
  1) Find a job that is eligible for employment permit
  2) Apply for the job
  3) If you get the job offer apply for visa (if your are from a visa required country)
  4) Apply for an employment permit
  5) Wait for the employment permit to be granted before traveling to Ireland (need to show immigration officer at the border the employment permit grant letter).
  6) Once you arrive in Ireland, register with immigration within 90 days (see ‘Registering with immigration’ for more details about how to register).

  You can check here if you need to apply for a visa.

  For further guidance, you can check the ISD website.

  I am in Ireland: You need to have a valid GNIB/ IRP card. If you do not have a valid GNIB / IRP card you cannot apply for an employment permit from within Ireland.

  There are two main types of employment permits in Ireland. Check below for more information.

  • General Employment Permit
    The requirements for a General Employment Permit includes:
    ● An annual salary of approximately €30,000
    ● An employment contract for at least one year
    ● 50% or more of the employees in the firm must be EEA nationals at the time of application (unless it is a newly started firm).
    ● The job advertisement must have gone through a labour market needs test.

    Find more information regarding the labour market needs test.

    What if I want to bring a spouse or child(ren) to join me in Ireland?
    As a general employment permit holder, you can only bring your family members after 12 months of working in Ireland. Once eligible, you can apply for close family members to join you, such as spouse or dependent children (no older than 23 years). If successful, family members are granted stamp 3, which will not allow them to work in Ireland.
    Find more information regarding the general employment permit.

  • Critical Skills Employment Permit
    The requirements for a Critical skills Employment Permit includes:
    ● An annual salary of approximately €64,000 unless listed on the Critical Skills Occupations List (NB: if listed here the salary requirement is lowered to a minimum of €30,000 annually)
    ● An employment contract for at least one year
    ● 50% or more of the employees in the firm are EEA nationals at the time of application (unless it is a newly started firm).

    Note: A job offer that is eligible for a critical skills employment permit does not need to go through the labor market needs test.

    What if I want to bring a spouse or child(ren) to join me in Ireland?
    With a critical Skills employment permit, you can apply for your family members to join you once you obtain your employment permit. If successful, your family members can travel with you to Ireland. After registering, your spouse gets stamp 1G residence permission, which allows your spouse to work in Ireland. Children aged between 16-23 will get a stamp 3, which will not allow them to work, but they can study.
    Find more information regarding the critical skills employment permit.

  • Atypical Working Scheme

    If the type of job you are looking for does not meet the requirements listed above you can check if it would be eligible for an Atypical Working Scheme, which you can find more information about at the link here.

• Stamp 5 residency

  Stamp 5 gives you permission to stay in Ireland without time limitations also referred to as “without condition to as to time”. The stamp 5 is valid up to the expiry date of your passport, where you will have to renew your stamp 5 permission.

  To be eligible for stamp 5 you must have completed 8 years (96 months) of legal residency in Ireland (time spent as on stamp 2 is not included). To apply you need to be living in Ireland and have a current valid residence permission. Your IRP or GNIB card must be valid when you apply.

  For more information regarding stamp 5 application process, see link.

Page last updated 08.07.2022