A new law reforming the employment permit system, that will come into force on Monday (September 2), is designed “to support targeted economic systems”, including agriculture and horticulture, according to the government.
The Employment Permits Act 2024 incudes provision for a new seasonal employment permit, which is a short term permit for non-European Economic Area (EEA) nationals to work for a maximum of seven months per calendar year in a seasonally recurrent employment.
The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment has said this provision will support agriculture and horticulture in addressing labour shortages; and will be renewable across multiple years for the set calendar season.
Arrangements for providing accommodation and health insurance for workers will be part of the scheme.
The permit will be introduced under a limited pilot scheme at first later this year, with the intention that it commences in early 2025.
The government says the seasonal employment permit will be “based on strong labour rights”.
Employers wishing to apply for a new seasonal employment permit will be required to apply annually to become a registered pre-approved seasonal employer in order to access the scheme.
Applications will be considered based on “relevant criteria”, including the need for the employment to be “seasonally recurrent”, and the size of the employer.
The Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment will maintain a register of those approved employers. Any breaches of conditions of the permits or non-compliance with rules will negatively impact on any subsequent approval process.
Seasonal employment permit holders will have the option to transfer their permit to another approved seasonal employer under the scheme through a “simplified” notification procedure.
The new act will also address inflexibilities in the Labour Market Needs Test, which currently requires that a role be advertised across the EEA and in print media prior to a permit being issued.
The new bill will simplify that process by requiring employers to publish vacancies online only, and will “reflect modern advertising practices”.