The Irish Department of Trade and Employment (DETE) has issued 3,400 work permits to foreign agricultural workers in 2024. February saw the highest number of permits granted (591), while November recorded the lowest (141).

According to a DETE press release, these permits make up a small fraction of the total issued to foreign workers between January and November, as reported by Schengen.News. Agriculture, forestry, and fishing accounted for about 9.4% of all employment permits granted this year, reflecting their prominence in the Irish labor market.

Ireland Issues Over 30,000 Permits for Employment Purposes in 2024

The authorities have confirmed that in the eleven months of the year, a total of 36,402 work permits were granted – 3,289 or nine per cent of which were approved in November alone.

The majority of work permits were granted to workers in health and social work, representing 11,694 or 32.1 per cent of all work permits issued, followed by information and communication activities, accounting for 17 per cent of the total.

Last year, the Irish government announced that annual salaries for workers in meat processing and horticulture would increase from €30,000 to €32,000 in January 2025.

The proposed January 2025 increases to minimum salary thresholds will be deferred, pending the outcome of this review. 
--DETE Spokesperson

Top 10 Nationalities With Most Employment Permits to Ireland This Year

According to data published by DETE, nationalities from the Asian, African and South American regions are most common when it comes to applying for employment permits.

Between January and November of 2024, Ireland granted most employment permits to the nationalities as found below:

• Indians
• Brazilians
• Filipinos
• Chinese
• Pakistanis
• South Africans
• Americans
• Zimbabweians
• Nigerians
• Malaysians

Indians were granted 12,498 work permits, which represents 31.4 per cent of all permits granted in this sector and at the same time being the largest nationality group that obtained most work permits. Second to follow were Brazilians, with 4,320 permits, with rejection rates being slightly higher than other nationalities – 12 per cent or 578.

Filipinos obtained 3,760 or 94 per cent of the number of work permits they applied for, followed by Chinese (1,760), Pakistanis (1,600), South Africans (1,509), Americans(1,031), Zimbabweans (908), Nigerians (909) and Malaysians (620).