Transport Minister Darragh O’Brien revealed on 5 January that senior civil servants are resisting his proposal to abolish the long-standing 32-million-passenger ceiling at Dublin Airport. The cap, imposed in the 2008 planning permission for Terminal 2, was exceeded in both 2023 and 2024 and is projected to hit 36 million for 2025.
Fingal County Council is currently reviewing DAA’s application to raise the limit to 40 million, but O’Brien argues that an outright removal is needed to protect Ireland’s hub status amid capacity expansions at competing airports such as Heathrow and Paris CDG. Internal memos cited by The Irish Times show officials warning of environmental litigation risks and community backlash over noise.
For global-mobility managers, the cap translates into slot scarcity, volatile airfares and fewer frequencies on key corporate routes during peak periods. If the stalemate continues, employers may need to factor a higher incidence of indirect routings into 2026 travel budgets, particularly for emerging markets where direct services remain limited.
![Civil-service pushback slows Government plan to scrap Dublin Airport passenger cap]()
While companies weigh the aviation uncertainties, they can at least streamline another piece of the travel puzzle: visas. VisaHQ’s Ireland portal (https://www.visahq.com/ireland/) lets mobility teams arrange work permits and business visas for staff heading to more than 200 destinations, often in just a few clicks. Having documentation sorted well in advance ensures travellers can jump on whatever flights are available once capacity issues at Dublin Airport ease.
Business lobby group Ibec supports lifting the cap but wants a parallel commitment to improve surface access, noting that the existing coach-and-car-heavy model undermines Ireland’s green-mobility ambitions. The Department of the Environment has indicated that any permanent cap removal would need to be balanced by stricter night-flight rules and accelerated rail links to the city centre.
Stakeholders expect the issue to dominate the upcoming National Aviation Policy review, with a decision unlikely before the summer recess.
Fingal County Council is currently reviewing DAA’s application to raise the limit to 40 million, but O’Brien argues that an outright removal is needed to protect Ireland’s hub status amid capacity expansions at competing airports such as Heathrow and Paris CDG. Internal memos cited by The Irish Times show officials warning of environmental litigation risks and community backlash over noise.
For global-mobility managers, the cap translates into slot scarcity, volatile airfares and fewer frequencies on key corporate routes during peak periods. If the stalemate continues, employers may need to factor a higher incidence of indirect routings into 2026 travel budgets, particularly for emerging markets where direct services remain limited.
While companies weigh the aviation uncertainties, they can at least streamline another piece of the travel puzzle: visas. VisaHQ’s Ireland portal (https://www.visahq.com/ireland/) lets mobility teams arrange work permits and business visas for staff heading to more than 200 destinations, often in just a few clicks. Having documentation sorted well in advance ensures travellers can jump on whatever flights are available once capacity issues at Dublin Airport ease.
Business lobby group Ibec supports lifting the cap but wants a parallel commitment to improve surface access, noting that the existing coach-and-car-heavy model undermines Ireland’s green-mobility ambitions. The Department of the Environment has indicated that any permanent cap removal would need to be balanced by stricter night-flight rules and accelerated rail links to the city centre.
Stakeholders expect the issue to dominate the upcoming National Aviation Policy review, with a decision unlikely before the summer recess.
