The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (DETE) has released its latest processing-time bulletin, giving HR teams and relocating staff a snapshot of current backlogs. As of 3 March 2026, Critical Skills Employment Permit (CSEP) applications submitted on 18 February are being examined, while standard new-permit applications (excluding CSEP) have reached 15 January.
Intra-Company Transfer (ICT) permits lodged on 28 January are now in the queue, and renewals across all categories are at 5 December 2025. Review requests—appeals against previous refusals—are only just into early November 2025. The figures confirm anecdotal reports from immigration advisers that processing times tightened in Q4 of last year and have yet to rebound fully despite the addition of 20 case-workers in January.
VisaHQ’s global visa and immigration platform can streamline these Irish employment-permit filings for both HR teams and individual assignees. Through its Ireland portal (https://www.visahq.com/ireland/) the service offers document checklists, deadline tracking and courier coordination, helping applicants avoid the gaps in status that have become more common while backlogs persist.
![Permit-processing update: DETE says new employment-permit applications now back to mid-January]()
For employers this means a lead-time of roughly three to seven weeks for CSEP cases and up to eight weeks for General Employment Permits. Assignments scheduled for April or May should therefore be filed immediately, with start dates worded as “on approval of permit” to avoid contract breaches. Companies should also factor in the higher salary thresholds that took effect on 1 March, ensuring job offers meet the new minima (€36,605 for GEP, €40,904 for CSEP).
Immigration lawyers warn that renewal delays can jeopardise an employee’s eligibility for Stamp 4 residency after two years on a CSEP if a gap in permission occurs. They advise submitting renewals at least eight weeks before expiry and retaining courier confirmations as proof of timely filing.
DETE says it is piloting robotic process automation for low-complexity renewals, which could shave three days off average turnaround by summer. Further updates will be posted weekly on the department’s website.
Intra-Company Transfer (ICT) permits lodged on 28 January are now in the queue, and renewals across all categories are at 5 December 2025. Review requests—appeals against previous refusals—are only just into early November 2025. The figures confirm anecdotal reports from immigration advisers that processing times tightened in Q4 of last year and have yet to rebound fully despite the addition of 20 case-workers in January.
VisaHQ’s global visa and immigration platform can streamline these Irish employment-permit filings for both HR teams and individual assignees. Through its Ireland portal (https://www.visahq.com/ireland/) the service offers document checklists, deadline tracking and courier coordination, helping applicants avoid the gaps in status that have become more common while backlogs persist.
For employers this means a lead-time of roughly three to seven weeks for CSEP cases and up to eight weeks for General Employment Permits. Assignments scheduled for April or May should therefore be filed immediately, with start dates worded as “on approval of permit” to avoid contract breaches. Companies should also factor in the higher salary thresholds that took effect on 1 March, ensuring job offers meet the new minima (€36,605 for GEP, €40,904 for CSEP).
Immigration lawyers warn that renewal delays can jeopardise an employee’s eligibility for Stamp 4 residency after two years on a CSEP if a gap in permission occurs. They advise submitting renewals at least eight weeks before expiry and retaining courier confirmations as proof of timely filing.
DETE says it is piloting robotic process automation for low-complexity renewals, which could shave three days off average turnaround by summer. Further updates will be posted weekly on the department’s website.
