Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 54:

In page 53, between lines 20 and 21, to insert the following:"(6) Section 20 of the Act of 2006 is amended by inserting the following subsection after subsection (5):

"(5A) The Minister may, on application made to him or her, waive the prescribed fee.".".

There is a strong view that the fees relating to the process are inordinate. The Migrant Rights Centre of Ireland has argued that the fees for work permits should be reviewed and amended so as to bring Ireland into compliance with article 18 of the Council of Europe's European Social Charter. Concerns are not confined to the Migrant Rights Centre, the European Committee of Social Rights also considers the fees excessive. With many of the scenarios we have discussed, we are dealing with vulnerable workers who through little or no fault of their own have found themselves in the State but outside the proper registration process and seeking a permit. All we ask is that in such a scenario, the Minister may, on an application to him or her, waive the prescribed fee. It is a logical case and the Minister can use sense to understand if a person is in real need of support. We must ensure individuals at the bottom of the earnings ladder will not see this fee as a barrier to regularising the working relationship in this country.

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