Eoghan Murphy (Dublin South East, Fine Gael)
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Question 131: To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if his attention has been drawn to the fact that changes in relation to the employee permit scheme for non-Irish persons working here mean that specialised staff can no longer move from one company to another on the same permit but must now request a new permit which can cause hiring delays for companies - for example, the restaurant industry - for as long as three months while potential employees wait for new permits. [10110/12]

Eoghan Murphy (Dublin South East, Fine Gael)
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Question 132: To ask the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if he can provide information on delays with work permits in respect of persons (details supplied). [10111/12]

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 131 and 132 together.

My Department processes applications in respect of the different types of employment permits and all applications are processed in line with the Employment Permits Act 2006.

All employment permits are employer and location specific. Accordingly, if an employment permit holder wishes to change employer then a new application will have to be made on their behalf. There are no restrictions on foreign nationals who are the holders of current valid employment permits changing employer and the need for a Labour Market Test would not apply in such cases. However, in the event that a foreign national ceases to be employed by the employer named on the permit then the permit is no longer valid and must be returned to my Department for cancellation.

The Employment Permits Section has no record of current valid employment permits in respect of the named individuals and, in these circumstances, the current policy in relation to new first time applications would apply.

It is current Government policy to issue new employment permits only in respect of:

highly skilled, highly paid positions or;

non-EEA nationals who are already legally resident in the State on valid employment permits or;

positions requiring specialist or scarce skills, expertise or qualifications which cannot be filled elsewise.

In line with this policy, applications for new work permits are subject to a strict labour market needs test intended to maximise opportunities for filling of vacancies from within the Irish labour market and wider EEA.