Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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Since its introduction in June 2018, under the European Communities (Reception Conditions) Regulations 2018 (S.I. No. 230 of 2018), the labour market access permission issued by my Department, has had a very positive impact for international protection applicants and employers alike.

Since January 2021 nearly 23,800 first-time applications and renewal applications have been received by the Labour Market Access Unit of my Department and nearly 21,400 have been granted.

Applicants are eligible to apply if:

• They are an international protection applicant; and
• They have waited at least 5 months from their “Application Received” date for their first instance recommendation; and
• They are cooperating with the international protection process – delays in receiving a recommendation must not be attributable to the applicant.

Following that, a person will be issued a permission for labour market access if, at 6 months, they have not yet received a first instance recommendation. This permission is valid for 12 months and may be renewed until a final decision is made on the person's international protection application.

At the time of processing an application for Labour Market Access, the Unit notes whether an applicant is resident in IPAS accommodation. However, if the individual subsequently moves elsewhere, this information is not recorded. Therefore it should be noted that the figures in the table below represent a snapshot in time rather than current numbers in IPAS accommodation.

Applicants living in IPAS accommodation at time of LMA permission granted in Year 2023*:

First Permit	7,505
Renewal	2,175
Total	9,680

* These figures are correct at time of issue, however, statistics may change due to data cleansing.