Labour-market access permission for an international-protection applicant

International protection applicants can be granted a permission to access the labour market.

Since July 2018 eligible international protection applicants can apply for permission to work. This is known as a “Labour Market Access Permission”.

You are eligible to apply if: You are an international protection applicant; and You have waited at least 5 months from your “Application Received” date for your first instance recommendation; and You did not receive a first instance recommendation within 6 months, You are cooperating with the international protection process – delays in receiving a recommendation must not be attributable to you.

If you are a Beneficiary of the Temporary Protection Directive, PLEASE DO NOT APPLY HERE

To apply for your first labour market access permission, you should: Wait 5 months after you apply for International Protection. That is 5 months after the “Application Received” date shown in the centre of your IPA Certificate Ensure you have fully co-operated with the International Protection Office including attending all interviews, submitting your questionnaire, submitting documentation and pursuing documentation in support of your claim. Ensure your IPA Certificate is in date You must ensure that your email is correct when applying for Labour Market Access permission will be emailed to you Please apply to begin your online application You will need to set up an online account You can find information on how to setup an online account For a first permit you will need to attach: a) A clear copy of your valid and in date IPA Certificate b) A copy of the identity documents you have provided to the IPO to establish your identity or a description of the efforts you have made to obtain identity documents. Where possible identity documents should be either a passport, national ID card or birth certificate.

Processing time is approximately 6 weeks.

This permission will allow you to access employment and self-employment. It will be valid for 12 months.

You can renew the permission if you have not received a final decision on your international protection application within the 12 months. A final decision means when you have completed all appeals procedures.

Please contact [email protected] if you have any questions regarding your Labour Market Access application.

Labour Market Access applications for International Protection applicants are now made online . You will need to create an Irish Immigration Service Online account to access this service. Please find Information on how

If your application is successful, the Labour Market Access Unit will you a permission letter. This will be emailed to the email address you have used on your ISD portal account. Once you begin working, your employer (or you, if self-employed) must complete the declaration form LMA5 below. The LMA5 form must be returned to the following email address: [email protected]

For Employers: To verify the validity of a potential employee’s Labour Market Access Permit, you can check whether the permit was sent from the following official email address: [email protected] . Additionally, please ensure that the permit details match those in the information provided by the applicant. Digital LMA Permissions will also be verified on the submission of the required LMA5 form which must be submitted to the IPO at [email protected] , within 21 days of the cessation of employment.