Independent website IrelandStatus.com, which scrapes official Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment (DETE) updates, released a fresh snapshot of employment-permit processing dates at 12:00 UTC on 28 July 2026. The data—last confirmed by DETE at 20:31 UTC on 27 July—shows that Critical Skills Employment Permits are now being issued for applications received up to 14 July 2026, a four-day advance on the previous week. General Employment Permit (new) cases stand at 19 June 2026, while other new applications are at 21 July 2026. Although incremental, the movement suggests DETE has marginally accelerated throughput following the addition of eight processing staff earlier this month. For employers the biggest bottleneck remains renewals and intra-company-transfer (ICT) renewals, both stuck at mid-April, meaning assignees approaching the two-year mark may not receive extensions before their stamps expire. HR teams are advised to file renewal paperwork at least four months in advance and to issue interim letters to affected staff confirming that statutory permission continues while a decision is pending, as provided under Section 15 of the 2014 Employment Permits Act. Where visas for accompanying family members depend on the main permit, companies should coordinate timelines to avoid mismatched permissions. IrelandStatus also tracks Irish Residence Permit (IRP) backlogs, which have not moved since 24 July. The site allows users to sign up for email alerts when DETE changes the official dates—a useful early-warning tool for mobility managers juggling multiple cases.
Source: IrelandStatus.com
