In This Section

Introduction

Purpose of scheme

Eligibility

Submit an application

Required documents

If your application is approved

If your application is refused

Useful Information

Contact us

Introduction

If a worker on a Critical Skills Employment Permit (CSEP) or a General Employment Permit (GEP) is made redundant they must tell the Department of Enterprise Tourism and Employment (DETE) within four weeks of redundancy.

They then have six (6) months from the date of the redundancy to find new employment.

  • If their immigration permission lasts longer than this six month period they do not have to contact Immigration Service Delivery.
  • If their immigration permission ends during that six month period they can apply Domestic Residence and Permissions (DRP) for an extension of permission to bring them up to the six months.

If they send the Redundancy Notification Form to DETE they will not have to go through some of the usual checks such as the labour market needs test. Further details on employment permits are available on the DETE website.

If they do not find a new job within six (6) months they can contact DRP regarding their immigration permission using the application form below.

The Reactivation Employment Permit scheme is operated by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (DETE).

The role of Immigration Service Delivery in this scheme is to grant a person who has worked in the State permission to remain in Ireland so they can submit an application to DETE for a Reactivation Employment Permit. For information on this scheme and to check your eligibility please read below.

Purpose of scheme

The purpose of the scheme operated by DETE is to provide to a non-EEA national worker who held or holds an Employment Permit a pathway to legal re-employment where they have fallen out of employment and immigration permission through no fault of their own, or who has been exploited or poorly treated by their employer.

Please note the information on this page does not apply to UK nationals, EU nationals or to nationals of Switzerland, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Norway. If you are a national of any of these countries you are not required to apply to this department for permission to remain or work in Ireland.

Eligibility

You may be eligible for permission under this scheme if:

  • You held an employment permit issued by DETE to work in the State
  • You are currently in the State and your immigration permission has run out
  • You have fallen out of employment through no fault of your own
  • You have remained in the State since you lost your job
  • You are the holder of a Reactivation Employment Permit and you have been made redundant
  • You are the holder of a Reactivation Employment Permit and you wish to change employer

You are not eligible for immigration permission under this scheme if:

  • You are subject to a Deportation Order or have been given notification of a proposal to deport you under Section 3 of the Immigration act 1999
  • You are subject to a Removal Order under EU law
  • You entered Ireland as a student or visitor and never held an Employment Permit
  • You previously had an Employment Permit, but you left Ireland
  • You previously had an Employment Permit and a Stamp 1 permission but changed your status to another immigration Stamp eg as a student on Stamp 2, or Stamp 4EUFam as the family member of an EU national.

Submit an application

You can submit your APPLICATION FORM with the required documentation, for Immigration Permission through the dedicated Customer Service Portal. You can register for an account or log in to your existing account. Submitting applications via the Customer Service Portal ensures more efficient and speedy processing.

Please follow the detailed instructions in the Useful Information section below.

Please attach your fully completed application form and supporting documents. Detailed instructions on how to submit this application is in the Useful Information Section. Please note only the following formats are accepted – PDF, JPEG and PNG. There is a maximum size of 5MB per document.

Required documents

In addition to the application form please supply the following documentation:

  • Copy of biodata page of your national passport
  • Copy of entry stamp page of your passport
  • Copies of all work permits held to date
  • Letter from your employer or from DETE explain why you cannot renew your employment permit

If your application is approved

If your application is approved, you will be given a temporary Stamp 1 permission to remain in Ireland for six months. If you are given permission to remain under this scheme you must then make an application for an Employment Permit to DETE. Further information on that process can be found Employment Permits – DETE (enterprise.gov.ie).

If your application is refused

If your application under the scheme is refused and you do not have any other immigration permission, you will be required to leave the State. If you do not leave the State, we may issue you with notification of intention to deport you under Section 3(6) of the Immigration Act 1999.

Useful Information

For detailed instructions on how to submit an application on our Customer Service Portal please refer to “How to Apply for REP on Customer Service Portal” online-guide.

Contact us

Queries should be sent through the dedicated Customer Service portal. You can register for an account or log in to your existing account.

This page was last updated on June 5, 2025