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Critical Skills Occupations List: Ireland’s eligible roles

The 89 roles that qualify for a Critical Skills Employment Permit at the lower salary threshold, as listed by the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment and in force from 13 May 2026. Each role links to the jobs in Ireland open for it now.

All visa sponsorship jobs in Ireland →How the Critical Skills permit works →

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Production Managers and Directors

ICT Professionals

Health and Social Services Managers and Directors

Managers and Proprietors in Agriculture Related Services

Natural and Social Science Professionals

  • Chemical scientists

    Chemical scientists in manufacturing (including food & beverages, medical devices), product development, analytical development, clinical co-vigilance, or biotechnology or related and relevant specialist skills, qualifications or experience

  • Medical laboratory scientists
  • Biological scientists and biochemists

    Biological scientists and biochemists in manufacturing (including food & beverages, medical devices), product development, analytical development, clinical co-vigilance, or biotechnology or related and relevant specialist skills, qualifications or experience

  • Agronomist
  • Physical scientists

    Physical scientists in manufacturing (including food & beverages, medical devices), product development, analytical development, clinical co-vigilance, or biotechnology or related and relevant specialist skills, qualifications or experience

  • Meteorologist
  • Operational Forecaster

Engineering Professionals

Information Technology and Telecommunications Professionals

Health Professionals

Therapy Professionals

Nursing and Midwifery Professionals

Teaching and Educational Professionals

  • Academics

    Academics who hold a qualification equivalent to Level 10 of the National Framework of Qualification in a given discipline awarded no less than two calendar years prior to the date of application for an employment permit, with a minimum of one academic year of relevant teaching experience, and the employment concerned is in a third level institution governed by the Irish Universities Act 1997 (No. 24 of 1997), the Institutes of Technology Act 2006 (No. 25 of 2006) and the Technological Universities Act 2018 (No. 3 of 2018); or involves delivering a programme largely or wholly concerned with information and communications technology, which leads to a major award at QQI level 8 and/or level 9 as validated by Quality and Qualifications Ireland.

Legal Professionals

Business, Research and Administrative Professionals

  • Chartered and certified accountants, and taxation experts

    Chartered and certified accountants, and taxation experts specialising in tax, compliance, regulation, solvency or financial management or related and relevant specialist skills, qualifications or experience.

  • Qualified accountants

    Qualified accountants with at least three years’ auditing experience, who are full members of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), Philippine Institute of Certified Public Accountants (PICPA) and the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Pakistan (ICAP) and whom have relevant work experience in the areas of US GAAP reporting and Global Audit and Advisory Services and the employment concerned is in MNC Global Audit Services.

  • Tax consultant

    Tax consultant specialising in non-EEA tax consultancy and compliance with a professional tax qualification or legal qualification with tax specialism, and has a minimum of three years’ experience of tax consultancy requirements and regulations in the relevant non-EEA market.

  • Management consultants and business analysts

    Management consultants and business analysts specialising in big data analytics with skills in IT, data mining, modelling, and advanced maths or related and relevant specialist skills, qualifications or experience

  • Business and financial project management professionals

    Business and financial project management professionals specialising in finance & investment analytics, risk analytics, credit, fraud analytics or related and relevant specialist skills, qualifications or experience

  • Actuaries, economists and statisticians

    Actuaries, economists and statisticians specialising in big data analytics with skills in IT, data mining, modelling, and advanced maths or related and relevant specialist skills, qualifications or experience

Architects, Town Planners and Surveyors

Welfare Professionals

Quality and Regulatory Professionals

Media Professionals

  • Art Director

    Art Director in 2D or 3D animation, with at least one year’s experience in the role

Draughtspersons and Related Architectural Technicians

Health Associate Professionals

Artistic, Literary and Media Occupations

Design Occupations

  • Location Designer

    Location Designer in 2D or 3D animation, with at least one year’s experience in the role

  • Character Designer

    Character Designer in 2D or 3D animation, with at least one year’s experience in the role

  • Prop Designer

    Prop Designer in 2D or 3D animation, with at least one year’s experience in the role

  • Animation Layout Artist

    Animation Layout Artist in 2D or 3D animation, with at least one year’s experience in the role

Sports and Fitness Occupations

  • High performance coaches and directors

    High performance coaches and directors employed by National sports organisations, or High profile sports organisations engaging in international competition

Business, Finance and Related Associate Professionals

Sales, Marketing and Related Associate Professionals

  • Business sales executives

    Business sales executives specialising in International Sales Roles or ITB2B sales roles and with fluency in the official language of a state which is not a Member State of the EEA and is not an official language of an EEA state

  • International marketing experts

    International marketing experts with required domain knowledge specialising in product strategy development and management with technical and product/service knowledge (pharmaceutical, medical devices, Software B2B, SaaS products)

Source: Critical Skills Occupations List, enterprise.gov.ie. Codes are SOC 2010.

Questions about the Critical Skills Employment Permit

What salary does a Critical Skills Employment Permit need?
For an occupation on this list, at least €40,904 a year with a relevant degree, or €36,848 if the degree was awarded in the 12 months before you apply. Any other occupation not on the Ineligible List qualifies at over €68,911 a year. The job offer must be for at least two years. Figures from the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment (DETE).
What happens after the Critical Skills permit ends?
You can apply to the Department of Justice for Stamp 4, which lets you live and work in Ireland without another employment permit. After 60 months of residence permission you can apply for long-term residence.
My job is not on the list. Can I still get a permit?
Possibly. A role paying over €68,911 that is not on the Ineligible List can qualify for a Critical Skills permit, and many other roles qualify for a General Employment Permit. Check the current lists on enterprise.gov.ie.
Does an employer have to sponsor me?
Yes. You need a job offer from an employer in Ireland, and the permit is for that job. The links beside each role open the Irish jobs listed for it right now.