Blanket Extension of Immigration Permissions Until January 15, 2022

The situation

The Irish government is again automatically renewing immigration permissions (including Irish Residence Permit (IRP) cards, passport stamps and previously extended permissions). Foreign nationals whose permission is due to expire between September 21, 2021 and January 15, 2022, will now have their permission extended until January 15, 2022.

A closer look

• Previously extended immigration permissions. Employees whose immigration permissions were previously extended under blanket extensions (and did not have their permission revoked for any reason) are covered by the new extension.

• Employment Permits excluded. As before, the blanket extension does not remove the requirement to obtain or renew an Employment Permit where appropriate; Employment Permit holders (Critical Skills Employment Permit, General Employment Permit, Intra-Company Transfer, among others) should continue with their regular renewal processes.

• Dublin residents. Residents of Dublin should continue to renew their IRP cards through the new online system. First-time registrations will still require an in-person appointment. This further blanket extension should allow additional time for these residents to have their IRP cards processed so that they do not have a lapse in status.

• Residents outside Dublin. Residents outside Dublin should continue to try to secure in-person appointments with their local registration office, both for first-time registrations and renewals. This blanket extension should allow additional time for these residents to have their IRP renewal cards processed so that they do not have a lapse in status. The online renewal process is still not available for non-Dublin residents.

• Students and graduates. Foreign nationals on student and graduate permissions about to expire, and who were awaiting an Employment Permit to be issued, can remain in employment (on standard student and graduate conditions) on the basis of this extension while their Employment Permit is being processed.

Impact

Foreign nationals with expiring immigration permissions will be able to continue to legally stay in Ireland until January 15, 2022 while they await the renewal of their current permissions, first-time registration appointment or the issuing of an Employment Permit. This further blanket renewal is particularly helpful to those on student and graduate permissions that were about to expire and would not have been able to obtain an Employment Permit in time due to processing delays.

Background

This is the eighth blanket extension granted by the Irish authorities since March 2020 in order to ensure that foreign nationals do not have a lapse in status due to processing delays and closures arising from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Looking ahead

This extension will provide reassurance to those who are affected by backlogs in the residency card renewal process and the Employment Permit process. Additionally, it will provide additional time to those who require a first-time registration appointment and have been unable to secure a slot to date.

For up-to-date information on COVID-19-related travel bans, restrictions and concessions, among other information, check Fragomen’s dedicated website.

This alert is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please contact the global immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen or send an email to [email protected].