The Labour Market Needs Test: how to advertise a job for an Irish work permit

In short: Before applying for most General Employment Permits, the employer must advertise the job on JobsIreland and on one other online jobs platform, both for 28 days in a row. Each advert must give the job description, the employer's name, the minimum annual pay, the location and the hours. The permit application must then go in within 90 days of the advert first appearing. Jobs paying €68,911 or more, and Critical Skills jobs, don't need the test.

The Labour Market Needs Test shows that the employer tried to fill the job from within the EEA first. Because the adverts must run unchanged for 28 days in a row, a mistake usually means starting them again, so it pays to get them right first time.

The rules

Rule	What it means
Where	JobsIreland (the Department of Social Protection’s employment service, part of the EURES network) and one other online platform whose main purpose is publishing job offers
How long	At least 28 days in a row on each, before the application goes in
No changes	The adverts must not be changed or extended during the 28 days
What they say	The job description, the employer’s name, the minimum annual pay, the location(s) and the hours
Deadline	The application must be made within 90 days of the advert first appearing (120 days for third-level institutions)

Newspaper adverts are no longer required. The Employment Permits Act 2024 removed the print requirement, so both adverts can now be online.

You’ll need the JobsIreland reference number for the application.

Which jobs don’t need the test

The test isn’t needed where:

• the job is on the Critical Skills Occupations List
• the salary is €68,911 or more
• Enterprise Ireland or IDA Ireland recommends the job for one of their client companies
• the applicant has been caring for someone with exceptional medical needs who now depends highly on them
• the applicant held a General Employment Permit and was made redundant in the last six months, and told the Department within four weeks

Critical Skills Employment Permits don’t need the test at all.

Planning the timeline

1. Day 1: both adverts go live on the same day, if possible.
2. Day 29 onwards: once both have run for 28 full days, the application can go in.
3. By day 90: the application must be submitted. Miss it and the adverts must be run again.

After that comes the Department’s queue. On 3 November 2026 it was working on new General Employment Permit applications received on 25 September 2026. The Department also asks for applications at least 12 weeks before the job is due to start.

Where we come in: we work out the dates with you before the adverts go live, including the Department’s request for applications at least 12 weeks before the start date, so you know when the person can realistically start.

Mistakes that lead to refusals

• The pay in the advert doesn’t match the contract. The minimum annual pay in the advert, the contract and the application should be the same, and at least the permit threshold (or the legal rate for the sector, such as the construction SEO rate).
• Missing details. No hours, no location, or no employer name in one of the adverts.
• The advert was edited or reposted during the 28 days. They would need to run again.
• The second platform isn’t a jobs site. A social media post or the company’s own website may not count as a platform whose main purpose is publishing job offers.
• The adverts ran for 27 days, or the application went in after the 90 days.
• The job title or duties differ between the adverts and the application.

How Work Permit Consultants can help

The adverts are the part of a General Employment Permit application that’s hardest to fix afterwards, so it’s where our checks matter most. Work Permit Consultants has prepared employment permit applications since 2007, and our team’s background includes work permit policy at the Department of Enterprise, so we know how the Department reads an application.

For the Labour Market Needs Test, we:

• check whether you need the test at all, or whether an exemption or a Critical Skills permit fits
• draft both adverts with every required detail, matching the contract
• check the second platform counts as a jobs site
• track the 28 and 90 days and have the application ready to submit on day 29

Get a free assessment or send us a message. For the whole process, see our step-by-step guide.