Work permit or Green card?

[ikon1400]

Guys,

I am quite new to this ireland immigration. Recently i had got a contact with a employer in Ireland and they are fine with my credentials to give me a job. Also they suggested me that i can get green card to work, but they said they cant afford to wait for the processing time.

My questions are

1) I had seen both the guidance of work permits & green card. It looks more or less the same except some minor changes. Why is the employer suggesting me green card? can i opt for work permit? or is there any implications around this?

2) What is the normal processing time for work permit or Green card when applied from india?

3) In my case i have told the employer that i wil process my greencard provided if they giev me a good offer. So If i get the offer and apply on my own, what is the process to be followed?

4) is the application made online or any means?

5) i guess after the approval i should go for Entry clearance in nearest embassy of ireland in india. How long does this take or is it mandatory for all green card applicants to get this clearance?

My sincere apologies if my queries look very silly or basic. I couldnt help me so i thought i shall get the views of experts here.

Cheers
Ikon

[esharknz]

Hi there,

some guidance, from my experience. If you get a salary offer over €60K, then you use the green card permit route. If its between €30K and €60K, and you match an occupation for which there is a demonstrated shortage (for example, a computer programmer), then you can also use the green card route for these.

Other occupations, for between €30K and €60K will generally use the work permit route where your employer has to demonstrate (through using FAS etc) that they have tried to find an EEA national before choosing you. There are a list of occupations for which permits will not be considered too. These are contained within the guidelines.

Processing times for work permits/green cards are updated usually at least a couple of times per week (sometimes nearly every day) at www.entemp.ie/labour/workpermits. I think a green card is currently taking 2.5 weeks to process, and a work permit around about 3.5 weeks. Then, of course, there is postage time. Check out www.anpost.ie for some sort of guidance as to postage times.

You can download an application form online at http://www.entemp.ie/labour/workpermits/epformsfees.htm, but this will need to be printed and posted in to Dublin. Basically, if you are applying, then you just need to tick the appropriate box on the front of the form, and then fill in the payer details with your details. You will need to get a cheque that is drawable on an irish bank (I think) for the sum of €1000.

I'm not sure about entry clearance procedures. I'm certain this is only required if you are from a visa required nation. Non-visa required nationals are permitted to show up at the border with their work permit/green card (or at least that's how it worked with me) and are given the appropriate stamp.

Hope this is of some help.

[ikon1400]

@esharknz,

It was a very inofmrative post from you, Thanks a lot. I am from india & i suppose i need a visa to enter to ireland. Also I fall under "information technology" category & hence i feel if i get a offer > €30K, i will go for a green card.

Is there any users here who have applied from india on their own for a green card after getting a job offer? please reply me. thanks in advance

Cheers
Ikon

[esharknz]

Just a word of caution too with the job titles. I know of a person who has run into difficulties with this. This person was effectively a computer programmer, but had a different job title (it was some variation of this title, I cannot remember what the exact title was). This person was declined as they didn't think it was a "specialist occupation". It was, it's just the person processing didn't think it was a computer programming position.

[ikon1400]

@esharknz,

you are right & i had checked the guidance for Green card where it matches my current profile exactly in IT.

Can i expect any cosulatants details in india for processing this greencard? is there anyone who haad done this before.

Please share your views. thanks in advance.

Cheers
ikon

[Dan01]

If I can just jump in here for a moment.

You will need to get a cheque that is drawable on an irish bank (I think) for the sum of €1000.

Can anyone confirm this? I assume you would need to have an account with an Irish bank before doing up the cheque? In my case, the only alternative would be my Canadian Chequing Account.

[joesoap101]

http://www.entemp.ie/publications/labou ... defees.pdf

Acceptable Forms of payment
Payment must be in the form of a Euro denominated cheque, bank draft or postal order, drawn on a financial institution operating within the Irish clearing system. Cheques should be made payable to: Department of Enterprise, Trade & Employment.
Please note:
All foreign drafts and cheques will be returned.

[Dan01]

Good to know. Cheers.