60. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment if his Department monitors whether these salary requirements result in Irish or EU workers receiving lower wages than employment-permit holders in comparable positions; and whether this may influence employers’ recruitment or retention decisions. [66858/26]

The employment permits system is grounded in legislation that sets clear and objective criteria for minimum annual remuneration thresholds (MAR), qualifications, and the eligibility of occupations. The MAR represents the minimum salary that must be paid to a non-EEA national for an employment permit to be issued or renewed.

Sufficient remuneration thresholds operate as a key protection for the labour market, ensuring that the recruitment of non-EEA nationals does not place downward pressure on wages or conditions, or undermine employment opportunities or career progression for the domestic and EEA workforce.

At the end of last year my Department published the Employment Permits: Minimum Annual Remuneration – Outcome of the Roadmap Review 2025, which sets out the policy rationale, evidence basis, and the revised phased roadmap for implementation of the thresholds applicable across the employment permits system.

The review was undertaken in response to a range of structural changes in the labour market since MAR thresholds were last comprehensively updated including sustained inflationary pressures, increases in average earnings, rising costs of living, and changing labour market dynamics.

The review was also informed by a public consultation process which received over 150 submissions from employers, permit holders, trade unions and representative bodies, the views of which were carefully considered in shaping the final roadmap.

The review found that applying indexation is essential to prevent MAR thresholds from becoming eroded over time by inflation or wage growth and to ensure that they continue to serve their intended policy purpose. Following the conclusion of the roadmap period, indexation will apply on an ongoing basis across all permit categories, providing a transparent and evidence?based mechanism for maintaining alignment with earnings trends.

Under this roadmap, the first increases took effect on 1 March 2026. The minimum salary threshold for a Critical Skills Employment Permit increased from €38,000 to €40,904, while the threshold for a General Employment Permit increased from €34,000 to €36,605. For sectors operating under lower than standard salary thresholds, including healthcare assistants and home carers, the minimum threshold increased from €30,000 to €32,691.

Since 2006, the standard MAR threshold for General Employment Permits has been increased twice, once in 2024 and again in 2026. The threshold in place for Critical Skills Employment Permits has increased three times over the same period, in 2020, 2024 and again in 2026.

These measures seek to ensure that employment permit holders have access to quality employment with remuneration that does not undercut the domestic workforce and better reflects earnings growth across the wider economy, while also supporting Ireland's competitiveness in attracting and retaining the skills required across key sectors.

The effect of these policy instruments ensures that the employment permits system remains fair, legally robust, and economically credible, supporting enterprise needs while protecting employment standards and preserving the integrity of the wider labour market.