Home care waiting lists across Ireland have grown steadily year on year. Meanwhile, home care operators across Munster, Connacht, and Leinster are turning down new clients not because they lack the funding, but because they cannot find carers to do the work.
If your business is in that position — you have the clients, the contracts, the infrastructure — and you keep hitting a wall on staff, overseas recruitment is a real option. Not a complicated one, if you understand the process. This guide is specifically for private home care operators: companies that send carers into clients' homes. The rules are the same as for nursing homes on permits, but the operating context is different enough to warrant its own explanation.
Can a home care company hire overseas care workers?
Yes, and the permit route is clearer than many people assume.
Home support workers are named explicitly in the General Employment Permit (GEP) regulations as eligible for a permit. DETE uses the SOC 6145 occupational code, which covers both Health Care Assistants (HCAs) and Home Support Workers. The minimum rate for this route is €16.12 per hour — €32,691 per year on a 39-hour week, or €33,529.60 on a 40-hour week. That sits below the standard GEP minimum of €36,605, because DETE designates this as a shortage occupation. The qualifying salary means basic pay: guaranteed premium payments can be counted, but bonuses, shift allowances, and overtime cannot.
One question that often comes up: the DETE ineligible list includes "all work in the private home." Does that block homecare providers? It does not. That restriction applies to domestic or personal household employment — cleaners, au pairs, personal employees of a private individual. Home carers employed by a registered home care company are in a different category entirely. The carer is employed by your business, not by the client's household. DETE's own GEP regulations make this explicit by naming home support workers as eligible.
HSE recruitment freezes (including the freeze in place as of May 2026) do not affect private home care operators. You are not an HSE employer. You are a private business, funding your own staffing. The freeze is irrelevant to your situation.
The home care shortage is structural, not cyclical. Ireland's older population is growing faster than the domestic care workforce. The people waiting for home care are not a backlog that will clear — they represent ongoing demand that exceeds local supply. Overseas recruitment is not a workaround; for many providers it is the medium-term plan.
Which roles are eligible?
For a home care company, the relevant roles under the GEP are:
- Home support worker
- Home carer
- Healthcare assistant (HCA) in a community or home care setting
One role that catches people out: "senior care worker" is on DETE's ineligible list, with an exception only for those working in disability services. If you are thinking of bringing in someone with supervisory responsibilities and calling the role "senior carer," take advice before you start — the permit may not issue. Standard home carer and HCA roles are not affected by this.
NMBI registration does not apply here. NMBI (Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland) is the registration body for nurses — not for home carers or healthcare assistants. If you are hiring someone for an HCA or home support role, you do not need NMBI registration and should not be asking candidates to obtain it. The two are separate, and conflating them wastes time and puts candidates off.
What does the permit process involve?
The route is the General Employment Permit. The steps are consistent regardless of sector, but there are some specifics worth knowing for home care.
Step 1 — Check the 50/50 ratio
Before starting anything, check your workforce composition. At the time of the permit application, at least 50% of your total staff must be EEA nationals. For a home care company with a mixed workforce of long-term Irish staff and some previous overseas hires, this is usually fine. For a newer or smaller operation, it is worth confirming before you commit the time and cost of the Labour Market Needs Test.
The exceptions are narrow: start-ups registered with Revenue within the past two years that hold a formal Enterprise Ireland or IDA letter of support, or situations where the permit holder will be the sole employee. Most established home care companies will not qualify for an exception. Check the ratio first.
Step 2 — Run the Labour Market Needs Test (28 days)
You must advertise the vacancy on two platforms for a minimum of 28 consecutive days before you can submit the permit application:
- Jobs Ireland (jobsireland.ie) — this satisfies the DSP/EURES network requirement
- One additional online platform — any commercial job board
You keep a log of every application received during those 28 days and document why no suitable EEA candidate was selected. For home care roles in most counties, this is straightforward — suitable local applicants are genuinely not available, and that is what the records will reflect. Do not amend or extend the advertisement once it is live; DETE checks this.
You have 90 days from the initial advertisement date to submit the permit application. Running candidate sourcing in parallel — screening Filipino applicants while the 28-day clock runs — keeps the overall timeline tight.
Step 3 — DETE GEP application
After the LMNT closes, the permit application goes to DETE (Ireland's Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment) through the Employment Permits Online system. This is the employer's application. You provide the signed job offer, LMNT records, tax registration details, and workforce headcount for the 50/50 check.
Key numbers for the application:
- Minimum pay: €16.12/hour — €32,691/year on a 39-hour week, €33,529.60 on a 40-hour week (basic pay only; bonuses, shift allowances, and overtime do not count)
- DETE application fee: €1,000 for a permit of up to 24 months
- Permit duration: up to 24 months, renewable
Current processing time for new GEP applications: check live processing dates at enterprise.gov.ie. As of May 2026, DETE is processing applications received in early March 2026 — approximately 10 to 12 weeks. This changes; always check before planning your timeline.
Step 4 — Worker's Philippine documentation
While DETE is processing the application, the worker prepares their documentation in the Philippines. This includes:
- NBI clearance — Philippines National Bureau of Investigation clearance, required by DETE for the permit application
- Medical certificate — from a DMW-accredited clinic
- OEC — Overseas Employment Certificate, issued by the Philippines' Department of Migrant Workers before departure
This is worker-side documentation, but your agency should be tracking it. If any of these are delayed, it can hold up the visa stage even after the permit is issued.
Step 5 — Irish D-visa
Once DETE issues the permit, the worker applies for their Irish long-stay D-visa at the Irish Embassy in Manila. This is the worker's application — the employer provides a copy of the approved permit, but does not submit the visa application. Turnaround is typically 2 to 4 weeks.
Step 6 — Arrival and onboarding
When the worker arrives in Ireland:
- PPS number — needed to go on payroll; obtained from a local Intreo office
- IRP registration — the worker registers with Immigration Service Delivery (ISD) within 90 days of arrival to receive their Irish Residence Permit (IRP) card
- Garda vetting — processed through the National Vetting Bureau after arrival; no fee to the employer; allow a few weeks
Garda vetting and the NBI clearance from the Philippines are separate. NBI clearance is a permit application requirement handled before departure. Garda vetting is an Irish requirement handled after arrival. Both are needed.
Home care specifics — what's different from a nursing home
The permit route is the same, but the operational context differs in a few ways that matter.
Variable hours and multiple clients. Home carers typically work across multiple client households in a week, with hours that shift based on client need. When you set the contracted salary in the permit application, it must be at least €16.12 per hour — €32,691 annually on a 39-hour week, more if the contracted week is longer. If you are offering part-time hours, DETE will assess the annualised equivalent. Build this into your employment contract clearly.
Transport. Carers attending clients across a community need reliable transport. It is worth discussing this practically during the recruitment process — whether the worker will need a licence, whether your company provides vehicles, and what the expectation is. Filipino workers accustomed to urban environments may need time to adapt to rural county routes.
Isolation risk. A nursing home carer is surrounded by colleagues. A home carer often works alone. Filipino workers adjusting to a new country benefit from regular check-ins, particularly in the first 90 days. This is not unique to Filipino workers — it applies to any overseas hire settling into community care work — but it is worth having a plan for.
No HIQA inspection for the permit. HIQA regulation applies to residential care settings, not to home care companies for the purpose of the employment permit application. You do not need HIQA approval before recruiting overseas. You do need your company to be properly constituted, tax-registered, and compliant with WRC obligations as an employer.
Timeline and cost
| Stage | Duration | Cost to employer |
|---|---|---|
| Eligibility check, 50/50 ratio assessment | 1–2 days | Free (CA Recruitment) |
| Labour Market Needs Test | 28 days | €200–€500 (advertising) |
| Candidate sourcing and shortlisting (runs during LMNT) | 2–4 weeks | No additional cost |
| DETE GEP application processing | 10–12 weeks (check enterprise.gov.ie) | €1,000 DETE fee |
| Philippine documentation (NBI, medical, OEC) | 2–4 weeks (runs during DETE processing) | Worker's cost |
| Irish D-visa | 2–4 weeks | Worker's cost |
| Arrival, PPS number, Garda vetting, IRP registration | 1–3 weeks | No employer fee |
Total: 6 to 8 months from first contact to carer starting. The agency fee (CA Recruitment's fee is agreed upfront, separate from these costs) and the DETE fee of €1,000 are the main direct costs. After that, the worker's salary at a minimum of €16.12 per hour (€32,691 per year on a 39-hour week). Garda vetting carries no employer charge.
Why Filipino care workers
We place Filipino workers across Ireland because the fit with the Irish care sector is strong and well-documented at this point.
A significant proportion of Filipino care worker applicants hold nursing degrees — a four-year BSN (Bachelor of Science in Nursing). That level of clinical training applied to a home carer role means shorter onboarding, less supervision in complex care situations, and better outcomes for clients. It also means workers tend to progress quickly if you give them the scope.
English is a medium of instruction in the Philippines from primary level. Communication with clients, families, and GP surgeries is not a barrier. This matters in community care, where carers are often the primary point of contact for isolated or elderly clients who depend on clear communication.
The Philippines also has a structured overseas employment system through the DMW (Department of Migrant Workers). Workers are medically screened, documented, and oriented before they leave. The departure is organised — not improvised. For an employer trying to plan staffing around specific start dates, that predictability has real value.
How CA Recruitment manages the process
Our founder Monette is Filipino, based in Tipperary. She built CA Recruitment because she understands both sides of this process — the Irish permit system as it operates in practice, and how the Philippines departure process actually works on the ground. Most Irish recruitment agencies outsource the Philippine side to a local partner they have limited oversight of. We manage both sides directly.
A Co. Limerick home care group came to us after four months of failed local advertising. Six Filipino care assistants placed. Workers on site within 14 weeks of the LMNT closing. That is the realistic timeline when the process is managed properly and nothing goes wrong.
What we do for every placement:
- Eligibility check — 50/50 ratio, salary threshold, role classification
- Candidate sourcing and screening in the Philippines
- LMNT advertising management and record-keeping
- DETE GEP application preparation and submission
- Philippine documentation tracking — NBI, medical, OEC
- D-visa coordination with the Irish Embassy in Manila
- Arrival support — PPS number, IRP registration, Garda vetting coordination
- First 90 days support for employer and worker
If you run a home care service and you have roles you cannot fill locally, WhatsApp Monette directly. She will tell you whether a permit hire is feasible for your situation and what the timeline looks like for your specific vacancies.
Frequently asked questions
Can a home care company hire overseas care workers in Ireland?
Yes. Home support workers and healthcare assistants (SOC 6145) are eligible for a General Employment Permit at a minimum of €16.12 per hour — €32,691 per year on a 39-hour week. The employer must be a registered business — the carer is employed by your company, not by the private client household. The HSE recruitment freeze does not affect private home care operators.
Does NMBI registration apply to home carers hired from overseas?
No. NMBI is the registration body for nurses. Home carers and healthcare assistants are not registered professionals under NMBI, and you should not be requesting it for HCA or home support roles. If you are hiring for a nursing role specifically, that is a different permit route and NMBI does apply.
What salary does a home care provider need to pay an overseas carer?
The minimum is €16.12 per hour for home support worker and HCA GEP applications — €32,691 per year on a 39-hour week, or €33,529.60 on a 40-hour week. This is below the standard GEP minimum of €36,605 because DETE designates healthcare support as a shortage occupation. The qualifying salary must be basic pay: guaranteed premium payments can count, but bonuses, shift allowances, and overtime cannot. If your contracted hours are part-time, DETE assesses the annualised equivalent — ensure the full-time rate is clearly stated in the employment contract.
How long does it take to hire an overseas home carer in Ireland?
6 to 8 months from starting to the carer's first day. That covers 28 days for the Labour Market Needs Test, approximately 10 to 12 weeks of DETE processing (check current processing dates at enterprise.gov.ie), 2 to 4 weeks for the Irish D-visa in Manila, and travel and onboarding time.
Does the 50/50 workforce rule apply to home care companies?
Yes. At the time you apply for the GEP, at least 50% of your total workforce must be EEA nationals. Count all employees — carers, admin, management. Exceptions are narrow: start-ups with a formal EI or IDA letter of support registered within the past two years, or where the permit holder will be the sole employee. Always check before starting the LMNT.
Do overseas home carers need Garda vetting in Ireland?
Yes. Garda vetting through the National Vetting Bureau is required for anyone working in a care setting. There is no fee to the employer. It is processed after the worker arrives in Ireland — it cannot be done from the Philippines. The NBI clearance from the Philippines is a separate requirement for the DETE permit application. Both are needed; neither replaces the other.