In short: In 2025 DETE refused 197 employment permit applications from Co. Limerick, more than double the 86 refused in 2024. The county's refusal rate went from 4.3%, below the national rate, to 11.3%, above it. CA Recruitment is a WRC-licensed employment agency (Licence No. EA 5444) that recruits from outside the EEA, chiefly the Philippines, and runs the DETE permit from the eligibility check to the worker's visa. We are based in Ballyporeen, Co. Tipperary, with no office in Limerick.
Checked on 12 October 2026. Thresholds, fees and quotas change during the year, and DETE announces quota closures on its notices page, sometimes with applications already in the queue rejected. Contact us and we will confirm where your role stands today, before you spend anything.
Limerick's refusal rate went from one of the lowest to above average
In 2024, 4.3% of Limerick's decided applications were refused, lower than all but three of the 26 counties in the State. In 2025 the rate was 11.3%. The national rate rose too, from 5.9% to 10.0%, but Limerick's rate rose 2.6 times and the national rate 1.7 times. Refused Limerick applications went from 86 to 197 while the number issued fell.
DETE does not publish refusal reasons by county, so these figures cannot tell you what went wrong in individual cases. They do tell a Limerick employer that a permit application is now more likely to come back refused than it was two years ago, and that the checks done before filing matter more than they did.
Limerick's permit numbers, 2023 to 2025
From DETE's permits by county tables:
| Year | Permits issued, Limerick | Refused, Limerick | Limerick refusal rate | National refusal rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 1,600 | 84 | 5.0% | 4.8% |
| 2024 | 1,905 | 86 | 4.3% | 5.9% |
| 2025 | 1,543 | 197 | 11.3% | 10.0% |
Permits issued in Limerick rose 19% in 2024 and fell 19% in 2025, close to the national pattern of a 27% rise then a 21% fall. Limerick took about 5% of all permits issued in Ireland in each of the three years. In 2025 it moved from fourth to third place among counties, behind Dublin and Cork, as Kildare's total fell by almost half.
What we check before a Limerick application is filed
- The occupation. The role has to be eligible and not on DETE's Ineligible List of Occupations. The duties in the job description decide which occupation code applies, not the job title.
- The pay. The salary has to meet the minimum for that occupation, and the Labour Market Needs Test advert has to show it. DETE has said an advert that does not reflect the correct salary will not satisfy the test and will lead to rejection. Basic pay must also be at least the National Minimum Wage, €14.15 an hour from 1 January 2026.
- The Labour Market Needs Test. Where one is needed, the vacancy runs for at least 28 days on the Department of Social Protection's JobsIreland and EURES services and on a second online platform. See our Labour Market Needs Test guide.
- The 50:50 rule. At least half the employer's workforce generally has to be EEA, Swiss or UK nationals, unless an exemption applies.
- The quota. For a capped role, whether the quota is still open on the day of filing.
Limerick's permit employers are mostly small hirers
DETE's list of companies issued permits does not give a county. We matched the 2025 names against the Companies Registration Office and kept the ones whose registered address is in Co. Limerick: about 300 employers, holding around 1,080 of the county's 1,543 permits. A registered address is not always where staff are based, so this is a guide, not a count. About three in four of those employers received one or two permits. The five biggest held 30% of the matched permits, so a handful of large employers account for a sizeable share, but most Limerick permit employers hire one or two people.
Limerick roles a permit can fill
- Manufacturing and engineering: maintenance fitters, electricians, welders and pipefitters, CNC machinists, and technician, engineering and quality roles. General production and packing operatives are ineligible. See our manufacturing recruitment agency page.
- Nursing and care: registered nurses on the Critical Skills Employment Permit, which can only be applied for once NMBI has registered the nurse. Healthcare assistants on a General Employment Permit, and care workers and home carers within a quota of 1,495 from 13 May 2026. The salary floor for healthcare assistants, care workers and home carers is €16.12 an hour, which is €32,691 a year on a 39-hour week. See our nursing and care pages.
- Hospitality: chefs from commis level up. Waiting, bar and kitchen-assistant roles are ineligible, and manager roles sit under quotas of 100, 200, 50 and 50 permits from 13 May 2026. See our hospitality recruitment agency page.
- Construction and haulage: qualified building craftspeople such as bricklayers and carpenters, paid at least the Construction Sectoral Employment Order rate of €23.74 an hour for a craftsperson since 1 August 2026, and HGV drivers with a CE or C1E licence or a recognised equivalent. See our construction and logistics pages.
- Farming: dairy farm assistant at the standard €36,605 minimum, and horticulture workers at €32,691 within a quota of 971 from 13 May 2026. General farm workers are ineligible. See our agriculture recruitment agency page.
We run Limerick hires from Ballyporeen by phone, WhatsApp, email and video, because applications go to the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment from every county alike. Monette, who owns CA Recruitment, is a Filipino national living in Ireland and recruits through her own contacts in the Philippines, and further afield where a role suits. Our fee is agreed in writing up front and is due only once the worker starts. DETE's fee for a General Employment Permit of more than six months and up to 24 months is €1,000. A hire from the Philippines takes about 6 months from first call to first shift, or about 4 to 5 months from a visa-exempt country such as Brazil, and each placement carries a 90-day replacement guarantee on our fee. Our cost guide and 2026 quota guide go into more detail.
Hiring elsewhere in the region? See our Cork, Kerry and Galway pages.
Hiring in Limerick? Get it checked before you file.
WhatsApp Monette on 089 416 6124 for a free eligibility check. She will confirm whether your Limerick role qualifies, the permit and salary floor that apply, whether any quota is open, and a realistic start date.
Frequently asked questions
DETE does not publish refusal reasons by county, so nobody outside the Department can say for certain. What the tables show is that refusals of Limerick applications rose from 86 in 2024 to 197 in 2025, and the refusal rate from 4.3% to 11.3%. The national rate also rose, from 5.9% to 10.0%, but Limerick's rose faster and finished above it.
DETE issued 1,543 employment permits to employers in Co. Limerick in 2025, down 19% from 1,905 in 2024. The national total fell 21%. Limerick was the third-largest permit county in 2025, behind Dublin and Cork, having been fourth in 2023 and 2024.
DETE refunds 90% of the fee on a refused or withdrawn application and keeps the rest, so on a €1,000 General Employment Permit the Department keeps €100. The bigger costs are the 28 days of Labour Market Needs Test advertising, which may need to be run again, and the weeks the vacancy stays open while you start over.
Skilled manufacturing and engineering roles such as maintenance fitters, electricians, CNC machinists and technicians; registered nurses on the Critical Skills route; healthcare assistants, care workers and home carers; chefs from commis level up; qualified construction tradespeople; HGV drivers with a CE or C1E licence; and dairy farm assistants. General production operatives, labourers, waiting staff, van drivers and general farm workers are ineligible.
No. We are based in Ballyporeen, Co. Tipperary, and have no office in Limerick. We work by phone, WhatsApp, email and video call. DETE processes employment permits centrally, so a Limerick application goes through the same national process wherever the agency is based. Our WRC Employment Agency Licence number is EA 5444.