The Employment Permits Act 2024 has been signed into law.
- The new legislation will repeal prior Employment Permit laws and make a series of changes, including:
- the introduction of a seasonal employment permit;
- revision of the labour market needs test to make it more relevant and efficient;
- improved efficiency through moving operational criteria to regulations;
- providing for additional conditions for grant of an employment permit, such as training or accommodation support for migrant workers in some circumstances, or making innovation or upskilling a condition of grant, where this may decrease future reliance on economic migration;
- facilitating third party contracts (subcontractors); and
- automatic indexation of salary thresholds.
It is also intended to reduce, from twelve months to nine, the time a migrant worker must wait until s/he can move to a different employer.
A commencement order is required before the Act will come into effect.
This article contains a general summary of developments and is not a complete or definitive statement of the law. Specific legal advice should be obtained where appropriate.