Page reviewed in full . Newest source check . A source check does not mean every requirement was re-read that day. Not a guarantee of eligibility.
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Ireland · Student or trainee
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Study is open on full-time courses offered by TrustEd Ireland-authorised providers or still listed on the ILEP, with a 20-hour work cap and a graduate job-search stamp afterwards
3 options to consider.
Ireland has two real skilled-worker routes (Critical Skills and General permits) and an open student route with a graduate job-search year. Pay floors rose on 1 March 2026, the General permit needs a labour market test and a 50:50 workforce rule, trades are open only in listed or quota occupations, and the investor programme is closed.
Non-EEA students register for Stamp 2 permission, which allows casual work of up to 20 hours a week in term and 40 hours in holiday periods. Student time does not count towards long-term residence, family sponsorship is closed to students except ISD-approved scholarship students and PhD students (conditions apply), and private medical insurance is required. Students must show access to EUR 10,000 for a one-year course, and part-time or distance courses do not qualify. After a Level 8 or Level 9 award from a recognised Irish body, the Third Level Graduate Programme gives 12 months (24 for Level 9 and above) to find graduate work, but the graduate must secure an employment permit before it ends and late extensions are generally refused. Overall student permission is capped at seven years. Application processing time for the student visa is not published as a figure on the pages we checked, so none is shown. Whether a given nationality needs a visa is NOT VERIFIED here: ISD says it depends on nationality and the page we checked lists no countries.
Open the full Ireland reference: living in Ireland, research topics, community links and the complete practical layer, each with its source and date.
Choosing an option here means you are exploring and preparing. It does not submit an application and it does not show that you are eligible.
Full-time student permission (Stamp 2)
Not yet verified
Full-time daytime study on an eligible programme (TrustEd Ireland-authorised provider, or a provider still on the Interim List of Eligible Programmes); casual work allowed, family sponsorship only for scholarship and PhD exceptions, time does not count towards residence.
Main condition: Enrol in a full-time, daytime eligible programme: ISD says visas and Stamp 2 are granted only for eligible programmes of providers authorised to use the TrustEd Ireland mark, and the ILEP is being superseded (providers stay listed only while they meet ILEP criteria; the policy statement gives no end date). Holding the mark does not make every course eligible. Part-time and distance courses do not qualify
Third Level Graduate Programme (Stamp 1G)
Not yet verified
12 months after a Level 8 award, up to 24 months after Level 9 or above, to find graduate employment; an employment permit must follow before it ends.
Main condition: Hold a Level 8 or Level 9 award from a recognised Irish awarding body, notified on or after 1 January 2017
English language programme (TrustEd-authorised or ILEP-listed provider)
Not yet verified
Allowed but capped: full-time eligible courses, three courses at most, and no switch from a language course into a degree route except by enrolling on a higher-education ILEP programme.
Main condition: Programme at least 25 weeks and 15 class hours a week, 9am to 5pm on at least four weekdays
Choose an option first. Conditions belong to a particular route, and we will not assume the first one is yours.
No passport set. Add it with in the route bar to see whether we hold document steps for it.
Documents are prepared before you apply. Your passport country and the country that issues a document can be different.
Which documents you need depends on the option you choose. Choose an option to see its documents. Only items that are not tied to one option are shown now.
Restricted: English language programme (TrustEd-authorised or ILEP-listed provider). Allowed but capped: full-time eligible courses, three courses at most, and no switch from a language course into a degree route except by enrolling on a higher-education ILEP programme.
Each site is listed with what it is for and who runs it. An information page is not an application form.
