Background

The roadmap has been developed following a review of the 2023 plan to raise MAR thresholds over two years – which was paused to allow for a public consultation process on the MAR thresholds for employment permits which received over 150 submissions from employers, permit holders, trade unions, and representative bodies. The review also considered challenges linked to rising costs of doing business in Ireland, global economic conditions and concerns from stakeholders engaging with migrant workers in Ireland.

Following this review and consultation process, the DETE has adopted a more gradual trajectory for increasing MAR thresholds than what was originally planned in December 2023, while also embedding indexation (provided for under the Employment Permits Act 2024) into the roadmap to increases. 

Instead of completing increases to MAR thresholds by 2026, the new plan introduces a gradual implementation plan through to 2030. This approach ensures a balance between worker rights and business sustainability.

The first tranche of changes will take effect on 1 March 2026, with further increases to take effect until 2030, after which indexation will apply equally across all MAR thresholds for employment permits.

Headline changes from 1 March 2026

Effective from 1 March 2026, MAR thresholds will increase as follows for the employment permits below: 

New lower thresholds for recent graduates

Recognising early‑career pay scales and the importance of retaining talent trained in Ireland, the roadmap also introduces lower starting MAR thresholds for recent non-EEA graduates from third level institutions in Ireland who have graduated within the previous 12 months. From 1 March 2026 the starting MAR thresholds for recent graduates will be:

These measures are designed to support entry‑level hiring pipelines, mitigate pressure on graduate programme salary bands, and encourage the retention and attraction of highly skilled workers early in their careers.

Public sector exception for critical skills roles

Critical skills roles that are subject to the public sector pay deal will be exempt from the MAR thresholds for critical skills employment permits. This will also be applied to community and voluntary organisations whose pay scales are linked to the public sector pay deal.

This tailored measure reflects the reality of centrally negotiated pay scales and is intended to safeguard recruitment into critical health and social care roles where entry points on pay scales would otherwise fall below the MAR threshold. It sits alongside the separate trajectory to increase support‑role thresholds in care settings, recognising the funding constraints of Fair Deal negotiations and the need for longer lead‑in.

Indexation and looking ahead to 2030

Indexation was first introduced into Ireland’s employment permit system under the Employment Permits Act 2024 (the 2024 Act).

What is indexation?

Indexation is a mechanism that was introduced to ensure that the MAR thresholds for employment permits don’t stagnate and remain in line with earnings and average wage growth in Ireland.

Its purpose is to increase the attractiveness of Ireland as a work destination and to ensure employment permit holders will continue to be able to afford to live in Ireland.

How does indexation work?

Under the 2024 Act, the Minister is obliged to carry out a yearly review of the MAR thresholds for employment permits having regard to the changes in average weekly earnings made available from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) in its quarterly release of average earnings, hours worked, employment and labour costs.

Following its review, if the Minister is satisfied that there has been an increase in average weekly earnings as calculated by the CSO, the Minister must increase the MAR thresholds by the same percentage or more.

How will indexation be used up to 2030?

Following the enactment of the 2024 Act, MAR thresholds for employment permits have not been reviewed and the roadmap notes that indexation cannot address the stagnation that has already occurred. Nonetheless, the 2026 adjustments reflect a 7.66% uplift in MAR thresholds for most permit types, representing an increase in average weekly earnings in the first quarter of 2025. This is based on the most recent and finalised data from the CSO.

From 2027 to 2030, MAR thresholds for most permit types will be subject to review through this indexation mechanism and we will see further increases in MAR thresholds if average weekly earnings continue to rise in Ireland.

Rationalisation for sub-standard MAR thresholds (healthcare and agri-food sectors)

Under the revised roadmap, the plan is to phase out the sub-standard MAR thresholds for general employment permits for the healthcare and agri-food sectors. A higher 9% uplift in MAR thresholds for general employment permits in those sectors in 2026 is intended to bridge the gap with the MAR threshold for standard general employment permits – which is due to increase by 7.66%. The gap is proposed to shorten from 89.3% of the standard MAR threshold in 2026 to 92.5% in 2027. 

This targeted rationalisation of sub-standard MAR thresholds for general employment permits in the healthcare and agri-food sectors will raise those rates faster than standard MAR thresholds between 2026 and 2030. They will be phased out entirely by 2030 and benchmarked against the standard MAR threshold for general employment permits. 

While this might seem unfair, this measure is responding to consultation evidence that these sub-standard MAR thresholds for general employment permits had become a de-facto ceiling for pay in some occupations and had fallen out of step with living costs, family reunification thresholds and broader labour market norms. Healthcare utilises the employment permit system more than any other sector and given how integral the provision of healthcare and social care is to Ireland, this targeted measure is welcome.

Implications for hiring, budgets and workforce planning

The revised roadmap softens the immediate increase compared to the original roadmap we saw at the end of 2023. It also provides a clearer cadence for salary planning. Nonetheless, employers must still plan for the immediate and longer-term, as the changes will effect new and existing employment permit holders.

Our specific observations for hiring, budgets and workforce planning are as follows:

• At this stage in 2025, many employers may have already agreed budgets for 2026, including employment costs. Employers will need to review and revise these projected costs considering the uplifts in MAR thresholds in 2026. 
  
  Renewals will require particular attention. The MAR thresholds will apply for new applications and applications for renewal, so employers should map expiry dates for current employment permit holders, audit their salaries against the 2026 uplift and forecast what increases are required to pass the 2026 MAR thresholds.
   
• Advertisements posted to satisfy the Labour Market Needs Test in advance of applying for a general employment permit will soon need to reflect the new MAR thresholds.
   
• The graduate adjustments will be welcome for employers running structured programmes or hiring entry‑level talent. However, the 12‑month post‑graduation eligibility window will require careful planning, especially where graduation dates and future start dates may not align neatly.
  
  Talent teams may need to readjust graduate programmes and time‑to‑apply processes to leverage the new graduate thresholds within the 12‑month post‑graduation window – noting that the same derogation has not been made for those who may be working on graduate permissions in Ireland for more than 12 months i.e. masters graduates.
   
• For many nursing homes, their funding model is tied to the Fair Deal Scheme or the Nursing Home Support Scheme. This model allows nursing homes to negotiate their funding with the National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) every one to three years. Funding negotiations result in a contract that stipulates what funding the NTPF will provide and how much the nursing home can charge residents – this process means nursing homes are less able to adjust pricing to accommodate increased costs in their business. For healthcare providers who rely on these funding models, the staged increases for healthcare assistants and home carers will need to be integrated into their negotiation strategy with engagement on pricing and funding to accommodate cost increases associated with increasing MAR thresholds.
   
• The move to annual indexation provides a clearer cadence for salary planning but employers will still need to be aware that when they are budgeting employment costs in future, reviews of MAR thresholds for employment permits will be undertaken by the Minister. The roadmap notes that future reviews will consider Q1 to Q1 data from the CSO noting that since 2020, the Q1-to-Q1 annual increase has averaged 4.9%.
  
  There is no confirmation as to when the next review will be undertaken or when the next increase, if there is one, will come into effect, although the expectation is that it may be next January 2027. Let’s wait and see.
   
• Employers operating in healthcare and agri-food sectors should be mindful that increases to MAR thresholds for general employment permits for their employees will increase at a rate above what will be decided for other MAR thresholds as the DETE begins to phase out sub-standard MAR thresholds.

Conclusion

The recalibrated roadmap represents a pragmatic balance between labour market integrity and business continuity. It raises MAR thresholds steadily and provides a predictable framework, without causing immediate shock and consternation; which the DETE was accused of in 2023 when it announced increases to MAR thresholds out of the blue. 

It also reflects the Government’s commitment to attracting and retaining talent in Ireland where there are skills deficits. 

The employment permit system remains popular, with over 25,000 employment permits issued this year to date. The increases to MAR thresholds will affect many more who are already employment permit holders. Employers will need to consider these changes and plan accordingly. However, with the first changes not taking effect until 1 March 2026, there is still time to plan.