Republic of Ireland vs Jersey (British Crown Dependency)
A neutral side-by-side of immigration systems, routes and regulators. Each row links to the underlying visa page with its primary government source.
Last reviewed:
Source basis
This comparison combines Republic of Ireland and Jersey (British Crown Dependency) government portals with the primary sources for each side's dominant skilled route. Every detailed figure links through to the underlying route or data page.
Reviewed
Primary sources
- Immigration Service Delivery
Department of Justice (Ireland) - verified
- Government of Jersey - Moving to Jersey
Government of Jersey - verified
- DETE — Critical Skills Employment Permit
Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment (Ireland) - verified
- Government of Jersey - Work permit policy
Jersey Customs and Immigration Service, Government of Jersey - verified
Republic of Ireland
Ireland operates an employment permits system administered by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (DETE), with immigration permissions separately issued by Immigration Service Delivery (ISD). The Critical Skills Employment Permit is the headline route for high-skill migration.
- Official portal
- Department of Justice (Ireland)
- Languages
- Irish, English
- Currency
- Euro
Jersey (British Crown Dependency)
Jersey Visa Atlas coverage is based on Government of Jersey pages for moving to Jersey, applying for a visa, customs and immigration, work permit policy, registration cards, and residential and employment statuses. The current packet covers immigration permission, employer work permits, Jersey resident registration cards, residential/employment statuses, and arrival customs/immigration compliance.
- Official portal
- Government of Jersey
- Languages
- English, French
- Currency
- Pound sterling
How Republic of Ireland and Jersey (British Crown Dependency) differ
| Dimension | Republic of Ireland | Jersey (British Crown Dependency) |
|---|---|---|
| Total routes covered | 7 | 5 |
| Routes without employer sponsor | 4 | 4 |
| Routes leading to permanent residence | 6 | 0 |
| Typical full settlement timeline | Separate clocks: CSEP and other specified permissions may qualify for a Stamp 4 upgrade after 21 months of employment; ordinary GEP/ICT after 57 months. Long Term Residency has its own 60-month qualifying-residence test. Naturalisation normally requires five years of reckonable residence, including the final continuous year; neither Stamp 4 nor Long Term Residency guarantees citizenship or a decision date. | — |
| Dominant skilled visa | Critical Skills Employment Permit | Work Permit |
| Skilled visa salary minimum | €40,904/year | — |
| Skilled visa processing time | DETE’s page, published as at 04 September 2026, listed Critical Skills Employment Permit applications received on 26 August 2026. That 9-day difference is a queue-position snapshot, not a decision-time estimate. | — |
| Skilled visa government fees | A Critical Skills Employment Permit to Ireland costs around €1,300 in government fees for a single applicant — the CSEP fee is typically employer-borne, so the worker's out-of-pocket cost is closer to €300. | — |
| Official languages | Irish, English | English, French |
| Currency | Euro | Pound sterling |
| Primary regulator | Law Society | JCIS |
| Policy changes (last 12 months) | 1 | 0 |
Skilled-route head-to-head
Comparing each country’s most-used skilled-migration route side by side.
Republic of Ireland
Critical Skills Employment Permit
- Salary minimum
- €40,904/year
- Government fees
- A Critical Skills Employment Permit to Ireland costs around €1,300 in government fees for a single applicant — the CSEP fee is typically employer-borne, so the worker's out-of-pocket cost is closer to €300.
- Processing time
- DETE’s page, published as at 04 September 2026, listed Critical Skills Employment Permit applications received on 26 August 2026. That 9-day difference is a queue-position snapshot, not a decision-time estimate.
- Sponsor required
- Yes
- Leads to settlement
- Yes
Jersey (British Crown Dependency)
Work Permit
- Salary minimum
- —
- Government fees
- —
- Processing time
- —
- Sponsor required
- Yes
- Leads to settlement
- No
Recent policy activity
Last 6 months. Each entry links to its primary government source.
- 28 May 2026Republic of Ireland
Ireland announces employment-permit occupation list changes
The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment announced occupation-list changes to support housing, health and transport needs, including additions to the Critical Skills Occupation List and removals from the Ineligible Occupations List.
Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Ireland)
Routes unique to Republic of Ireland
Routes unique to Jersey (British Crown Dependency)
Visa routes side by side
Republic of Ireland (7)
Critical Skills Employment Permit
Sponsor · Leads to settlement · Two-year permit; eligible holders can seek Stamp 4 after 21 months of qualifying employment. Long-term residence is a separate application, not an automatic two-year outcome.
General Employment Permit
Sponsor · Leads to settlement · 2 years initially and renewable; later residence permissions depend on the qualifying permission history and separate ISD rules.
Start-up Entrepreneur Programme (STEP)
No sponsor · Leads to settlement · Initial 2-year permission; renewable; leads to Stamp 4 after 5 years.
Stamp 4 permission
No sponsor · Leads to settlement · Employment-based upgrades are renewable every 2 years for the qualifying 21-month group and every year for the 57-month group. Other Stamp 4 bases have their own duration and conditions.
Irish Student visa (Stamp 2)
Sponsor · Non-settlement · Up to 1 year at a time; renewable during studies.
Join Family (Irish national or EEA national)
No sponsor · Leads to settlement · Variable — usually 1–3 years at a time; leads to Stamp 4.
Immigrant Investor Programme (IIP — closed)
No sponsor · Leads to settlement · Closed to new applicants.
Jersey (British Crown Dependency) (5)
Immigration Permission and Visa
No sponsor · Non-settlement · As granted for the visit, study, work or residence purpose.
Work Permit
Sponsor · Non-settlement · Temporary route may be 9 or 12 months in relevant sectors; long-term route can be up to 3 years initially, with some medical doctor permits up to 5 years.
Register as a Jersey Resident
No sponsor · Non-settlement · Arrival registration and ongoing card updates, not a grant of immigration leave.
Residential and Employment Status
No sponsor · Non-settlement · Status depends on residence history, employment permission, relationship basis or business permission; some Entitled status can become permanent after qualifying residence.
Customs and Immigration Arrival
No sponsor · Non-settlement · Arrival and import compliance applies at or before the move to Jersey.
Frequently asked questions
Which country has an easier skilled-migration route, Republic of Ireland or Jersey (British Crown Dependency)?+
Republic of Ireland’s Critical Skills Employment Permit requires a salary of at least €40,904/year; Jersey (British Crown Dependency)’s Work Permit is the dominant skilled route. “Easier” depends on your salary, sponsor situation, and nationality — see each visa’s eligibility detail.
Which immigration system has changed more recently, Republic of Ireland or Jersey (British Crown Dependency)?+
In the last 6 months: 1 logged policy change for Republic of Ireland, 0 for Jersey (British Crown Dependency). See the recent-policy section above for the details, each linked to its primary source.
Cite or reuse this dataset
This comparison is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0. Cite the page for the compiled head-to-head table and use the country-comparisons JSON endpoint to retrieve the indexed pair, destination profiles and underlying source datasets.
Suggested citation
Visa Atlas, "Republic of Ireland vs Jersey (British Crown Dependency) immigration comparison", https://visaatlas.org/compare/ireland/vs/jersey. Last verified 29 June 2026.
- JSON endpoint
- https://visaatlas.org/api/public/country-comparisons