Economic Engagement of
Migrants into Ireland

Data sources and approach

This analysis draws on three sources:

• CSO Foreign National Activity (FNA01): Tracks PPSN allocations to foreign nationals aged 15 and over, and their subsequent employment or social welfare activity, by nationality group. Cohorts run from 2002 to 2018, with activity observed up to 2018.
• DETE Employment Permit data: Captures work-related non-EEA migration from 2009 to 2025, providing the most direct measure of labour-driven inward migration from outside the EU. Published by the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment (renamed from Enterprise, Trade and Employment in June 2025).
• Eurostat first residence permits by reason: Used as supporting context only, as the Irish series is flagged by Eurostat as low reliability.

For each cohort year and each nationality group, FNA01 shows: The total number of PPSNs issued to foreign nationals aged 15 and over; the number of people with no recorded employment or social welfare activity since receiving a PPSN; and the number with employment or welfare activity in each subsequent calendar year. Using this structure, we examine inflows, activity over time, inactivity, and the composition of work-related non-EU migration through the permit system.

1. PPSN inflows set the context, but activity shows integration

PPSN allocations to foreign nationals increased sharply in the early to mid-2000s, peaked at 200,450 in 2006, fell during the financial crisis, and then recovered steadily through the late 2010s. The earlier surge was driven mainly by nationals from the 2004 EU accession states (EU15–EU25 grouping), while more recent inflows increasingly come from outside the EU and from the newer accession states (EU25–EU28).

Source: CSO Foreign National Activity (FNA01), table extracted November 2025.

Three phases stand out clearly: The period from 2004 to 2007 was dominated by the EU15–EU25 accession wave, peaking at 127,538 allocations in 2006 alone. The financial crisis of 2008–2012 produced a sharp fall across all groups. From 2013 onwards, allocations recovered, with “Other nationalities” (non-EU, non-UK) becoming the largest group – a structural shift reflecting the increasing role of the employment permit system, international students, and family migration.

These inflow numbers are important, but they do not show whether people quickly enter work, stay engaged over time, or leave Ireland. That becomes clear only when we look at activity after PPSN allocation.

2. Activity over time: Retention by nationality

To understand engagement after arrival, PPSN cohorts are followed forward and measured for employment or social welfare activity in each later year. Results are shown as years since PPSN allocation, and the figures are weighted to reflect cohort size.

Source: CSO FNA01. Note: Each lag uses only the cohorts for which activity data is observable up to 2018; later lags rest on fewer cohorts. We cut the curve at lag 10 as data beyond becomes too thin for reliable comparison across all groups.

Main patterns apparent include:

• EU15–EU25 cohorts show the strongest and longest-lasting activity, starting at 61% in year 0, peaking at 71% in year 1, and staying near 60% out to year 10. This reflects the labour-driven nature of the 2004 accession wave.
• EU25–EU28 cohorts also enter work early (54%) and peak around 59% in year 1. Activity softens in the middle years (50–55% at lags 2–6) before recovering; the long-tail numbers are sensitive to small cohort counts.
• Other nationalities start at 47% in year 0, peak at 53% in year 1, then settle in the 45–48% band. Activity is below the EU15–EU25 benchmark but remarkably stable, consistent with a mix of permit holders, students moving into jobs, and family-related migration.
• UK nationals show lower immediate activity (38% at year 0) but their activity rises over time, reaching around 48% by year 10. Lower early activity is linked to higher numbers with no initial employment or welfare record (see Section 4).
• EU15 excluding Irish and UK start at 54% but fall sharply, dropping to ~20% by year 10 – the clearest pattern of short stays, consistent with Western European labour mobility rather than long-term settlement.
• US nationals show the lowest activity at all stages (22–32%), consistent with student and short-stay patterns.

3. Employment permits and work-related non-EU migration

Employment permits apply only to non-EEA nationals and therefore fall almost entirely into the “Other nationalities” category in CSO terms, with a small US component. They are the cleanest available measure of labour-driven migration from outside the EU.

Source: Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment – Employment Permit Statistics.

The permits data shows four clear phases:

• 2009–2013: Low numbers following the financial crisis (7,962 in 2009, falling to a trough of 3,863 in 2013).
• 2014–2021: Steady growth as the economy recovered (5,495 rising to 16,275 over the period).
• 2022–2024: A step change: 39,955 in 2022 (more than double the 2021 figure), 30,981 in 2023, and 39,390 in 2024 – sustained annual volumes near or above 40,000.
• 2025: 31,044 permits issued, a 21% drop from 2024. Part of the fall reflects a new processing system launched in April 2025, higher salary thresholds, and the natural renewal cycle of the 2022 cohort.

This helps explain the activity patterns seen in the CSO data. As a larger share of non-EU arrivals come to Ireland specifically to work, later PPSN cohorts within “Other nationalities” are more likely to remain active over time, even if some individuals initially arrive for study or family reasons.

4. Changing nationality mix of inflows

The composition of PPSN inflows has changed alongside these activity patterns.

Source: CSO FNA01. Each column sums to 100%.

• Between 2004 and 2008, EU15–EU25 countries accounted for 40–64% of all PPSN allocations each year, peaking at 63.8% in 2005 and 63.6% in 2006.
• From 2011 onwards, “Other nationalities” became the largest group in most years, reaching 35.2% of the 2018 total.
• EU25–EU28 (Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia) rose steadily from near zero pre-accession to 16.0% of the 2018 total.

This shift matches the move from a mainly EU labour-migration model to a broader system combining work permits, education, family migration and shorter stays.

5. Understanding “no activity to date”

Some PPSN holders never appear in employment or welfare records, particularly in the years immediately following allocation.

Source: CSO FNA01. The rising rate for the most recent cohorts reflects the shorter follow-up window rather than a worsening trend.

Having “no activity to date” does not mean someone is unemployed or inactive in everyday terms. Common reasons include:

• Being the spouse or partner of a worker
• Being a dependent aged 15 or over (PPSNs are issued from age 15)
• Being a student who has not yet worked or claimed welfare
• Leaving Ireland shortly after receiving a PPSN
• Delays between arrival and first employment or welfare claim
• Delayed PAYE or self-employment registration

These factors matter most for UK and US nationals: The UK no-activity rate for the 2018 cohort was 63.5% and the US rate was 60.7%, compared with 26.5% for EU15–EU25 and 34.4% for Other nationalities. This is consistent with their different migration profiles (dependants, students, short-term visitors, professional secondments) rather than an indication of labour market exclusion.

Note on education-related residence

Eurostat data on first residence permits suggests that education accounts for a higher share of first permits in Ireland than in most EU countries. This series is flagged by Eurostat as low reliability for Ireland and is therefore not used as core evidence here, but it is consistent with the broader finding that education plays an important role in bringing people to Ireland and helps explain slower initial activity entry for some non-EU cohorts.

Conclusions

PPSN allocations show when people arrive in Ireland. Activity data shows what happens afterwards. Employment permits show which non-EU arrivals are coming specifically to work. Together, these data show a clear shift: From a mid-2000s EU enlargement wave with fast entry into work and long-term attachment, to a more varied system where work permits, education, family migration and short-term movement all play a role.

The key change is not just in the size or origin of inflows, but in how people engage with Ireland’s labour market over time. The sustained volume of employment permits since 2022 – even after the 2025 dip to 31,044 – suggests that future non-EU cohorts are likely to show strong and sustained employment patterns once newer FNA01 activity data becomes available. A single “migration” lens is insufficient for thinking about this: Different arrival pathways produce different labour market outcomes on different timescales, and this matters for workforce planning, public services and policy design.

Data sources

Primary data

EU enlargement groupings used in CSO FNA01