Hiring a Japanese Chef in Ireland: Employment Permits in 2026

Ireland is unusually explicit about chefs. Chefs from commis level up are named as eligible for employment permits, the process is published in detail, and the government even produces a checklist just for chef applications. The catch is a salary threshold that rose in March 2026 and a strict advertising test. This guide walks through both.

1. Why Ireland is different

The Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment (DETE) runs Ireland's employment permit system. Its page for restaurants states that executive chefs, head chefs, sous chefs, chefs de partie and commis chefs may be considered for a Critical Skills, General or Intra-Company Transfer employment permit. The one sector condition: the chef must not be employed in a fast food outlet, and the employer must provide a signed statement confirming this.

Compare that with the UK, where chefs can no longer be newly sponsored at all (see our UK guide), or the Netherlands, where Asian cooks lost their special arrangement in 2024. For a Japanese restaurant in Dublin, the route exists and is well mapped.

2. Which chef grades are eligible

Title alone will not carry an application. DETE's chef checklist asks for detailed duties, the qualifications and experience the role requires, and the qualifications and experience of the candidate. Make sure the job description matches the grade you claim. A "chef de partie" whose duties read like kitchen porter work invites a refusal.

3. General Employment Permit or Critical Skills?

Chefs are not on the Critical Skills Occupations List. DETE describes it as covering roles in areas such as medicine, ICT, sciences, finance and business, and the current list contains no chef or cook occupation. A Critical Skills Employment Permit is still possible for any occupation not on the Ineligible List if the salary is at least €68,911. For most kitchen roles, that is out of reach, so the General Employment Permit (GEP) is the normal route.

4. The 2026 salary threshold

In December 2025 the government published a roadmap for gradual increases in employment permit salary thresholds through 2030. The first step took effect on 1 March 2026: the GEP minimum rose from €34,000 to €36,605, and the Critical Skills minimum from €38,000 to €40,904. There was no special lower threshold for chefs or hospitality; the lower €32,691 rate applies only to meat processors, horticultural workers, healthcare assistants and home carers.

At €36,605 a year on a 39-hour week, the implied hourly rate is about €18.05, well above Ireland's national minimum wage of €14.15 an hour (from 1 January 2026). Further increases are planned under the roadmap, so check the threshold again before any renewal.

5. The Labour Market Needs Test, step by step

A GEP for a chef requires a Labour Market Needs Test. DETE's chef checklist sets out what that involves:

1. Advertise on JobsIreland (the Department of Social Protection Employment Services / EURES network) for 28 days, continuously and unaltered. Keep the reference number.
2. Advertise on one additional online platform, such as a newspaper website or a job site accessible to Irish and EEA citizens, also for 28 days continuously and unaltered.
3. Both adverts must include: a description of the job, the employer's name, the location, weekly hours, and the minimum annual pay.
4. Apply within 90 days of the date the advert was first published.

Two practical points. The adverts must be unaltered for the full 28 days, so get the wording right first. And because the 90-day window starts when the advert first appears, have your candidate, contract and documents ready before you publish.

The LMNT does not apply in some cases, including jobs paying €68,911 or more, or where the applicant previously held a GEP and was made redundant within the last six months.

6. The 50:50 rule and other conditions

• 50:50 rule. At least half of your employees must be EEA nationals. There are waivers for some start-ups and for sole-employee situations. A small Japanese restaurant with a mostly non-EEA team may fail this test, so count your staff before you apply.
• Location. The chef can only work at the locations named on the application and the permit.
• Documents. Tax clearance, confirmation of food hygiene registration, company details, and the chef's qualifications, among others. Use the chef checklist.
• Fees. A new GEP costs €1,000 for up to 24 months (€500 for six months or less). Renewal costs €1,500 for up to 36 months. If the application is refused, 90% of the fee is refunded.
• Who applies. Either the employer or the employee can make the application.

7. What the permit statistics show

DETE publishes monthly permit statistics. For January to August 2026 (data as of 2 September 2026):

• 26,629 employment permits were issued across all sectors.
• 2,760 of them were in accommodation and food service activities, about one in ten.
• 147 permits were issued to Japanese nationals across all sectors, and 3 were refused.

The statistics do not break down by occupation and nationality together, so we cannot say how many Japanese chefs received permits. What they do show is that hospitality employers use the system at scale, and that very few applications for Japanese nationals were refused this year.

8. Working holiday

Ireland and Japan have run a working holiday programme since 2007, and Japan's foreign ministry lists a maximum of 800 visas a year. The Embassy of Ireland in Japan ran two application windows in 2026 (15 January to 6 February, and 15 to 31 July). Irish immigration rules allow working holiday holders to take "casual employment as an incidental aspect of their visit", for up to one year, and they must register with immigration if staying over 90 days.

That makes a working holiday cook a good short-term addition, not a replacement for a permit hire. If someone proves themselves, you can begin the LMNT for a GEP while they are still with you. See also where Japanese chefs look for jobs abroad.

9. Timeline and checklist

1. Confirm the role is a chef grade from commis up, not in a fast food outlet, and pays at least €36,605 basic.
2. Check the 50:50 rule against your current headcount.
3. Write the job description and advert. Our sushi chef job description helps.
4. Publish on JobsIreland and one other platform for 28 days, unaltered.
5. Apply online within 90 days of the first advert, using DETE's chef checklist.
6. Once the permit is granted, the chef applies for an employment visa if required and registers with immigration after arrival.
7. Plan the renewal before the permit expires, and check the salary threshold at that time.

Before you advertise, also read our contract checklist and relocation guide. To reach Japanese chefs for your advertising period, post a job on WashokuJob.

General information gathered from official sources in September 2026, not legal or immigration advice. Irish thresholds are rising in stages; confirm the current figures with DETE before applying.