Family Reunification rules designed to separate workers from their children, say MRCI
More than 99% of General Employment Permit holders cannot meet the income threshold to bring one child
Coalition of 26 organisations calls on Minister for Justice to end state-enforced family separation of migrant workers
Migrant Rights Centre Ireland (MRCI) has today submitted formal feedback to the Department of Justice calling for urgent reform of Ireland’s Non-EEA Family Reunification Policy, which it describes as a structurally designed barrier that prevents thousands of full-time migrant workers from living with their children.
The submission – backed by a coalition of 26 civil society organisations, trade unions, and employer bodies including ICTU, SIPTU, the Restaurant Association of Ireland, and Business in the Community Ireland – calls on Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan to immediately extend Category A family reunification rights to all full-time workers on Stamp 1 and Stamp 4 permissions, including General Employment Permit (GEP) holders.
A contradiction at the heart of State policy
The State sets the minimum salary for a General Employment Permit at €36,605 per year – a wage it deems sufficient for full-time employment in essential roles across healthcare, care homes, construction, and hospitality. Yet the same State requires an annual income of €50,200 before a GEP holder may bring even one child to Ireland.
That gap of €13,595 has widened dramatically and deliberately. Since 2020, GEP minimum salaries have risen by approximately 22%. In the same period, the income threshold required to bring one child has risen by 52% – from €33,035 to €50,200, almost triple the rate of salary growth and well above the 23% rise in the Consumer Price Index.
Survey data gathered by MRCI in April 2026 from over 200 migrant workers found:
- 99% of General Employment Permit holders earn less than the €50,200 annual income required to bring even one child to Ireland
- 69% say they are now considering leaving Ireland because of current family reunification rules
- 51% have been separated from their families for three to five years; 43% for one to two years
- 91% say the November 2025 rule changes made family reunification harder to achieve
“Ireland recruited these workers to fill roles the State could not fill domestically. It set their wages. It deemed those wages acceptable for employment. Now it tells those same workers their wages are not enough to live with their children. That is not a policy – it is a structural barrier, and it has to end.” – Dave Gibney, Migrant Rights Centre Ireland.
An impossible threshold — applied discriminatorily
The income threshold used is based on the Working Family Payment (WFP), a welfare support mechanism designed to assess eligibility for supplementary income – not to determine whether a household can sustain family life. A more appropriate measure, the Minimum Essential Standard of Living (MESL), sets the minimum income needed for a family of one parent and one primary school-age child in an urban setting at approximately €31,000 gross per year – almost €20,000 less than the current WFP threshold applied to GEP holders.
The unfairness is compounded further: while the WFP is calculated on total household income, migrant workers are prohibited from including a spouse’s earnings. They must meet a household income threshold on a single income alone.
Meanwhile, a Critical Skills Employment Permit holder earning €45,000 may bring unlimited family members to Ireland immediately, and no waiting period. A GEP holder earning the same wage cannot bring even one child.
“The government is forcing us to choose between providing for our families and actually being with them. We are here caring for Irish citizens while being forced to neglect our own. It is fundamentally unfair and inhuman to grant a permit at a €30,000 salary level, only to demand a €50,000 income to qualify for reunification. That €20,000 gap is an intentional barrier.” – Susan Jatta, Restorative Justice Practitioner and GEP holder
Children separated for years – with no individual assessment
The current policy imposes a mandatory 12-month waiting period before a GEP holder may even apply, followed by a further 18 to 24 months of processing time.
Children are routinely separated from parents for a minimum of two to three years – not as an unintended consequence, but as a structural feature of the policy. The policy includes no individualised assessment of the best interests of the child, in breach of Ireland’s obligations under Articles 9 and 10 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child – concerns the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child raised directly with Ireland in its 2023 recommendations.
“Being separated from my children since July 2022 has been one of the most painful and life-altering experiences of my life. My daughter is 10 years old, and my son is only 5. These are such important years in their lives – years that I am missing.” – Healthcare worker, GEP holder
The economic case: reunification benefits the State
MRCI’s cost-benefit analysis finds that GEP households are net contributors to the Irish exchequer across all modelled scenarios. Extending immediate family reunification rights to all GEP holders would continue to generate a net annual revenue benefit to the State of between €137 million and €255 million, depending on spousal employment – yielding at least €137 million even in the most conservative scenario. 98% of spouses surveyed said they intend to work once reunited in Ireland.
Restricting family reunification is also accelerating the very retention crisis Ireland can least afford. The Department of Finance’s Future Forty report projects that Ireland’s non-migrant labour force will begin declining from 2035. A National Economic and Social Council analysis warns that restrictive policies risk triggering a “vicious demographic cycle” – weakening workforce retention, worsening the worker-to-dependent ratio, and accelerating economic contraction.
With 69% of GEP holders now considering leaving Ireland, the workforce consequences of inaction are concrete and imminent.
Ireland among the most restrictive in the developed world
Ireland’s income threshold of €50,200 for one child – combined with a 12-month ban and 18–24 month processing time – places it among the most restrictive developed countries for family reunification. Spain processes applications in a maximum of 45 days. Portugal within 60 days. Germany within approximately three months. Australia grants immediate reunification with no fixed income threshold.
A broad coalition united by an urgent call
“Workers who are contributing to Ireland, paying taxes, and filling essential roles should not be denied the right to live with their families because of unfair income thresholds and excessive delays. Prolonged separation causes serious stress and mental health impacts for workers and places an unacceptable burden on children and families.” – Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU)
“If people are welcomed here to work, contribute and support our economy, they should also have the opportunity to live with their children. Allowing families to be reunited is both the right thing to do and an important step in retaining the talent our sector needs.” – Restaurant Association of Ireland
A new barrier: proving your home is suitable before your family can come
The June 2026 policy update requires GEP holders to prove they have suitable accommodation before a family reunification application will be approved – a requirement that does not apply to Critical Skills Employment Permit holders or Irish citizens. Workers are effectively expected to secure larger housing for family members who are not yet permitted to enter the State, during a process that already takes up to two years. MRCI argues this is both disproportionate and discriminatory, evaluating families on a single-income snapshot that ignores the reality that an arriving spouse will in most cases have an immediate right to work.
MRCI’s is calling on the Minister for Justice to:
- Abolish income thresholds and remove the 12-month waiting period for all full-time migrant workers
- Commit to processing all applications within six months, in line with international practice
- Ensure all household income is considered where thresholds are applied, consistent with how WFP is calculated for the wider population
ENDS
Notes to editors
- MRCI’s full submission to the Department of Justice is available at www.mrci.ie
- Survey data was gathered in April 2026 from more than 200 migrant workers across Ireland
- MRCI can arrange worker spokespeople for broadcast or print interviews, available to speak anonymously or on the record
- The full list of 26 endorsing organisations is included in the submission
For more information, contact:
Dave Gibney, Campaigns Coordinator, MRCI | Email: dave@mrci.ie
