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Official DETE list · SOC 2010

Critical Skills Occupations List in 2026.

The Critical Skills Occupations List is the table DETE publishes naming the occupations Ireland treats as being in recognised shortage, and which therefore open the Critical Skills Employment Permit route. This page carries all 60 employments in the version in force since 13 May 2026, grouped by area, with the official published wording and a link to each SOC code.

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What the list is

A published table of employments, indexed by SOC code

The Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment publishes the Critical Skills Occupations List as a table: employment category, SOC code, and the description of the employment covered. The version reproduced here has been in force since 13 May 2026, when SI 213 of 2026 took effect.

The SOC code is how DETE organises the table, but what describes the employment is the wording of the row. The difference matters: 21 of the 60 published rows carry conditions on specialisation, qualification, experience or work context, so the code alone does not describe the job. Each entry below therefore shows the official wording beside its code.

Appearing on this list is information about how an occupation is classified in an Irish government document. It is not a decision on any individual application, and it does not replace reading the current official page or taking advice from a qualified professional.

Published rows

All 60 listed employments, by area

The areas below group DETE's official categories into headings a reader searching for their own occupation can scan. The occupation name and the employment description stay in the published wording, and each row opens the page for its SOC unit group.

Healthcare and social care

17 listed employments

The official DETE categories for Health Professionals, Therapy Professionals, Nursing and Midwifery Professionals, Health Associate Professionals, Welfare Professionals, and health and social services management.

Engineering

8 listed employments

The official DETE categories for Engineering Professionals and for Draughtspersons and Related Architectural Technicians.

  • SOC 2121: Civil engineers

    Published employment:
    Civil Engineers Structural Engineers and Site Engineers
    DETE category:
    Engineering Professionals

  • SOC 2122: Mechanical engineers

    Published employment:
    Mechanical engineers
    DETE category:
    Engineering Professionals

  • SOC 2123: Electrical engineers

    Published employment:
    Electrical engineers
    DETE category:
    Engineering Professionals

  • SOC 2124: Electronics engineers

    Stated conditions
    Published employment:
    Electronics engineers specialising in: Chip design, test engineering, or application engineering, or Process automation engineering, or Power generation, transmission and distribution, or Related and relevant specialist skills, qualifications or experience
    DETE category:
    Engineering Professionals

  • SOC 2126: Design and development engineers

    Stated conditions
    Published employment:
    Design and development engineers specialising in: Quality control, or validation and regulation engineering (high tech industry; food and beverages), or Chip design, test engineering, or application engineering, or Process automation engineering, or Power generation, transmission and distribution, or Related and relevant specialist skills, qualifications or experience
    DETE category:
    Engineering Professionals

  • SOC 2127: Production and process engineers

    Stated conditions
    Published employment:
    Production and process engineers specialising in: Quality control, or validation and regulation engineering (high tech industry; food and beverages), or Chemical process engineering, or Process automation engineering, or Power generation, transmission and distribution, or Related and relevant specialist skills, qualifications or experience Chemical Engineer
    DETE category:
    Engineering Professionals

  • SOC 2129: Engineering professionals n.e.c.

    Published employment:
    Material scientists Setting Out Engineer Façade Designer Project Engineer
    DETE category:
    Engineering Professionals

  • SOC 3122: Draughtspersons

    Published employment:
    BIM Coordinator/ Technician
    DETE category:
    Draughtspersons and Related Architectural Technicians

Business, finance and legal

8 listed employments

The official DETE categories for Business, Research and Administrative Professionals, Legal Professionals, and the associate roles in finance, sales and marketing.

  • SOC 2419: Legal professionals n.e.c.

    Published employment:
    Intellectual Property Professionals
    DETE category:
    Legal Professionals

  • SOC 2421: Chartered and certified accountants

    Stated conditions
    Published employment:
    Chartered and certified accountants, and taxation experts specialising in tax, compliance, regulation, solvency or financial management or related and relevant specialist skills, qualifications or experience. Qualified accountants with at least three years’ auditing experience, who are full members of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), Philippine Institute of Certified Public Accountants (PICPA) and the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Pakistan (ICAP) and whom have relevant work experience in the areas of US GAAP reporting and Global Audit and Advisory Services and the employment concerned is in MNC Global Audit Services. Tax consultant specialising in non-EEA tax consultancy and compliance with a professional tax qualification or legal qualification with tax specialism, and has a minimum of three years’ experience of tax consultancy requirements and regulations in the relevant non-EEA market.
    DETE category:
    Business, Research and Administrative Professionals

  • SOC 2423: Management consultants and business analysts

    Stated conditions
    Published employment:
    Management consultants and business analysts specialising in big data analytics with skills in IT, data mining, modelling, and advanced maths or related and relevant specialist skills, qualifications or experience
    DETE category:
    Business, Research and Administrative Professionals

  • SOC 2424: Business and financial project management professionals

    Stated conditions
    Published employment:
    Business and financial project management professionals specialising in finance & investment analytics, risk analytics, credit, fraud analytics or related and relevant specialist skills, qualifications or experience
    DETE category:
    Business, Research and Administrative Professionals

  • SOC 2425: Actuaries, economists and statisticians

    Stated conditions
    Published employment:
    Actuaries, economists and statisticians specialising in big data analytics with skills in IT, data mining, modelling, and advanced maths or related and relevant specialist skills, qualifications or experience
    DETE category:
    Business, Research and Administrative Professionals

  • SOC 3531: Estimators, valuers and assessors

    Published employment:
    Estimator
    DETE category:
    Business, Finance and Related Associate Professionals

  • SOC 3542: Business sales executives

    Stated conditions
    Published employment:
    Business sales executives specialising in International Sales Roles or ITB2B sales roles and with fluency in the official language of a state which is not a Member State of the EEA and is not an official language of an EEA state
    DETE category:
    Sales, Marketing and Related Associate Professionals

  • SOC 3543: Marketing associate professionals

    Stated conditions
    Published employment:
    International marketing experts with required domain knowledge specialising in product strategy development and management with technical and product/service knowledge (pharmaceutical, medical devices, Software B2B, SaaS products)
    DETE category:
    Sales, Marketing and Related Associate Professionals

Information technology

7 listed employments

The official DETE categories for ICT Professionals and for Information Technology and Telecommunications Professionals.

Construction and the built environment

7 listed employments

The official DETE category for Architects, Town Planners and Surveyors, plus site management under Production Managers and Directors.

Science, quality and regulation

6 listed employments

The official DETE categories for Natural and Social Science Professionals and for Quality and Regulatory Professionals.

  • SOC 2111: Chemical scientists

    Stated conditions
    Published employment:
    Chemical scientists in manufacturing (including food & beverages, medical devices), product development, analytical development, clinical co-vigilance, or biotechnology or related and relevant specialist skills, qualifications or experience
    DETE category:
    Natural and Social Science Professionals

  • SOC 2112: Biological scientists and biochemists

    Stated conditions
    Published employment:
    Medical laboratory scientists Biological scientists and biochemists in manufacturing (including food & beverages, medical devices), product development, analytical development, clinical co-vigilance, or biotechnology or related and relevant specialist skills, qualifications or experience Agronomist
    DETE category:
    Natural and Social Science Professionals

  • SOC 2113: Physical scientists

    Stated conditions
    Published employment:
    Physical scientists in manufacturing (including food & beverages, medical devices), product development, analytical development, clinical co-vigilance, or biotechnology or related and relevant specialist skills, qualifications or experience Meteorologist Operational Forecaster
    DETE category:
    Natural and Social Science Professionals

  • SOC 2461: Quality control and planning engineers

    Published employment:
    Quality control and planning engineers
    DETE category:
    Quality and Regulatory Professionals

  • SOC 2462: Quality assurance and regulatory professionals

    Published employment:
    Quality assurance and regulatory professionals
    DETE category:
    Quality and Regulatory Professionals

  • SOC 2463: Environmental health professionals

    Published employment:
    Environmental health professionals
    DETE category:
    Quality and Regulatory Professionals

Media, animation and design

4 listed employments

The official DETE categories for Media Professionals, Artistic, Literary and Media Occupations, and Design Occupations.

  • SOC 2473: Advertising accounts managers and creative directors

    Stated conditions
    Published employment:
    Art Director in 2D or 3D animation, with at least one year’s experience in the role
    DETE category:
    Media Professionals

  • SOC 3411: Artists

    Stated conditions
    Published employment:
    Animation Background and Design Artist in 2D or 3D animation, with at least one year’s experience in the role
    DETE category:
    Artistic, Literary and Media Occupations

  • SOC 3417: Photographers, audio-visual and broadcasting equipment operators

    Published employment:
    Riggers (within the Games Industry)
    DETE category:
    Artistic, Literary and Media Occupations

  • SOC 3421: Graphic designers

    Stated conditions
    Published employment:
    Location Designer in 2D or 3D animation, with at least one year’s experience in the role Character Designer in 2D or 3D animation, with at least one year’s experience in the role Prop Designer in 2D or 3D animation, with at least one year’s experience in the role Animation Layout Artist in 2D or 3D animation, with at least one year’s experience in the role
    DETE category:
    Design Occupations

Teaching and research

1 listed employment

The official DETE category for Teaching and Educational Professionals.

  • SOC 2311: Higher education teaching professionals

    Stated conditions
    Published employment:
    Academics who hold a qualification equivalent to Level 10 of the National Framework of Qualification in a given discipline awarded no less than two calendar years prior to the date of application for an employment permit, with a minimum of one academic year of relevant teaching experience, and the employment concerned is in a third level institution governed by the Irish Universities Act 1997 (No. 24 of 1997), the Institutes of Technology Act 2006 (No. 25 of 2006) and the Technological Universities Act 2018 (No. 3 of 2018); or involves delivering a programme largely or wholly concerned with information and communications technology, which leads to a major award at QQI level 8 and/or level 9 as validated by Quality and Qualifications Ireland.
    DETE category:
    Teaching and Educational Professionals

Other areas

2 listed employments

Published rows that do not fall into the areas above, kept here so that no occupation on the list is missing from this page.

Not on the list

My occupation is not here. What now?

The Critical Skills Occupations List is not the list of everything permitted in Ireland. It names the occupations in recognised shortage, and it is short by design.

The broad route is the General Employment Permit, which works the other way around from this list: every occupation is treated as eligible except those named on the Ineligible List of Occupations. In exchange for that breadth comes the Labour Market Needs Test, meaning the employer normally has to advertise the role to the Irish and European market before applying.

The practical step is to find which of the two published lists names your occupation, if either does. Both are published by DETE and both change. Neither decides an application: an application is made by an employer for a specific role, and DETE weighs duties, qualifications, salary, employer and route together. The route comparison sets the two side by side with the official source for each rule, and the Critical Skills guide covers the rest of the route.

See the Ineligible ListGeneral Employment Permit guideCompanies that sponsor visasBrowse by SOC code
Frequently asked questions

The Critical Skills Occupations List, answered

What is the Critical Skills Occupations List?
It is the list published by the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment (DETE) naming the occupations Ireland treats as being in recognised shortage. An occupation named on it can be put forward under the Critical Skills Employment Permit route, which carries a lower salary floor and no Labour Market Needs Test. The list describes occupations, not people: DETE decides each application.
How many occupations are on the list?
The version published on this page carries 60 occupations with an exact SOC code and has been in force since 13 May 2026. Each row shows the official published wording, because it is that wording, rather than the occupation title, that describes the employment covered.
Is software development on the Critical Skills Occupations List?
SOC 2136, Programmers and software development professionals, is named on the published list with no narrowing wording attached to the row. That is a statement about how the occupation is classified, not about any individual role: the duties actually performed, the salary, the employer and the permit route all weigh on an application.
My occupation is not on the list. Can I still work in Ireland?
The Critical Skills Occupations List is not the list of everything permitted in Ireland. It names the occupations in recognised shortage, and it is short by design. The broad route is the General Employment Permit, which works the other way around: every occupation is eligible except those named on the Ineligible List of Occupations. The practical first step is to find which of the two published lists names your occupation, if either does.
Does being on the list guarantee a permit or a job?
No. Appearing on the list says only how an occupation is classified in an Irish government document. A permit application is made by an employer for a specific role, and DETE weighs duties, qualifications, salary, employer and route together. No page, this one included, decides an application.
How often does the list change?
Both DETE lists, the Critical Skills Occupations List and the Ineligible List of Occupations, are set in regulation and revised by statutory instrument. There is no fixed schedule: an occupation named last year may not be named today, and the reverse happens too. The version on this page has been in force since 13 May 2026. Confirm against the official DETE page before acting on anything here.

Sources, coverage and caveats

Source: Critical Skills Occupations List, Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, in force since 13 May 2026 (SI 213 of 2026). The codes follow the DETE employment classification. The companion list, Ineligible List of Occupations, is published separately. Snapshot version: dete-soc-2010-permit-route-2026-05-13.v2.

Coverage: this page reproduces the 60 published rows that carry an exact SOC code, grouped into 9 areas. The grouping by area is editorial; the official category for each row is shown beside it so the page can still be read against the published table. The employment wording and the category are reproduced unedited.

DETE can revise the lists at any time. Always confirm against the official page before making any decision based on what is here.

An occupation (SOC) code classifies the kind of work. It does not by itself determine permit eligibility, Critical Skills status, or sponsorship. Job duties, salary, employer and permit route also matter. This is general information, not legal or immigration advice. IrishTalents is not affiliated with the Irish government.