Employment Permit Processing Times
The table below is not a static estimate. It reflects the same processing dates DETE publishes on its own site, fetched live, so the wait time you see here is the wait time as of today, not whatever was true when this page was last edited.
Why this matters for your start date
DETE reads applications in date order within each permit type, so your actual wait depends on the processing date in effect when you file, not the date you started preparing. A start date set before you know the current wait is a start date you will likely have to move. DETE's own guidance is to apply at least 12 weeks ahead of when you need the person working. Treat the figures below as the input to that planning, checked shortly before you file rather than months in advance.
Why Critical Skills and General permits move at different speeds
DETE processes Critical Skills Employment Permit (CSEP) and General Employment Permit (GEP) applications as separate queues, which is why the table above lists them as separate rows with different current waits. CSEP applications also reach DETE sooner in practice because they never require the Labour Market Needs Test that most GEP applications need first, so the real time-to-hire gap between the two routes is usually larger than the processing figures alone suggest. See choosing a permit type for how to work out which route applies to a given role.
Not hiring yet? Get notified when this changes
Leave your email and we'll send a note when the wait for a specific permit type moves, so you know when it's worth starting a search.