Set Yourself up to Work in Dublin, Ireland

This information primarily applies to those travelling to Ireland under a working holiday visa or similar entrance, but may also be helpful to those with permanent residence who have recently moved to the country. The wikiHow assumes you already have successfully applied for a working visa and have just stepped off the plane.

Steps

  1. Find accommodation. The best sites for accommodation listings are Daft.ie and Gumtree.ie. Also there is a message board at the entrance of Trinity College, you may find notices for cheap accommodation here. If you arrive between June and September, it may be worth checking out the campus residences at Dublin City University, which are let out to the public while students are away on summer break. The basic rooms have (wired) internet access, own bathroom and shared kitchen facilities. From DCU it's a 5-10 minute bus trip into downtown Dublin.
  2. Purchase a good map book. In order to successfully navigate to job interviews, government offices etc. you will need a decent map book. A recommended book is "Tourist Dublin Street finder", a light blue cover, A5 size paperback, you will find this at many stores on O'Connell Street.
  3. Register with the Garda National Immigration Bureau. You will need to present your passport and any documentation confirming your right to work in Ireland. The GNIB is based at 13/14 Burgh Quay, Dublin 2. Heading south on O'Connell Street, cross over the bridge and Burgh Quay follows the river to your left. The Opening hours for the Bureau are Monday to Thursday 8am to 10pm, Friday 8.30am to 4pm. Enter the building and take a queue ticket from the machine. Typically you will have to wait a few hours before you are called, so don't be afraid to explore Dublin and have something to eat while you wait (after checking your current position in the queue, of course). After meeting with a Garda representative you will be issued with a "Certificate Of Registration", a chip-embedded card with your photo on the front.
  4. Register with Recruitment Agencies / Job sites.
  5. Apply for a Personal Public Service number. Without a PPS number, you will be on an emergency tax code and your employer will withhold 42% of your wages until you submit one (at which point you can claim back the additional tax). You will also be unable to open a bank account. Apply for a PPS number at the Department of Social Welfare local office. Important: you MUST go to the office nearest your address of residence, you will be turned away otherwise. You will need to take your passport and proof of address. Acceptable forms of proof of address are: a utility bill (gas, power, water, land-line telephone, internet) with your name and address on it; OR a signed letter from your landlord stating you reside at the above address, along with a utility bill with your landlord's name and address on it. Unacceptable forms: mobile phone bill, bank statement. Once completed you will receive a PPS number by post in up to 10 days.
  6. Open a Bank Account. It is good to have a bank account once you begin working, as most employers prefer not to pay you in cash, and company cheques are often difficult to cash at a bank. Some of the popular banks around Dublin are: Ulster, Permanent TSB, Bank Of Ireland, Allied Irish, First Active. You will need a PPS number to open an account (see previous step). Take the PPS letter you received from the Social Welfare (the bank will use this as proof of address) and your passport. Opening an account will take around 30 minutes and the account is active immediately.
  7. Learn the language. Even though Ireland is primarily an English speaking country, it wouldn't hurt to know some, even if it was only to impress your Gaelic colleagues!

Tips

  • Dublin is divided into numbered "zones", which are stated after "Dublin" in an address, ie. "Dublin 6", "Dublin 13". Generally, the lower the zone number, the closer the area is to the city centre (which is designated as Dublin 1 and Dublin 2). Every zone north of the River Liffey (the main river that cuts through the centre of Dublin) is given an odd number, every zone south of the Liffey has an even number.

Warnings

  • Important! If you have children, have all their papers in order. If you have a different last name from your child, have your children's birth certificates with their name and your name on the birth certificate for officials to see clearly.
  • A few Irish banks now promote "no fee" accounts. The drawbacks (by no means a definitive list): You cannot use some of the cards issued with these accounts on an ATM outside of Ireland, or for a Point Of Sale transaction at any store. This is why you will very regularly need to join a queue to use an ATM in Dublin's shopping districts. You should consider asking for a Debit card, available from most banks.

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Sources and Citations

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