Publication
Employment, childcare and education
From Department of the Taoiseach
Published on
Last updated on
Once you receive your permission letter confirming that you have been granted Temporary Protection under the EU Directive, you are entitled to seek employment or self-employment and vocational training education activities in Ireland.
We offer a range of supports through gov.ie/therightcourse.
We offer a range of employment supports through Intreo.
Intreo is a single point of contact for all employment and income supports and services.
You can find more information at www.gov.ie/intreo.
JobsIreland is a website which connects anyone who is looking for employment with employers who are advertising vacancies.
Find out more at JobsIreland.ie.
Ukrainian citizens can work legally in Ireland once they have received their letter confirming they have been granted Temporary Protection under the EU Directive. They are then also entitled to the full range of statutory employment rights and protections in the same manner as Irish workers.
The Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) is the State body responsible for employment rights. Information on employment rights is available at workplacerelations.ie or by contacting the WRC at 0818 808090 or 059 9178900.
If you are taking up employment or setting up a business and want to understand a little more about what to do and how the tax system works in Ireland you can get more information on the Revenue website.
The Early Childhood Care and Education programme provides 2 years of free pre-school to children. The Early Childhood Care and Education programme is known as ECCE. ECCE is provided for 3 hours a day, 5 days a week, from September to June. ECCE is provided by over 4,000 providers throughout the country. The State pays the full cost of ECCE to the providers an parents do not have to pay fees.
Children must be aged at least 2 years and 8 months in the September of the start of the ECCE term. Children must be no older than 5 years and 6 months by the end of the ECCE term in June.
You can contact a local ECCE provider to see if they have a place for your child, or you can contact your local County Childcare Committee who can help you to find a place. You can find information on your local County Childcare Committee on www.myccc.ie.
Childcare in Ireland is provided for children aged from 6 months to 15 years. Childcare is provided by:
- centre-based childcare services
- childminders who look after children in the childminder's own home, or
- childminders, au-pairs or nannies who work in the child’s home
The State provides help with childcare fees through the National Childcare Scheme, the NCS. The NCS pays all or part of the cost of childcare. The NCS is available to registered childcare providers only, which includes all centre-based childcare services and some childminders who work in their own homes.
If you have been granted Temporary Protection, the NCS can cover the full cost of childcare under NCS sponsorship arrangements. Your local County Childcare Committee on www.myccc.ie can direct to the appropriate NCS sponsor.
More information on the NCS can be found on www.ncs.gov.ie.
You can contact a local childcare provider to see if they have a place for your child, or you can contact your local County Childcare Committee who can help you to find a place. You can find information on your local County Childcare Committee on www.myccc.ie.
A guide for parents on the school system in Ireland can be found here: https://www.pdst.ie/cultural-and-linguistic-supports
Children aged between 4 and 18 will be supported to access public primary or post-primary education provided by the State as appropriate.
You can approach any local primary or post-primary school and seek information about a place for your child or children.
If the school has a place for your child, they will provide you with more information on how to enrol in that school.
If you have any difficulties in securing a placement contact your local Regional Education and Language Team.
A list of all schools is available to help you find your local schools.
Children attend primary school from ages 4 or 5 to age 12 or 13.
Children attend post-primary, sometimes called secondary school, from ages 12 or 13 for five or six years.
Ireland has its own indigenous language – Irish (called Gaeilge in the Irish langauge). Most children in Ireland learn the language as a subject in school from the first year of primary school – junior infants – until the final year in post-primary school.
While English is the main spoken language in most of the country, Irish is spoken as the primary language in a number of regions in Ireland. These regions are known as the Gaeltacht. Approximately 2.1% of the population of Ireland live in these regions.
The schools in these regions teach the curriculum through the medium of Irish and have close links with the local community in their work to promote and preserve the language.
In some schools in other parts of the country, education is provided through the medium of Irish. These schools are known as Gaelscoileanna (primary schools) and Gaelcholáistí (post-primary schools).
Before enrolling their child in a school, parents may wish to confirm the language of instruction in the school. They may also discuss with the school authorities the most appropriate placement for their child in light of their existing language skills and education needs.
An application for school transport can be made via a link to an online form which is available here: Application for school transport parent/guardian/host family
Bus Éireann will check availability of school transport services and whether spare capacity exists.
Where seats are available on existing services, the normal eligibility criteria will not apply and eligibility will be granted to the school that the child/children are enrolled in.
If seats are available on an existing service/route, these seats will be offered to the child/children. Where such seats are available the host family will be contacted and advised that a ticket will be issued. While waiting for the ticket to be issued the child/children will be permitted to travel on the service and the driver and inspector will be aware of this in all such cases where these arrangements are being provided.
Children will be expected to meet the service at the existing pick-up point.
There will be no charge for the ticket and the child will be guaranteed a ticket for the duration of their education while living with their host family in Ireland.
If the children move to live with another family/to another form of accommodation a new application for transport will be required.
In cases where there is no existing service or where there is no capacity on an existing service, a grant can be offered to the host family as appropriate to support them with the cost of transport arrangements where the host family is providing for such transport arrangements.
OR In cases where there is no existing service or where there is no capacity on an existing service, a grant can be offered to the Ukrainian family as appropriate to support them with the cost of transport arrangements where the Ukrainian family is providing for such transport arrangements.
An application for school transport can be made by the parent/guardian via a link to an online form which is available here: Application for school transport parent/guardian/host family. The form will be available in English, Ukrainian and Russian.
Bus Éireann will check availability of school transport services and whether spare capacity exists on the required route.
Where seats are available on existing services, the normal eligibility criteria will not apply and eligibility will be granted to the school that the child/children are enrolled in.
If seats are available on an existing service/route, these seats will be offered to the child/children. Where such seats are available the host family will be contacted and advised that a ticket will be issued. While waiting for the ticket to be issued the child/children will be permitted to travel on the service and the driver and inspector will be aware of this in all such cases where these arrangements are being provided.
Children will be expected to meet the service at the existing pick-up point.
There will be no charge for the ticket and the child will be guaranteed a ticket for the duration of their education while living in their current accommodation.
If the family moves to new accommodation a new application for transport will be required.
In cases where there is no existing service or where there is no capacity on an existing service a grant can be offered to the family as appropriate to support them with the cost of transport arrangements.
School principals may apply for transport for children attending their school who are residing in accommodation centres (or similar).
School principals should complete the information required on the application form below and return it to their local REALT*. The information will be submitted by REALT to School Transport Section of the Department of Education, which will in turn liaise with Bus Éireann in order to provide school transport services as required.
School Transport application for children from Ukraine residing in Accommodation Centres
Download*Regional Education and Language Teams (REALT) are hosted by the 16 regional education and training boards around Ireland and staffed by regionally based education support personnel. The primary role of the REALT is to build on existing regional education support structures and the initial focus will be on assisting families in securing school places. REALT will also support schools in the area to meet the needs of these children as they emerge, to advise and support the Department of Education in developing new capacity where required, and to co-ordinate the provision of education services to schools and families across their defined area.
Details of your local REALT can be found at: https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/48639-information-for-schools-ukraine/
- phone number: 057 9325467 (during office hours)
- email address: transportapplications@education.gov.ie
The 16 Education and Training Boards (ETBs) across the country offer English language skills courses for adults.
If you need to learn English or improve your English, the ETB will assess your English language skills in reading, writing, listening and speaking, and will arrange appropriate language and other learning supports to help you develop your English.
This service is free.
Contact your local ETB using the contact details below.
Find your local ETB service
DownloadFET courses and programmes are provided through the 16 Education and Training Boards (ETBs) across Ireland and though the SOLAS eCollege online platform.
There are a range of options available at https://www.fetchcourses.ie/courses.
Further education is free of charge or heavily subsidised. Courses are designed to support learners who are interested in:
- upskilling to enter the workforce or progress in their existing career
- progressing into further or higher education
- undertaking an apprenticeship or traineeship
- developing their skills in reading and writing
Further Education and Training (FET) Levels
Download
Information on the further education system in Ireland
DownloadThe Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science has been in touch with Irish students who were studying in Ukraine.
The department is also working with the universities and the Irish Universities Association to help Irish students continue their education in a relevant programme at the right level.
Ukrainians who wish to commence a higher education programme in Ireland will be able to do so without being charged international fees.
Displaced Ukrainian students and researchers wishing to continue their education in Ireland can contact a central helpdesk established by the government.
The helpdesk will direct students to third-level institutions or researcher positions that meet their educational needs. It is staffed by admissions experts and research advisors.
Contact the National Student and Researcher Helpdesk at NSRHelpdesk@mu.ie or by calling +353 (0)1 474 7788.
