Employment Permits Act 2024

Prohibition on deduction from remuneration and retention of personal documents

55. (1) An employer shall not make any deductions from the remuneration of, or seek to recover from, the holder of the employment permit concerned any charge, fee or expense arising out of or concerning one or more of the following:

(a) the application for the employment permit or a renewal of the permit or any matter relating to or concerning such an application or the grant or renewal of the permit;

(b) the recruitment of the holder for the employment in respect of which the application was made;

(c) any amount previously paid to the holder in respect of travelling expenses incurred by the holder in connection with taking up the employment in the State.

(2) Neither a person referred to in subsection (1) nor a person acting on his or her behalf shall keep any personal document belonging to a holder referred to in that subsection.

(3) A connected person shall not seek to recover from the holder of the employment permit any charge, fee or expense arising out of the application for the employment permit or the renewal of the permit or any matter relating to or concerning such an application or the grant or renewal of the permit.

(4) A person who contravenes subsection (1), (2) or (3) shall be guilty of an offence.

(5) In this section, “personal document” includes a passport, a driving licence, an identity card, a document relating to any account held with a financial institution, a document relating to the skills, qualifications or experience of the foreign national and travel documents.