Himiko

Here is my rather atypical situation,

I have a Canadian citizen friend who accepted a job offer from Google for a permanent position
at their Dublin branch. The offer is for over over 60K+ Euros and it is for an IT/Computing Science related career[so its part of the Critical Skills list if that in any way is relevant]. Moreover he has no degree but has relevant work experience from high-school summer internships.My questions are therefore two-fold, how hard is it for him to obtain a work visa to Ireland and also what should his previous employer write in my friend's reference letter? Moreover my friend was hired on the basis of having an "unusual" skill set.

Any replies will be welcomed

Robert2533

Are you for real? Google would provide the visa as part of the offer, if such exists, which is doubtful.

Robert2533

Are you for real? Google would provide the visa as part of the offer, if such exists, which is doubtful.

Himiko

@Robert2533 Yes its for real

janisj

I think Robert's point was that international companies will guide their hires through the visa process and do the leg work for them . . . so why isn't Google taking care of this?

Nonconformist

It may be that the job offer is dependent on getting the visa; that Google will indeed apply for it, but OP is anxious that it may be refused as he/his friend lacks a degree and it looks like that might be a prerequisite for getting the visa, even if Google thought he had the skills for the job:

https://www.djei.ie/en/What-We-Do/Jo...oyment-Permit/

hetismij2

That link states that for jobs over €60K a degree is not necessary provided they have the necessary level of experience. Since the job is paying over that amount, and isn't on the list of ineligible employments, provided he can prove he has the experience required, which presumably will be backed up by Google, he shouldn't have a problem.
I would expect Google to offer support for his application, though he will have to apply himself.

Nonconformist

Oh yes - I stopped reading the line before that, where it said a degree was necessary

So it just looks as if it depends how much experience the candidate has.

Good luck, Himiko/friend!

nytraveler

Agree that this does not sound kosher at all. The potential employer - Google - has to arrange this for the potential employee. Without sponsorship by the employer the chance of getting a work visa is basically nil. If the problem is that he cannot provide Google with the necessary documents it may be insurmountable. But every time my company has moved employees to different countries their HR offices have coped with all government requirements.

And the sponsor company should also offer a transition package to help the new employee deal with finding housing and setting up in a new country.

If they are not willing to do these thing it isn't a legitimate job offer.

Nonconformist

I'm assuming Google is indeed doing all that, but OP is anxious and wants some reassurance it's going to work out.

nytraveler

I don't think that anyone here can provide that. Goggle obviously knows what they are doing - and much more about the detail/info required than we would.

historytraveler

Google should be the one reassuring him not a travel forum.

Christina

I'm just surprised that it's so easy to get a job at Google for a foreigner based on a couple high school summer internships qualifying you, no degree. Aren't there Irish people who could do the same thing and need those jobs? Just seems a pretty low bar for hiring foreigners.

nytraveler

I agree that the OP's friend does not seem to qualify. but this is a discipline in which there are some people who are uniquely talented - even from a very early age - whether they have a degree or not.

newtome

What I do know about Google at least here in US is that they often hire candidates, even top candidates as contract/temp employees fort a 3-6 month period before bringing them on as employees. So maybe this is what the OP is grappling with - a temp-to-hire situation where neither google nor the agency is helping with visa.

Alec

Will Working Holiday visa a possibility? If the OP is aged 35 and under, they can get 2-year work visa for Ireland. There is no sponsorship required.
https://www.dfa.ie/irish-embassy/can...day-programme/

Cathinjoetown

If Google wants him badly enough they will probably have to show he's bringing something to the table that an Irish national can't. In actual fact, this is not difficult for a major corporation to do despite the fact almost everyone is expendable.

Once the work visa is applied for by a company, there are many hoops to jump through, probably more since heightened security. My pre 9/11 visas for the Republic of Ireland and the U.K. took awhile and the wait is stressful. There's not much your friend can do personally other than to ensure Google has all the information it needs and to respond quickly to any requests from Google and the Irish government.