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TAOISEACH ENDA KENNY has warned that the number of Irish students travelling on J1 visas could be seriously hurt if US authorities decide to tighten the rules.
Speaking in the Dáil yesterday, Kenny said that “issues that have arisen” have led to the current unclear situation.
The Taoiseach may have been referring to a number of high-profile incidents in which property was damaged by Irish students on J1 visas in the US.
“Because of a series of issues that have arisen, the authorities that issue J1 visas seem to be bent on introducing a requirement for pre-employment for young people before they go,” Kenny said in response to a question from Denis Naughten TD.
Kenny said that a pre-employment rule would be a “dramatic” change to the system and would effectively be “an abrupt ending to the J1 system as we know it”.
The Taoiseach went on to estimate that it would lead to “60% or 80%” fewer Irish students availing of the J1 programme.
Kenny added that another potential problem arising from this would be that Irish people who travel to the US on a holiday visa may end up working there illegally.
The Taoiseach said that he’s already spoken to US Ambassador Kevin O’Malley about the J1 visa issue and will do so again because it’s vital to our interests:
I firmly believe that the J1 system has been important in keeping that connection alive in the modern sense with young people in university and throughout the country working in America for the summer and so on. It keeps the connections between our countries very much alive currently and for the future.
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Or USIT could create a forum for employers to advertise to potential J1 students, interview them via Skype and then conform employment
Or they could just stop sitting the bed………
Interesting theyvdont Cate about what happens with American students at Mardi Gra, Spring break or cancoon.
It’s more to do with youth unemployment in the states
What youth unemployment issue? It is at about 11.7%, less than Canada or Australia. Also most of the jobs J1′ers take are transient restaurant jobs, low hanging fruit. I don’t think youth unemployment is the issue here IMO.
No but if you put a political swing on it you could make it about youth unemployment
Paul, you’ll find that they calculate unemployment rates very differently in the US.
If you are unemployed for X number of weeks you are miraculously not longer unemployed.
Do you really think an employer is going to do that rigmarole?
The walls are going up. Our countries are becoming prisons. “See the world? How dare you. You should only travel to kill foreigners so they don’t spill into OUR country! This is a LOCAL country for LOCAL people!”
Obviously from that photo Noelle Pikus-Pace with the benefit of foresight was very emotional about the future of the J1 visa as opposed to the medal she had just won at the Sochi Winter Olympics.
Such a shame that a few creeps have put the system in jeopardy. J1 visas are one of the college highlights …
A summer holiday has little to do with college.
It does when you need to be attending college to get it in the 1st place :)
I need an irish passport to go to america so by your logic my holidays abroad are highlights of being Irish.
dmn, this is an article about J1 visa’s. Zero relevance comment. Cheerio.
4500 students from the USA come to Ireland every year, they are given work permits. We should let the Americans know that and be reciprocate if they decide to strengthen the rules.
I doubt very much Ireland would have the balls to reciprocate
In fairness a fair portion of them are actual students here paying savage fees
So do Irish students dmn, American university fees are amongst the dearest in the world.
J1ers are not going to an american university they’re going on summer holiday.
I take offense to that, I worked my arse off the single weekly 4 hour shift I was able to pick up in Hollister when I did my J1!
That’s a stupid idea Saul. Remember we need them a lot more than they need us. We should be doing everything humanly possible to acquiesce to their every whim and making Ireland as indispensable to the US as possible.
But the American’s have not earned the reputation that the Irish student abroad has. Both misbehave at that age, but the Irish have taken misbehavior to a new level. Their idea of a good time has cost others a lot of money in damages, abandoned bills and work contracts misrepresented and ignored. For many, it truly became a summer holiday financed by parents that didn’t care as long as they were “over there”.
The “Sure we’re Irish and only havin the Craic” brigade are a huge part of this decision. Braking up apartments in drunken stupors, Pi***ng on the streets, etc. The authorities in the US won’t tolerate that kind of nonsense much longer.
Absolutely, the few – hopefully just a few – have to ruin it for the majority. And well said, Mark. Pathetically immature, ill mannered, irresponsible individuals. Why on earth would they want to behave in such an uncontrollable and disrespectful manner in their host country? They certainly demonstrate a complete lack of respect for themselves too, and pose questions over their upbringing. What an embarrassment to all the decent Irish, at home and abroad.
Pre-employment arrangement seems like a good idea. It would save parents of students having to subsidise them while they’re in States
US Students don;t have pre employment rules, they can just come here, find a job or don’t id they’d like. They get work permits from us. We have 4500 of them in our universities, that’s a lot for a little island of 5 million Vs the 8000 we send into a country of 320 million.
What business is it of yours if some parents choose to subsidise their children in the US while they look for a job. You do know that parents are allowed to say no. Nobody is being forced to do anything they don’t want to.
Saul there’s a difference they are students here, the J1 is far from erasmus
Saul, can you point to high profile incidents of American students destroying properties here? If so, maybe we should reciprocate, but when they have a problem with Irish students that we don’t have with theirs, then why should we reciprocate?
When I went over to California it was all grand to have an informal offer arranged but they couldn’t actually hire you until you had your Social Security number, which you couldn’t apply for until you touched down.
The US students here are studying with the legal ability to work a maximum amount of hours. a J1 visa is a working holiday visa. Completely different.
Exactly richard, the Irish have a bad reputation wherever they go.
No harm. We have an unhealthy fascination with the good old US of A. Maybe start looking at other countries for temporary working visas over the summer for students.
Absolute nonsense. What we have is a great relationship that gives Ireland an absolutely enormous and inproportionant economic advantage. Let’s not break off diplomatic ties just yet….
We have to change the behavior. Trashing a country and moving on to another won’t help and already damaged reputation.
Seems our ‘sure, it’s only a bit of craic’ mentality could finally be catching up with us…
Pre employment should be a requirement in the first place anyway. Isn’t that the point of you know a working visa for the states?
Thanks very much you shites. Your acting the maggot thrashing apartments is fcuking things up for everyone.
Safer to stay at home, you are nine times more likely to get shot dead by a cop in America than be killed by a terrorist.
Well you have zero chance of being shot if you just obey the law.
Lol cholly. You barely read the news do you.
Pronnsias.
And stop there war planes from landing in Shannon.
Cholly appleseed, did that 12 year old child shot dead at a playground with a toygun in clieveland Ohio last year break the law?
Didn’t break a law but was in possession of an item that was against regulations, the airsoft or bb gun he had was meant to have a brightly coloured cap on the barrel to show it was a toy. Saw a story last night of an 11yr old who shot an 8yr old in an argument over a puppy, water the officers actions completely uncalled for? I don’t think I could pull the trigger on a kid even if I thought they were gona shoot me but that’s me, I can see why he would. Don’t agree with it but I can see how it’d happen
The anti American brigade out in force no surprise. Just cause don’t like the USA does not mean everyone does…in fact they are in the minority.
Get Hilary elected.. then there will be no issue.
….A woman with a trail of dead bodies behind her.
22 dead bodies. Master builder.
Always remember heading to NY as an 18 year old through Dublin airport, and US customs pulling people out of the queue to interview them, myself included. I eventually got through as I had family there legally but they carried out checks on my bank accounts, with my employer at the time to make sure I had a job to come home to, family I had at the other side too, they checked cash, wallet, suitcase etc. It was a guy in his 60′s or so that stopped me and quizzed me in the interview room. After about 20 minutes of it, he upped and left the room and a younger guy came in. He let me through, thankfully.
At the time you were allowed to bring your guitar & case on a lots of flights and they’d look after it for you, or you could even use an empty seat for it if one was available (and they’d tell you at check in if that was the so). Stupidly I brought mine with me and it set off alarm bells with customs so I singled myself out.
However, 3 other people were not allowed fly and one of them, a girl a few years older than me, had flown home for a funeral and couldn’t get back in again as they’d suspected her as working there undocumented and had overstayed a previous 3 month holiday Visa. The flight itself was delayed while they took her bags off and sent her on her way. She was so hysterical they had to physically lift her up and take her back into the general airport area.
If anything happened to the J1, we’d be seeing much more of that kind of thing.
You were that girl weren’t you SGT Pepper?
Forever more you’re in the lonely hearts club band.
Good throw them out and send them over to Bob Geldof or the Mama Merkel.Let them wreck the place over there along with the peasants from Africa and the middle east.Young Irish people have being destroying parts of western Australia and America for years,showing no respect for property or there national laws.Send them home or to the motherland,we take all with arms open,rapists,paedophiles,murderers,gangsters,terrorists,religious extremists,beggars,junkies,thieves,corrupt bankers and of course J1 students..Europe welcomes all,we love you unconditionally.But sorry Mr Snowden and Assange we cannot take you guys,you guys are crazy like a fox.
it’s heartbreaking when you hear of Irish people being treated like that, it’s been like that here for years for foreign people outside of the eu coming here, if they do get in and get a job they’re only allowed to work for the employer that gets them in, they can’t shop around for employment.what the Americans are preposing sounds like what is already the case here.
Easy solution with USA on all J1 and legalizing all irish out there . just tell them they can’t use Shannon Airport any longer
Image the sadness of the american troops having to stay in london or Paris instead. unless you think the planes will drop out the sky due to lack of fuel hahaha
“us officials seem bent” LOL
@johnnyblaze2004: Edna and his gang are so bent they could be used as paperclips!
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