Ireland and the 2025 Trafficking in Persons Landscape

The Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report, published annually by the U.S. Department of State’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, evaluates how successful governments are meeting minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, under U.S. law (the Trafficking Victims Protection Act).  Countries are ranked in tiers (Tier 1, Tier 2, Tier 2 Watchlist, Tier 3) based on the efforts they make in prevention, protection, prosecution, and partnerships. 

Ireland 

Ireland remains on Tier 2 in the 2025 Trafficking in Persons Report, as the government does not fully meet the minimum standards for eliminating trafficking but is making significant efforts. Authorities increased investigations, secured more convictions under anti-trafficking laws, and expanded funding for victim assistance and awareness campaigns. More victims were identified, and extensive training was delivered to front-line officials. New legislation introduced a statutory framework for a revised National Referral Mechanism (NRM) and improved employment mobility for foreign workers. However, major gaps persist: Ireland has never convicted a labour trafficker under its anti-trafficking law, and the revised NRM has not been implemented, leaving systemic weaknesses in victim referral and support. Irish and child victims are rarely identified, victim accommodations remain inadequate, and no victim has ever received restitution or compensation. Overall, progress continues, but critical deficiencies remain unresolved.

Prosecution

The Garda Síochána Human Trafficking Investigation and Coordination Unit (HTICU) led enforcement efforts, launching 67 new investigations in 2024 (an increase from 53 in 2023) targeting 19 suspects across sex, labour, and unspecified trafficking cases. Two new labour trafficking prosecutions were initiated, though no new sex trafficking prosecutions occurred for the second consecutive year. One trafficker was convicted under the anti-trafficking law and sentenced to four and a half years in prison, while four others were convicted for related offenses such as money laundering and rape. However, Ireland has never secured a labour trafficking conviction under its trafficking statute.

International bodies such as GRETA (the Council of Europe’s Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings) have repeatedly criticised Ireland’s limited convictions and lenient sentences, warning that they may foster impunity and discourage victim cooperation. GRETA and the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (IHREC) urged authorities to adopt special investigative techniques, gather non-testimonial evidence (such as financial or digital records), and employ trauma-informed, victim-centered approaches in investigations and prosecutions.

GRETA’s 2022 report attributed Ireland’s low prosecution rates partly to the high evidentiary burden in Irish courts and the cautious approach of prosecutors, who must consider whether a case meets certain requirements and serves the public interest.

Irish authorities strengthened international cooperation, participating in multinational operations that identified 336 victims and arrested 65 suspects in 2024. 

Protection

According to the Trafficking in Persons Report, in 2025, Ireland increased efforts to protect victims of human trafficking but continued to face serious shortcomings in identification, assistance, and legal protection. In 2024, 67 trafficking victims were formally identified, up from 53 the previous year, including 48 sex trafficking, 15 labour trafficking, and four of unspecified forms. All identified victims were foreign nationals, while no Irish nationals were recognised, and child victim identification remained rare. NGOs identified and referred additional potential victims but lacked formal authority under the current National Referral Mechanism (NRM).

In the fishing sector, the government did not identify any victims for the second year in a row, despite evidence of trafficking among sea fishers. While reforms to the Atypical Working Scheme improved worker mobility, NGOs said authorities continued to deny the existence of trafficking in the industry. The government increased funding for victim services to €2.21 million and continued supporting one NGO-operated shelter for up to eight women, though capacity remained limited. Most victims were housed in the direct provision system, which experts deemed unsuitable and unsafe due to lack of privacy and support services. Victims were legally entitled to privacy, interpreters, and temporary residence permits, but these protections were inconsistently applied. No victims received restitution or compensation in 2024, and courts continued to award seized assets to the state rather than to victims. GRETA again urged Ireland to establish a dedicated compensation fund.

Prevention

While the government maintained online resources for trafficking prevention, including those aimed at vulnerable groups such as sea fishers and domestic workers, it did not report substantial progress in regulating labor recruitment or preventing fraudulent hiring practices. Recruitment and permit fees continued to contribute to debt bondage, with civil society estimating that up to 75 per cent of referred victims had paid excessive permit fees. Although laws prohibited recruitment fees and required agencies to be licensed and vetted, enforcement remained weak. The restriction preventing foreign workers from changing employers during their first nine months of employment further increased vulnerability to exploitation.

The Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) carried out routine inspections and trained inspectors to identify trafficking indicators, referring five potential labor exploitation cases in 2024. However, inspectors lacked the authority to formally identify victims or investigate cases aboard fishing vessels, a sector with high trafficking risks. Observers noted that many inspectors still treated trafficking indicators as labour law violations rather than criminal offences.

Recommendations in the Report 

• Implement the new NRM to allow formal victim identification and access to care without requiring victims’ cooperation or interaction with law enforcement and by entities other than the police, including civil society and other relevant frontline officials.
• Using the new NRM, proactively identify and protect all victims, especially Irish citizens, victims of labor trafficking and forced criminality, and vulnerable populations like children, sea fishers, and asylum-seekers.
• Consistently and uniformly assign a family liaison officer to all trafficking victims cooperating with law enforcement.
• Vigorously investigate and prosecute trafficking crimes and seek adequate penalties for convicted traffickers, which should involve significant prison terms, and ensure labour trafficking is pursued as such rather than as labour law violations.
• Consistently enforce strong regulations and oversight of labour recruitment companies, including for domestic workers and au pairs, by enforcing the law prohibiting worker-paid recruitment fees and holding fraudulent labour recruiters criminally accountable.
• Offer specialised trauma-informed accommodations to trafficking victims that are safe and appropriate.
• Continue to systematically train law enforcement, prosecutors, and judges on a victim-centered, trauma-informed approach, including use of corroborating evidence, and sensitise judges to the severity of trafficking crimes.
• Ensure victims are not inappropriately penalized solely for unlawful acts committed as a direct result of being trafficked, especially in cannabis production facilities.
• Increase the availability and quality of legal assistance provided to victims during investigations and court proceedings and ensure legal assistance can be accessed at the earliest opportunity and prior to engaging with police.
• Establish a national hotline to report for all forms of trafficking crimes, including labor trafficking.
• Increase awareness of, and trafficking victims’ access to, damages and increase efforts to systematically request restitution for all trafficking victims during criminal trials.