A new €100 charge for ID cards for non-Irish nationals was unacceptably expensive and would lead to more undocumented migrants, groups working with immigrants have said.
The new fee for the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) to process immigrant registration certificates for non-EU/ EEA nationals comes into force on Saturday.
The certificates, also known as GNIB cards, are necessary for immigrants from outside the EU to prove their status in the State. Until now they have been free.
Siobhán O'Donoghue, director of the Migrant Rights Centre, described the charge as "unacceptable". This was particularly the case as people who were working were already paying taxes.
"I am concerned this fee will place a serious burden on migrant workers and their families, especially those in lower paid sectors of the employment.
"In practice it will increase the likelihood that migrant workers will not register with the GNIB upon arriving in Ireland as many will not be able to afford the fee on arrival. It is thus likely to contribute to an increase in the number of undocumented migrants in Ireland."
It was the centre's experience that employers and recruiters in some cases charged illegal fees for processing work permits. "The fees charged are frequently over and above the actual costs of securing a work permit."
Mike Jennings, regional secretary of Siptu, described the fee as "picking on the most vulnerable".
He said there had been no consultation with representative organisations. "The first I heard about it was when I saw an ad about it last Friday. On the one hand the Government says it wants more immigrant workers and on the other, it slaps a new pointless tax on them."
He added: "Any new barrier to immigrant workers, whether social or financial, drives them further into the black economy. That is in nobody's interests."
A spokeswoman for the Department of Justice said issuing GNIB cards was "an expensive process".
The cards were highly secure and included such features as a biometric chip.
She said the fee compared favourably with other EU states where non-EU nationals could be charged far higher amounts. In the Netherlands, for example, the same document cost €800.
