Asbestos at Work in Ireland: Current 2006 to 2025 Rules

Suspected asbestos changes the planning of maintenance, refurbishment and demolition. A worker cannot identify a material safely by appearance alone, and an ordinary risk-assessment form does not tell a contractor whether a particular activity can disturb it. The immediate practical task is to stop assumptions, identify reliable information about the material and the work, and involve people competent for the asbestos risk before the task proceeds.

Ireland's workplace framework is the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Exposure to Asbestos) Regulations 2006 to 2025. The 2025 amendment came into operation on 21 December 2025. The Health and Safety Authority's 2025 Code of Practice gives practical guidance, including occupational exposure limits and air monitoring. An older page referring only to 2006 and 2010 may omit these newer requirements. This article is an overview for employers, not instructions for sampling, removal or clearance.

Identify the possible exposure before work starts

Asbestos-containing materials may be present in older building fabric, insulation, plant or equipment. The hazard arises when fibres can be released and inhaled. A material in place may pose a different risk from the same material being drilled, broken, removed or disturbed by nearby work. The employer and person controlling the premises need to establish what reliable information exists and what the planned task could change.

Do not use age, colour or a contractor's visual guess as definitive proof. A competent survey and laboratory analysis may be needed to establish whether the material contains asbestos and where it is. The scope of any survey has to match the proposed work: information collected for normal occupation may not answer a question about destructive refurbishment. If the information is inadequate, do not proceed as though the material is asbestos-free.

Consider who may be exposed. That includes maintenance workers, specialist contractors, cleaners, occupants and others in adjoining areas. A task that releases dust can spread beyond the point of disturbance. Coordinate with the building controller and other employers before work begins. Confirm who supplies survey information, who assesses the work, who notifies the HSA if required, who controls access and who retains records.

Use the current regulatory framework

The 2025 amendment updates the earlier 2006 and 2010 asbestos regulations. It changes provisions on exposure, training, competence and related duties. The three instruments are collectively referred to by the HSA as the 2006 to 2025 regulations. The new HSA Code came into operation on 21 December 2025 and replaced the earlier asbestos entries in a chemical-agents code.

The amended regulations tie the occupational exposure limit to the Code. Do not repeat a value from an older article without checking the current Code and measurement method. A limit is not permission to create avoidable exposure. The amended regulation 9 requires exposure to be reduced to a minimum and as low as technically possible below the limit. Competent assessment and controls are necessary even where a task appears short.

The general Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 also requires hazard identification and risk assessment. An asbestos-specific assessment must address the material, task, potential fibre release, people affected and appropriate control and emergency arrangements. A generic safety statement cannot substitute for the evidence required for a particular asbestos activity.

Distinguish awareness from work competence

Awareness training helps workers recognise potential asbestos, understand why disturbance is dangerous and know when to stop and ask for information. It does not qualify someone to remove or abate asbestos. The HSA's asbestos removal guidance is explicit that removal and abatement must be done by competent people with practical training, experience and knowledge appropriate to the work. Its training guidance describes further mandatory training for workers who are or may be exposed while working with asbestos-containing material.

Before commissioning work, check the contractor's relevant competence for the actual material and method. Training certificates, experience, risk assessment, plan of work, medical information and respiratory protection arrangements can be relevant. A course attendance record on its own does not demonstrate that a team can safely perform every kind of removal. The HSA sets out evidence under the regulations; the person procuring work should ask for the evidence appropriate to the task.

Do not import the UK “licensed asbestos contractor” model into Irish copy. The HSA states that it does not issue licences to asbestos-removal contractors. That does not make the work unregulated or allow an untrained worker to perform it. Irish competence, notification and work-control duties still apply.

Check whether the HSA must be notified

The HSA notification guidance explains the amended regulation 11 process and the relationship with exemption criteria. Whether work is notifiable depends on its characteristics and the regulatory test. It is not safe to say that every interaction with suspected asbestos requires the same notice, or that a short job is automatically exempt. A competent person must classify the proposed activity under the current rules.

For notifiable work, the HSA says a written notification must reach it at least ten days before the activity begins, unless an applicable waiver is granted. The submission includes the required notification form and supporting material such as the plan of work, site-specific risk assessment and training records. Incomplete information does not start the ten-day period. The HSA processes the notification and issues a unique permit number for that notification. This number is part of the notification process; it is not a licence granted to the contractor.

Confirm current forms and submission instructions immediately before work. Do not begin a job based on a previous notification for a different site or activity. Keep copies of required notifications, plans, assessments and related records as the HSA directs. If the scope changes, reassess whether the original notice and controls remain valid.

Plan controls and check their effectiveness

Avoid disturbing asbestos where the work can be redesigned. Where asbestos-related work is necessary, competent specialists must select methods that minimise fibre release and protect workers and others. Isolation, containment, suitable equipment, respiratory protection, decontamination, waste arrangements and air monitoring may be needed according to the task and the regulations. This guide does not prescribe a removal method, respirator type or clearance procedure. Those choices depend on the material, setting and regulatory classification.

Control the surrounding area and communicate with occupants and other contractors. A maintenance team may enter after a specialist leaves, so handover and clearance evidence matter. Plan what happens if previously unknown material is uncovered or containment is damaged. Workers should know the stop-work route and whom to contact. A timetable should not pressure a team to proceed without survey or monitoring evidence.

Air monitoring can have different purposes, including assessing exposure and verifying controls. The 2025 Code should be used for current measurement and limit requirements. An ordinary dust meter or a visual absence of dust cannot be treated as evidence that asbestos fibres are below the current occupational limit. Use competent sampling and analysis where the rules or assessment require them.

Example: planned ceiling work

A facilities team wants to replace services above an older suspended ceiling. The building file mentions possible asbestos insulation, but the survey does not cover the ceiling void that will be opened. The team pauses the work and obtains competent investigation suited to the intrusive task. If asbestos is identified, the employer and building controller agree who assesses the activity, selects a competent contractor, determines notification status and coordinates controls with building occupants. Work begins only when the information and arrangements are adequate for the actual scope.

The example illustrates the decision path. It does not classify the material, set a removal method or determine whether that particular job is notifiable. Those decisions require competent evidence and application of the current regulations.

For an evaluation of wider safety information management, see Complys Ireland health and safety software and ask the product team to demonstrate current functions. The Irish general risk assessment guide, once approved and live, addresses the wider method; this page owns the asbestos-specific decision boundary.