ETB Gibraltar: what the Department of Employment does

What the ETB was, and what it's called now

ETB stands for the Employment and Training Board, a body set up under the Gibraltar Development Corporation. From 1 January 1994 it acted as the "Director" under the Employment Act, which made it the office that registered jobs, contracts and job seekers. A 2001 change in the law moved that role to a public officer, the Director of Employment.

Today the work is done by the Department of Employment. Its Employment Service runs the Job Centre, and it also handles business and employer registration, work permits, the Labour Inspectorate, health and safety, Insolvency Fund claims and the Employment Tribunal. The old name has stuck, and Government statistics still credit figures to "the ETB". If someone tells you to "register with the ETB", this is who they mean.

What changed in 2026

The UK–EU treaty on Gibraltar has applied since 15 July 2026, and several new rules that followed send people to the Department of Employment:

• 15 July 2026: checks were removed at the frontier, and new Residency Regulations and a residency portal (residency.gov.gi) came in. Questions about residence go to the Department of Immigration and Home Affairs; questions about jobs and work permits go to the Department of Employment.
• 13 August 2026: frontier workers (EU citizens living in Spain and working in Gibraltar) can apply online through egov.gi for a certificate of status issued by the Director of Employment. It's valid for one year. Frontier workers who lose their job after more than a year keep their status if they register as job seekers with the Department.
• 27 August 2026: the Employment Regulations were updated. EEA, Swiss and UK nationals are "entitled workers" and need no work permit. Where a new worker also needs a residence permit, the Department can approve the job on condition that the permit is granted within 90 days ("Employment Approved Subject to Residency Approval").
• 30 July 2026: a new Business Compliance and Enforcement Team started checking that businesses providing services in Gibraltar, and their staff, are registered.
• November 2026: food delivery drivers need a new Delivery Driver Card, and one is only issued if the driver is registered with the Department of Employment. An amnesty runs until 1 December 2026.

If you're looking for work: ETB vacancies and registering

Registering as unemployed

1. Email findajob.employment@gibraltar.gov.gi or phone 200 11062 or 200 11030.
2. Fill in the Unemployment Registration Form (ID, qualifications, licences, last job and the kind of work you want) and a Declaration of Residency. If you rent, your landlord signs it, and the Department asks for the tenancy agreement, the property deeds, ID for everyone named and a recent utility bill.
3. Attend an interview with an employment officer once a month. Missing it takes you off the register and can cost you unemployment benefit.

Employers have to notify the Department of their vacancies, and registered job seekers can go in as often as they like to check them and ask to be put forward. There's no public online list of these private-sector vacancies. Government jobs are advertised separately on gibraltar.gov.gi. For everything advertised publicly, see our live jobs in Gibraltar, checked every morning.

Unemployment benefit

Benefit is paid by the Department of Social Security, not the Department of Employment. You need at least 30 weekly contributions in the 52 weeks before you claim (or a yearly average of 30). The standard rate is £62.70 a week, plus £30.80 for an adult dependant and £14.30 for each child. Claim as soon as your job ends, because delays can cost you benefit.

Training and apprenticeships

• The Gibraltar Training Centre runs apprenticeships. They start with a City & Guilds Level 1 certificate in construction trades, then move on to NVQ Level 2 and 3 in building maintenance, plumbing, mechanical and electrical engineering.
• PATHS (Professional Advancement through Holistic Skills) supports people who need extra help at work: paths@gibraltar.gov.gi.

If you're coming to work in Gibraltar

• Your employer registers you, not you. Before your first day they must file a notification of vacancy and, by your start date at the latest, a Notice of Terms of Engagement. Ask them to confirm it's done: employing someone who isn't registered is an offence for the employer, and it leaves you without an official record of the job.
• EU, EEA, Swiss and UK nationals don't need a work permit.
• Everyone else needs a work permit before starting. The employer applies, and permits last up to 12 months, or up to 36 months for some roles in financial services, gaming and at the University.
• Living in Spain? As an EU citizen you can apply for the frontier worker certificate described above. See our frontier workers guide.
• Moving to Gibraltar? If you need a residence permit, your job can be approved on condition that you get it within 90 days. You must tell the Department within 7 days of the decision on your residence application.

Once registered, send your terms of engagement and ID to the Income Tax Office to get a tax code (see how PAYE works). Preparing for interviews from Spain? Read our guide in Spanish: entrevista de trabajo en inglés.

If you're an employer

The duties come from the Employment Regulations 1994. Forms are PDFs, sent by email or post.

The penalties are real. Failing to register a business, a vacancy or an employee can mean a £3,000 fixed penalty, and not filing a termination can mean £750. Final pay is due by the next normal pay date. The Director can waive the late-vacancy penalty if you ask (directorofemployment@gibraltar.gov.gi).

Hiring now? You can post your vacancy on Careers Gibraltar, where it's seen by job seekers in Gibraltar, Spain and the UK.

Department of Employment contacts

From outside Gibraltar, add +350 before the phone numbers.