Of the five teams who missed out, three - Armagh City, Larne and Limavady United failed to obtain the necessary domestic licence.
Portadown obtained a licence, but was controversially excluded because a club official missed a deadline for submitting an application form by several minutes.
Finally, Donegal Celtic obtained a licence, but was ranked thirteenth in the entry list, and thus missed out by one place.
The relegation/promotion system was slightly modified because Bangor, who withdrew from the next IFA Premiership season, eventually finished 11th.
The score was 2–2 on aggregate, but Dungannon Swifts secured their spot in the following IFA Premiership season by winning on away goals.