Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 9 July 2026
286. Deputy Michael Cahill asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage to give favourable consideration to a recommendation (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52447/26]
View answerThe Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment (DETE) has drafted the Short Term Letting and Tourism (STLT) Bill General Scheme in full alignment with the EU Short Term Rental Regulation. The introduction of the STLT Bill will provide a more effective legal and administrative basis to regulate short term lettings. This Bill when enacted will provide the statutory basis for the introduction of a register for all Short Term Lettings in Ireland, which will be implemented and managed by Fáilte Ireland.
In line with the proposed introduction of DETE’s STLT Bill, all short-term letting accommodation providers will be required to register with Fáilte Ireland. As part of the registration process, accommodation providers will need to confirm that they are planning compliant.
The Planning Acts provide that the short-term letting of a residential property is a material change of use of the property concerned, thereby requiring planning permission, unless otherwise specifically exempted. A threshold-based approach to consenting by planning authorities is proposed to generally preclude new planning permissions for short-term lets in larger towns and cities with a population in excess of 20,000, amounting to twenty five towns at the most recent Census of Population. It is intended that accommodation providers in all other locations, i.e. outside the largest towns and cities, will be able to avail of an extended period to meet planning compliance requirements.
Furthermore, in line with existing established rights, where it can be proven that a residential property has been operated by a short-term letting accommodation provider for at least seven years and no enforcement action has been taken by the planning authority, planning permission for retention may be sought to regularise an established but unauthorised use.
To ensure that there is a clear view, both at national level and local authority level, as to the overall policy approach to determining planning applications for short-term lets, my Department is currently finalising a National Planning Statement (NPS) on Short-Term Letting.
I am satisfied that the draft NPS considers a variety of factors, such as existing planning legislation, the location and potential benefits of the proposed short-term letting property and the overarching aim to balance housing need with the potential impact on tourism and economic development. The draft NPS has been informed by the work of a Working Group (comprising my Department, DETE and the County and City Management Association) and further engagement with relevant stakeholders.
On 16 June, Government noted the draft NPS on Short-Term Letting. This draft is now subject to a Strategic Environmental Assessment process and the EU Services Directive notification process. A finalised version of the NPS, having regard to the outcomes of the environmental assessment and EU notification, will be considered by Government in the coming months.
