Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 2 December 2025
344. Deputy James Geoghegan asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if he will respond to issues raised in correspondence (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [67880/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Residential Tenancies Acts 2004 to 2025 (the RTA) regulate the landlord-tenant relationship in the rented residential sector and sets out the rights and obligations of landlords and tenants. The Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) was established as an independent statutory body under the RTA to operate a national tenancy registration system and to facilitate the resolution of disputes between landlords and tenants.
During the first 6 months of a tenancy, a landlord may terminate the tenancy by serving a notice of termination (NoT) in compliance with the RTA, without stating a reason for the termination.
In general, after 6 months, a landlord may not serve a NoT except in very clearly defined circumstances. Section 34 of the RTA provides that the landlord must state in the NoT the reason the tenancy is being terminated and the NoT will not be valid unless that reason relates to one or more of the following:
• the tenant has failed to comply with the obligations (other than the obligation to pay rent) of the tenancy;
• the tenant has failed to comply with the obligation to pay rent under the tenancy;
• the dwelling is no longer suited to the needs of the occupying household;
• the landlord intends to sell the dwelling within the next 9 months;
• the landlord requires the dwelling for own or family member occupation;
• vacant possession is required for substantial refurbishment/renovation of the dwelling; and/or
• the landlord intends to change the use of the dwelling.
In addition, all NoTs must be copied to the RTB at the same time as being served to the tenant and will be invalid if not so copied.
Landlords are also required to give varying periods of termination notice depending on the duration of the tenancy.
|
Duration of a Tenancy |
Termination Notice Period |
|
Less than 6 months |
90 days |
|
Not less than 6 months but less than one year |
152 days |
|
Not less than 1 year but less than 7 years |
180 days |
|
Not less than 7 years but less than 8 years |
196 days |
|
Not less than 8 years |
224 days |
If a tenant feels that a Notice of Termination served by their landlord is invalid and/or that the landlord has breached their obligations, the tenant may refer a dispute to the RTB for resolution. Please see the links below for RTB guidance on how a landlord may terminate a tenancy and how to refer a dispute for resolution -
www.rtb.ie/registration-and-compliance/ending-a-tenancy/how-a-landlord-can-end-a-tenancy;
www.rtb.ie/dispute-resolution-services/guide-to-disputes-resolution.
On 10 June 2025, the Government approved policy measures including modifications to rent controls to come into effect on 1 March 2026 in order to boost investment in the supply of homes available for rent and keep existing landlords in the market. The changes agreed will also provide significantly stronger tenancy protections and are finely balanced between the interests of tenants and the need for further private investment in the rental market across the country.
On 14 October 2025, Government approved the General Scheme of the Residential Tenancies (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2025. This legislation is now subject to priority legal drafting by the Office of Parliamentary Counsel and the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Local Government and Heritage is currently conducting it pre legislative scrutiny of the General Scheme of the Bill.
For existing tenancies (i.e. those in place on 28 February 2026), landlords will continue to have the right to terminate a tenancy in line with the provisions of the Residential Tenancies Acts 2004 to 2025 (RTA), as they apply on 28 February 2026. The changes from 1 March 2026 cannot be applied retrospectively.
Further information on the impending changes is available at:
www.gov.ie/en/department-of-housing-local-government-and-heritage/publications/government-reforms-to-the-rental-sector-starting-1-march-2026/.
A detailed communications campaign will be undertaken by my Department, in conjunction with the RTB, before the introduction of the new legislative measures from 1 March 2026.
[Delivering Homes, Building Communities 2025-2030: An Action Plan on Housing Supply and Targeting Homelessness], sets out the Governments action plan on housing supply and targeting homelessness. In recent years, Government has introduced several schemes to help people to buy or rent homes. The cost rental sector commenced in Ireland as a new form of rental tenure in 2021. The introduction of a cost-based rental model was a radical and systemic reform of the rental system. Cost rental homes provide a secure long-term accommodation option for those whose earnings place them above the income threshold for social housing or housing supports but who find it difficult to afford private rents. Since 2021, approximately 4,500 cost rental homes have been provided. Crucially, Delivering Homes, Building Communities focuses on ensuring that a robust Starter Homes for Rent programme will expand cost rental as a tenure option and have a moderating impact on the wider rental market, placing downward pressure on private market rents over the longer term.
Promoting homeownership, protecting renters and making the purchase and rental of homes more affordable is central to the Plan. Key actions to support affordable home ownership include measures to deliver an average of 15,000 affordable housing supports each year, under the Starter Homes Programme; expanding the role and remit of the Land Development Agency; and the continued support for homeownership through the Help to Buy Scheme and First Home Scheme.
Key actions to help renters include providing rent controls on a national basis; reforming the current system of Rent Pressure Zones to promote new investment in the rental market; introducing legislation to provide stronger protections for tenants; strengthening the regulation of the private rental sector by the Residential Tenancies Board; publishing a rent price register and increased regulation of the short-term letting sector. All of these actions are being progressed. The Residential Tenancies (Amendment) Act 2025 came into operation on 20 June 2025 to immediately extend and expand the operation of Rent Pressure Zones (RPZs) to cover the entire country until 28 February 2026. This ensured that all tenancies nationally were protected from rent increases exceeding 2% pending the introduction of national rent controls in 2026.
Further Government measures introduced to support renters include the increase in the tax credit for renters under Budget 2025 to a maximum of €1,000 for each renter in a household. Budget 2026 extends the Rent Tax Credit, which was due to expire at the end of 2025, for a further three years, to the end of 2028.
