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The following information and advice
provided is for guidance purposes only and
although believed to be accurate it is not a
substitute for personal, professional legal
advice and it cannot be a basis for any
claim against Tenant Check Ireland.
Property rentals are becoming more popular
and for owners it is an ideal way of earning
extra income on their investment.
As a landlord you have certain
responsibilities and procedures to follow.
Ireland has strong tenant protection laws so
it is imperative that you adhere to the
procedures so as to avoid any complications
or disputes in the future. The law which
governs this is the Residential Tenancies
Act 2004. To assist you we have compiled the
following information.
 Registering your property
A tenancy must be registered with the
Private Residential Tenancies Board (PRTB).
It is the landlords responsibility to do
this.
To register a tenancy the landlord must
complete a PRTB1 tenancy registration form.
Once registered, the tenancy is allocated a
unique registration number. This number,
along with the details of the registration
entry, will be issued to both the landlord
and the tenant.
There is a fee for this service, currently
€70 per tenancy provided that the tenancy is
registered within one month after the
commencement of the tenancy. If the
registration is after this date the fee
increases to €140.
Rent
Parties are free to negotiate rents however
the amount should not be charged above the
market rate. Rent can be reviewed once a
year. Tenants must be given 28 days notice
of a change in the rent amount. Any disputes
should be referred to the PRTB.
Deposit
It is normal for a landlord to ask for a
deposit as security against damages or
breakages. Although there is no limit for
the amount a landlord can request as a
deposit most people ask for 1 or 2 months.
At the end of the tenancy the tenant is
entitled to a refund of the deposit provided
that there is no rent outstanding and no
damage to the property. A landlord can
deduct any such costs from the deposit and
return the remainder to the tenant. If the
tenant vacates before the end of the fixed
term tenancy the landlord can retain from
the deposit any outstanding rent due under
the terms of the tenancy unless the landlord
succeeds in re-letting the property.
Rental contract
The majority of contracts are fixed term,
normally for 1 year and will detail the
address of the accommodation, the names and
addresses of the landlord and letting agent,
the tenant’s name, the length of the tenancy,
the rent and when and how it’s to be paid,
details of other charges that aren’t
included in the rental fee (e.g. telephone,
electricity), the deposit to be paid and the
conditions under which it may be returned,
the basic rights of the tenant and the
landlord, and an inventory of items included
with the accommodation. Although it is not
necessary to have a rental contract it is
highly recommended so that both parties
understand their obligations.
At the end of the period the landlord can
evict the tenant without giving any notice
as the tenancy is deemed to have finished.
However a tenant can claim a tenancy for 4
years by serving a notice on the landlord no
earlier than 3 months and no later than 1
month prior to the end of the contract. This
means that the tenant is entitled to remain
in the property for a period of 4 year
unless a valid notice of termination is
served on them.
Terminating a tenancy
A tenancy can be terminated by either party
for any number of reasons. The person
terminating the tenancy must serve a notice
of termination on the other party which must
comply with the Residential Tenancies Act
2004. The content of this notice will depend
on who is serving the notice, the length of
the tenancy and the reason for ending the
tenancy.
If the tenancy was a fixed term tenancy (i.e
1 year) and the tenancy comes to an end, no
notice of notification needs to be given. If
the fixed term period was for more than 6
months and the tenant wishes to remain in
the property after the fixed term period
ends, the tenant must inform the landlord of
their intention between 1 and 3 months
before the expiry date of the current
tenancy.
When a landlord wishes to terminate a
tenancy the notice of termination must –
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Be in writing |
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Be signed by the landlord or letting
agent |
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Specify the date of service |
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State the reason for the termination (where
the tenancy has lasted more than 6 months) |
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Specify the termination date |
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When issuing a notice of termination the
landlord must state in the notice the reason
for the termination which must be one of the
following otherwise the termination will not
be valid –
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The tenant has failed to comply with the
obligations of the tenancy |
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The landlord intends to sell the
dwelling within the next 3 months |
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The dwelling is no longer suited to the
needs of the occupying household |
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The landlord requires the dwelling for
own or family member occupation |
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Vacant possession is required for
substantial refurbishment of the dwelling |
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The landlord intends to change the use
of the dwelling. |
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In the case of the first ground the tenant
must have been given adequate time to
rectify the matter but has failed to do so.
In the case of the last three termination
grounds, the notice must contain certain
additional details as specified in the Act
relating to the former tenant being given
first refusal to move back into the property
should it become available again for
re-letting.
The notice period depends on the duration of
the tenancy –
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Less than 6
months |
28 days |
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6 or more
months but less than 1 year |
35 days |
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1 year or more
but less than 2 years |
42 days |
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2 years or more
but less than 3 years |
56 days |
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3 years or more
but less than 4 years |
84 days |
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4 or more years |
112 days |
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However only 7 days notice need be given by
a landlord if the notification to terminate
results from serious anti-social behaviour
by the tenant or behaviour which is deemed
threatening to the property and/or its
contents.
The notice can be served on the tenant in
person, left at the rented property or
posted to the property.
When a tenant wishes to terminate a tenancy
the notice of termination must –
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Be in writing |
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Be signed by the tenant |
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Specify the date of service |
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Specify the termination date (the tenant
must be allowed the whole of the 24 hours of
this date to vacate) |
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State that any issue as to the validity
of the notice or the right of the tenant to
serve it must be referred to the Private
Residential Tenancies Board within 28 days
from the receipt of the notice. |
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The tenant does not need to state a reason
for terminating the tenancy except if they
are terminating because there has been a
breach of the landlord’s obligations or the
landlord’s behaviour poses an imminent
danger of serious injury or death or damage
to the property and/or its contents.
The notice period given by a tenant depends
on the duration of the tenancy –
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Less than 6
months |
28 days |
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6 or more
months but less than 1 year |
35 days |
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1 year or more
but less than 2 years |
42 days |
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2 years or more
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56 days |
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Only 7 days notice need be given if the
landlord has threatened serious injury or
death or damage to the property and its
contents.
The notice can be served on landlord in
person or posted to the landlord or agent.
If the tenant has vacated the property and
is in arrears of rent of at least 28 days or
vacates without giving notice then the
tenancy is deemed to have been terminated.
Tenant refuses to vacate the property
If a tenant has not vacated the property
after the expiry of the notice period
specified in the notice of termination, the
landlord should refer the matter to the PRTB.
The tenant is still liable to pay rent for
this period and acceptance of this payment
by a landlord does not imply that the
tenancy is still ongoing.
For further information please see
 Landlord
responsibilities
Tenant
responsibilities
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