The Rent Tax Credit

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With the ever-increasing cost of living here in Ireland, it is important to be aware of all reliefs available. It has emerged recently that many tenants in Ireland are unaware of the existence of the Rent Tax Credit, which could be of assistance to many renters in Ireland. It has been reported that around half of the eligible renters in Ireland are availing of this Rent Tax Credit.

With rental prices in Ireland reaching new highs of late, renters are naturally seeking out any assistance available. The Rent Tax Credit is available for the tax years 2022 to 2025 and reduces the amount of Income Tax that you are due to pay for a tax year. The amount of credit you can claim will be calculated when you submit your claim and will depend on the amount of rent you pay as well as the amount of Income Tax you pay.
If you have PAYE Income, this application process can be done through myAccount, and you may also apply for the 2023 year in real time by choosing the “Manage Your Tax 2023” option. The maximum value of Rent Tax Credit that can be claimed is €1,000 per year for a jointly assessed married couple or civil partners, this is halved to €500 for all other individuals.

The requirements for this Tax Credit are:

  • The property must be your principal private residence.
  • Another property used for work or study on an approved course.
  • A property used by your child to facilitate attendance on an approved course.
  • Tenancy must be registered with the RTB (Residential Tenancies Board).
  • Landlord must not be a housing association or an “approved housing body.”
  • You must also not be in receipt of State Assistance for accommodation including the HAP Scheme, Rent Supplement, or the Rental Accommodation Scheme.
  • Your landlord must also not be your parent.

The scheme currently runs from 2022-2025, with a possibility of this being extended past this date. It has been reported that many eligible renters are not claiming this relief for various reasons, including the daunting nature of filing your own tax return, issues with landlord, not having the appropriate documentation available, or simply not knowing about the availability of this Tax Credit.

We would as always advice to prep all documentation in advance and provide as much information as possible including the RTB number of your tenancy.

We hope that this information has been useful for you and as always, please don’t hesitate to contact us here at EcovisDCA where we remain open and ready to help. Please do not hesitate to contact us.