Rent Credit for Unregistered Tenancies

The new rent tax credit of €500 that was introduced in December 2022, could be left unclaimed by thousands of tenants unable to claim due to their landlords not being registered with the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB). The legislation states that the tenancy must be registered with the RTB, excluding rent a room.

The rent credit can be claimed for the tax years 2022-2025 for each tenant currently renting in Ireland, along with parents paying for student accommodation for their children.

The RTB website states that tenants don’t need to have an RTB registration number to claim the credit, as long as they have tried to confirm it. Tenants can proceed with their claims for the renter tax credit if they don’t have their RTB registration number. Some tenants that can’t confirm their RTB registration number, are afraid to proceed if the landlord refuses to register with the RTB or if they are unsure for fear of losing their rental property.

But it appears due to delays and certain ‘bugs’ in the RTB website for registering rental property, some tenancies that were previously registered are currently not showing up as registered online as landlords trying to re-register tenancies have battled with the RTB’s new online system. It has been reported in the last few months, the system has improved somewhat.

As of 16 March, almost 180,000 people have claimed the rent tax relief for 2022, according to data from the Revenue Commissioners. Out of 300 rental homes identified by members, 99 of them didn’t appear on the RTB database.

To claim your 2022 rent credit, you must include this in your 2022 Income Tax Return if you are income tax registered. If you are in receipt of PAYE only, this can be claimed through ‘MyAccount’.

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Details correct at time of publishing and are not intended to be legal advice.