For tenants
Renting a home in 2026, step by step
Six moments in a tenancy, from the viewing to the day you hand back the keys. For each one: what you should get, why it matters, and what to do if it is missing. Most of these rights hold whether or not the landlord followed the rules.
Checked against the Residential Tenancies Acts and RTB guidance on 26 Sept 2026. Information, not legal advice.
- 01Before you sign · Ask where the rent comes from
- 02The day you move in · Get the paperwork and photos
- 03After the first month · Check the tenancy is registered
- 04When a rent increase arrives · Check the notice before you pay more
- 05If the rent feels too high · Above the market, or above the limit
- 06When the tenancy ends · Notice periods and the deposit
01 · Before you sign
Ask where the rent comes from
For a tenancy that starts from 1 March 2026 the landlord must give you in writing, at the start: the previous rent and when it was set, the previous RT number, how your rent was worked out, and three comparable tenancies from the RTB Rent Register. Ask for it before you pay anything.
The deposit can be no more than one month’s rent, and rent in advance no more than one month. The advert must show the BER.
Why it matters
If the home was let in the last 2 years and that tenancy ended because the landlord sold, moved in or refurbished, your rent is capped at the old rent plus 2% a year or inflation, whatever the advert asks. The previous rent is how you find out.
If it is missing, or you are not sure
Not given? Ask in writing and keep the reply. Giving it is the landlord’s legal duty, not a favour, and you can still take a dispute about the rent to the RTB after you move in.
02 · The day you move in
Get the paperwork and photos
A signed, dated receipt for the deposit, the rent setting information above, the landlord’s or agent’s contact details, and information about the home and its appliances.
Take dated photos of every room. At the end, only damage beyond normal wear and tear can come off the deposit, and photos settle that argument.
Why it matters
If the deposit is argued over when you leave, a receipt and dated photos usually decide it. Without them it is your word against the landlord’s.
If it is missing, or you are not sure
Missing something? Ask for it by email, so the request itself has a date.
03 · After the first month
Check the tenancy is registered
The landlord must register the tenancy within one month of the start. Anyone can check by address on the RTB register. Online registrations show within about 48 hours; paper ones take longer, and addresses are typed in many forms, so try a few.
Why it matters
Your rights do not depend on registration: the rent limits, security of tenure after 6 months and the RTB dispute service apply either way. You do need the RT number to claim the Rent Tax Credit, up to €1,000 a year.
If it is missing, or you are not sure
Not found? Ask the landlord in writing for the RT number. If nothing happens, report it on the RTB’s Report a Landlord webform or on 0818 303038. You can still claim the credit and explain the missing number.
04 · When a rent increase arrives
Check the notice before you pay more
An increase needs the RTB Notice of Rent Review, served at least 90 days before the new rent starts and no sooner than 12 months after the rent was last set. It must list three comparable tenancies with their RT numbers, and a copy must reach the RTB within 7 days.
The most it can add is 2% a year or inflation since the rent was last set, whichever is lower.
Why it matters
To dispute a valid notice, apply to the RTB before the new rent starts or within 28 days of getting the notice, whichever is later. If the notice is invalid there is no deadline. Mediation is free; adjudication costs €30.
If it is missing, or you are not sure
Unsure? The calculator gives the legal maximum from your rent and dates, free. The Rent Check Report goes through the notice line by line and gives your deadline.
05 · If the rent feels too high
Above the market, or above the limit
Rent can never be above market rent for similar homes, and within a tenancy it can only rise by the cap. A signed lease does not change that.
While you live there, a dispute that the rent is above market rent has no deadline. After you leave you have 28 days from the end of the tenancy.
Why it matters
The RTB can order the overpaid rent paid back; count on up to €20,000 in one case. And the landlord cannot end your tenancy or punish you for bringing a complaint.
If it is missing, or you are not sure
The Rent Check Report puts your rent against every similar home registered when it was set, with RT numbers anyone can check, and says whether there is a case, an argument or nothing to claim.
06 · When the tenancy ends
Notice periods and the deposit
After 6 months the landlord needs a reason the law allows, a written notice with the right period (90 days up to 224 after 8 years) and a copy to the RTB within 7 days.
You give 28 days in the first 6 months, rising to 112 days after 8 years.
The deposit comes back as soon as possible, less only arrears, bills you owed, damage beyond wear and tear, or the shortfall if you gave short notice.
Why it matters
A notice that misses any of the landlord’s steps is invalid. You can dispute it within 90 days of getting it, or 28 days if it is for a breach. Keep paying the rent while it is decided.
If it is missing, or you are not sure
Got a notice? Check the reason, the period and the RTB copy first, then decide whether to dispute.
Guides for tenants
Notice of termination in Ireland 2026: notice periods, valid reasons, the 7-day RTB copy
A notice of termination in Ireland must give 90 to 224 days, state a valid reason after 6 months and reach the RTB within 7 days. The 2026 rules in full.
How long can I stay? Tenant rights in Ireland after 6 months and after 6 years
Tenant rights in Ireland after 6 months: a Part 4 tenancy, unlimited or in 6-year cycles by start date and landlord size, and the reasons that can end it.
Rent Pressure Zones in 2026: what changed when the whole country became one
RPZs began in Dublin and Cork in December 2016 and covered all of Ireland by June 2025. Since 1 March 2026 one national rule replaces them. What the cap is now, where the zones still matter, and how to check an old increase.
RTB forms: which one for what, and what happens if you use the wrong one
Notice of Rent Review, Notice of Rent Setting, the two exemption notices, the overpaid rent calculation and the dispute application: who fills each, when, what it must contain, and where to send it.
Rent Tax Credit 2026: €1,000 back, and why the RTB registration number matters
The credit is 20% of rent paid, up to €1,000 a year (€2,000 for a jointly assessed couple) for 2024 to 2028. Revenue asks for the RT number of your tenancy. How to find it, what to do if the landlord never registered, and how to claim in myAccount.
Daft Rental Report vs RTB Rent Index: why the two rent figures never match
Daft counts asking rents on adverts; the RTB Rent Index counts rents actually registered. Q2 2026 Daft: €2,204 for a two-bed. Q4 2025 RTB: €1,755 across all new tenancies. Which one a landlord, a tenant and an adjudicator should use.
RTB dispute over a rent increase: how it works, what to attach, what you can win
When a tenant can dispute a rent increase with the RTB, the 28-day window and the cases with no deadline, the €30 fee, what to put in the application, and the €20,000 cap on what is awarded.
Can a landlord increase rent every year in Ireland? The 12-month rule, the 90 days and the cap
Once in 12 months, by no more than 2% a year or inflation, never above market rent, with 90 days' written notice and a copy to the RTB. What changed on 1 March 2026 and where the exceptions are.
Letting rather than renting? Letting a home in 2026, step by step
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