Commencement of Sections of the Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks (Amendment) Act 2025 and Dwellings Damaged by Use of Defective Concrete Blocks (Increased Grant) Regulations 2026

The Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks Act 2022 (“The Principal Act”) commenced on 22 June 2023 and Regulations (S.I. 347 of 2023) were adopted on 29 June 2023.

The Principal Act specifies a maximum grant amount of €420,000 that a homeowner can receive under the Scheme. This amount was increased by Government Order in October 2024 (S.I. 577 of 2024) by 10% to €462,000.

Similarly, the per square metre rates that are used in the Scheme to calculate the grant amount and which are set down in the 2023 Regulations were increased by Regulations in November 2024 by between 7.4% and 8.7% (S.I. No. 621 of 2024).

The 2025 Act provides that certain homeowners will be able to apply to their designated local authority to have a new remediation option grant amount determined in line with the increased scheme cap and rates provided for under the scheme in October and November 2024.

The purpose of the Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks (Amendment) Act 2025, as agreed by Government on 04 June 2025 and signed into law by the President on 23 December 2025 is to implement and give legislative underpinning to a series of measures to ensure equity and the efficient administration of the Defective Concrete Blocks (DCB) Grant Scheme. A copy of the 2025 Act is at Appendix 3.

The Commencement Order does not commence the entire 2025 Act. The following sections of the 2025 Act commence upon signing and the main sections relating to the DCB application and payment of the increased remediation option grant are Sections 9 and 11. Section 12 also commences and this extends the time period applicants have for completing works.

Commencing:

Section 9 inserts a new section 17A into the Principal Act, to permit relevant owners in certain circumstances, to make an application for an increase to their remediation option grant.

Section 11 inserts a new section 18A into the Principal Act and sets down the conditions that a relevant owner must meet in order to apply for payment of increased grants under the newly inserted section 18A.

Section 12 amends section 19 of the Principal Act, and increases the time allowed to remediate a dwelling from 65 to 130 weeks and reduces the time a relevant owner is obliged to apply for an extension from 12 to 2 weeks.

The other sections listed under are being commenced because they interact with Sections 9 and 11 include:

• sections 1 to 4;
• section 5(b);
• sections 8, 10, 13;
• section 14(d);
• section 16;
• sections 19 and 20;
• sections 22 to 28;

The Commencement Order also provides that amendments contained in the 2025 Act, relating to the Building Control Act 1990, at sections 32, 33, 37 and 39 will also commence on the same day as the above. Please note that a separate Circular related to the commencement of these sections will issue directly from the Building Standards Advisory Unit in due course.

The Regulations provide details for the scheme not included in the 2025 Act such as application forms and templates.

The Regulations supplement the Act, in other words, Regulations cover all sections of the Act, which require Regulations in one document. The Act and Regulations work together and should be read as one document, with the Act being the primary source of the Scheme.

A Ministerial Guidance Note to facilitate, promote and support a consistent approach to the operation and administration of the Defective Concrete Block Grant scheme by designated local authorities are set out in Appendix 4

An updated “Your Questions Answered” document to address queries stakeholders may have in respect of the new scheme changes underpinned by the 2025 (Amendment) Act is set out at Appendix 5.

These documents relate solely to the sections relating to the DCB provisions now being commenced.

• Circular No.10 of 2026
• Appendix 1: Commencement Order (S.I. 57 of 2026).
• Appendix 2: Dwellings Damaged by Use of Defective Concrete Blocks (Increased Grant) Regulations 2026 (S.I. 58 of 2026).
• Appendix 3: Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks (Amendment) Act 2025.
• Appendix 4: Ministerial Guidance Note of the Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks (Amendment) Act 2025.
• Appendix 5: Your Questions Answered ‘YQA’ document.