Derelict property tax

Ireland has a law called the Derelict Sites Act 1990, which helps councils deal with abandoned or neglected properties. Under this law, councils can:

• Put properties on a Derelict Sites Register.
• Charge owners a Derelict Site Levy of 7% of the property’s market value each year until the property is fixed.

At the end of 2024, there were 2,140 sites on these registers. However, this doesn’t show the full scale of dereliction across towns and rural areas. The Government plans to strengthen the system to speed up progress.

Under the Delivering Homes, Building Communities plan, the Government will introduce a new Derelict Property Tax (DPT) to replace the current levy. Key points:

• Self-assessed tax managed by Revenue.
• Will follow normal tax collection and enforcement rules (including penalties and interest).
• Local authorities will still identify and register derelict properties.
• The tax rate will be at least 7%, the same as the current levy.
• A preliminary national register of derelict properties will be published in 2027, with the tax starting soon after.
• In the meantime, councils will work harder to collect unpaid levies.

Councils can also compulsorily acquire derelict properties under the existing law to bring them back into use.

Finally, a national digital register of derelict sites will be published every year, including maps and standard details for each property.