Publication
Your rights and obligations under a tenancy
From Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage
Published on
Last updated on
From Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage
Published on
Last updated on
The rights and obligations of landlords and tenants are set out in landlord and tenant law, as well as in the lease or tenancy agreement between the landlord and tenant. The main legislation governing these rights and obligations is contained in the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 , as amended.
The Residential Tenancies Act applies to every dwelling that is the subject of a tenancy, subject to a limited number of exceptions, which are set out in section 3(2) of the Act. Dwellings which are exempt from the Act include, for example, public authority dwellings, holiday homes and dwellings within which the landlord also resides.
It is illegal for a landlord to seek a rent that is more than the local market rent for similar properties.
Outside of Rent Pressure Zones landlords can only review the rent:
The review must be based on current market rent and three comparable properties must be provided by the landlord to show evidence that the new rent amount does not exceed market rent.
A landlord must serve a tenant with a notice of rent review providing at least 90 days’ notice before the new rent becomes payable and must use the notice provided on the website of the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) Residential Tenancies Board (RTB)
A Rent Pressure Zone (RPZ) is a designated area where rents cannot be increased by:
This applies to new and existing tenancies (unless an exemption is being applied).
Following the designation of a RPZ, all existing tenants at the relevant date of designation are still covered by the 24 month rent certainty laws. Therefore, a landlord must wait 24 months from the tenancy commencing or 24 months from the service of the last valid notice of rent review before serving a further notice of rent review (unless an earlier review is warranted on the basis of a substantial change to the nature of the rented dwelling during the period since the tenancy commencement date or the date of service of the last valid rent review as the case may be ). After this 24 month period, the landlord has the right to review the rent every 12 months (or earlier, if warranted on the basis of a substantial change to the nature of the rented dwelling during the period since the last rent setting).
A landlord must serve a tenant with a notice of rent review providing at least 90 days’ notice before the new rent becomes payable and must use the notice provided on the website of the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB).
Further details on the operation of RPZs, including details of the limited, once-off exemptions available, can be found on the website of the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB).
During the first 6 months of a tenancy, a landlord may end the tenancy without giving any reason, provided the tenant is given 90 days’ notice.
Landlords and tenants may not contract out of any of their obligations under the Residential Tenancies Act (as provided under sections 12 and 16). No lease, tenancy agreement, contract or other agreement may operate to vary, modify or restrict these obligations.
A landlord can only terminate a 'Part 4 tenancy' on limited grounds. Grounds on which a landlord can end a tenancy.
If a landlord or tenant wants to end a tenancy, they must serve a valid written notice of termination. More information on notices of termination.
Under Housing for All, the Government’s housing plan to 2030, all new tenancies created on or after 11 June 2022 will become tenancies of unlimited duration (also known as a 'Part 4 tenancy') once the tenancy has lasted at least six months in a row and no notice of termination has been validly served on the tenant. A landlord still has the right to terminate a 'Part 4 tenancy' on the limited grounds provided in the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 (as amended) in the Table to section 34.
Where a tenant had been in occupation of a dwelling for a continuous period of 6 months and no valid notice of termination had been served in respect of that tenancy before the expiry of the period of 6 months, the tenancy is established for four years (for tenancies that commenced before 24 December 2016) or six years (for tenancies that commenced on or after 24 December 2016). This is referred to in the Act as a ‘Part 4’ tenancy.
A ‘further Part 4 tenancy’ began once the initial/preceding ‘Part 4 tenancy’ finished. From 24 December 2016, when a ‘further Part 4 tenancy’ commences, it lasts for 6 years.
‘Further Part 4 tenancies’ no longer come into being and instead, ‘Tenancies of Unlimited Duration’ may come into being in respect of tenancies that commence on or after 11 June 2022.
A fixed term tenancy is a tenancy that lasts for a specific amount of time. A ‘Part 4 tenancy’ runs alongside a fixed term tenancy, which means the tenant shall, after a period of 6 months and as in the normal course, become entitled to the security of tenure rights under a ‘Part 4 tenancy’. This simply means that irrespective of the length of the fixed term lease, a tenant now has an entitlement to remain in the dwelling under a ‘Part 4 tenancy’ for an unlimited duration.
A security deposit is a sum of money that is paid by a tenant to the landlord usually before a tenancy commences or on the date of commencement of the tenancy. This deposit is held by the landlord and is returned at the end of the tenancy to the tenant, once no rent arrears, bills, taxes or charges are due or damage beyond normal wear and tear has occurred. The security deposit is considered the lawful property of the tenant until the landlord establishes a right to it.
For tenancies that began on or after 9 August 2021, a landlord cannot seek an upfront payment (including a deposit) for a property that is more than the equivalent of 2 months’ rent for that property (i.e. any deposit cannot exceed 1 month’s rent and any advance rent payment (whether in respect of the first month’s occupation or thereafter, cannot exceed 1 month’s rent).
The security deposit should be agreed and a signed and dated receipt provided to both the landlord and tenant.
A security deposit should be returned once the tenancy ends and the tenancy agreement has been honoured. The deposit does not have to be returned to the tenant on the day they leave the accommodation, however, the landlord must return the deposit promptly. Time should be allowed for an inspection at the end of a tenancy, and for any repairs/ cleaning to be carried out.
By law, a deposit is considered to belong to the tenant but the landlord can establish a right to keep the deposit in the following certain circumstances:
Where a landlord withholds a deposit unjustly, the tenant may bring a dispute to the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) for resolution.