New Rental Controls Proposed for the Irish Residential Rental Market

The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage has published new rules for the Irish residential rental market to take effect by 1 March 2026.  

The General Scheme of the Residential Tenancies (amendment) (No.2) Bill 2025 was approved by the Government on 14 October 2025. This bill is currently undergoing pre- legislative scrutiny, and the proposed legislation is due to be published as a priority by the Government. The proposed legislation will apply to new residential tenancies created from 1 March 2026. Residential tenancies in place prior to 1 March 2026 will not be affected.

The Government has advised that the goal of the new rules is to improve security of tenure for tenants, to encourage more private investment in the rental market and to also encourage the building of new rental apartments.

What tenancies are affected?

The rules will apply to Student Specific Accommodation (SSA), Approved Housing Body tenancies, Cost Rental tenancies and private rented housing (including accommodation let under the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) scheme and under the Rental Accommodation Scheme (RAS).

Key Changes

Below is a summary of some of the key changes that will be implemented.

Tenancies of Minimum Duration (TMD)

New Tenancies created from 1 March 2026 will now become 6 year rolling tenancies known as Tenancies of Minimum Duration (TMD). The landlord will only be able to terminate these tenancies in limited circumstances (discussed further below).

If a tenant has lived in the property in question for at least 6 months and the landlord has not served a valid notice of termination during that period, the tenant shall be entitled to remain living in the property for rolling 6-year terms, provided they comply with the terms of the tenancy.

Distinguishment between small and large landlords

The new rules seek to categorise landlords into small and large landlords. Smaller landlords are defined as having 3 or fewer tenancies and larger landlords are defined as having 4 or more tenancies, or if the landlord is a registered company.

There are different rules around terminating the TMD depending on whether you are a large or a small landlord. There are also different rules around terminating the TMD depending on whether you seek to end it during or at the end of the 6 year period.

Terminating a TMD during the 6 year period:

Both small and large landlords will be able to end the tenancy where the property is no longer suitable to the tenant’s needs, or in circumstances where the tenant is not meeting their obligations.

Smaller landlords will be allowed to terminate the tenancy where financial hardship requires the sale of the property or where the landlord or a close family member needs to live in the property.

Terminating a TMD at the end of the 6 year period:

Smaller landlords can end the tenancy if they are selling the property or changing the use of the property. They can also end the tenancy if they or their family want to occupy the property or, if they are carrying out major renovations on the property.

Larger landlords can only end the tenancy if the property is not suitable for tenants needs or if the tenants are not meeting their obligations. Unlike smaller landlords, larger landlords cannot end tenancies for renovation, sale, occupation or change of use of the property.

While landlords can only terminate in the limited circumstances outlined above, it should be noted that a tenant can end a TMD at any time once they have complied with the correct notice period.

Rent setting rules:

For new tenancies from 1 March 2026, if previous rent was below market level and the previous tenant left voluntarily or breached their tenant obligations, all landlords can set the rent at market level.  

Any rent increases after this will be linked to inflation according to the Consumer Price Index (CPI) (the official measure of inflation used to track how the cost of living changes over time). Regardless of the CPI, increases will be capped at 2%.

For existing tenancies in place before 1 March 2026, rent increases will also be linked to inflation according to CPI, capped at 2%.

Newly built apartments and student specific accommodation (commenced from 10 June 2025) will not be subject to the 2% cap and will be linked to CPI only.

Resetting of rent to market level will only be permitted when the following occur:

•              When it is the end of the 6 year tenancy

•              A tenancy is terminated because a tenant has breached their obligations

•              for new tenancies after 1 March 2026, provided the tenant has left the property voluntarily

•              A tenancy is terminated because the property no longer meets the tenant’s needs

Rent setting rules in relation to Student Specific Accommodation (SSA):

Student Specific Accommodation (SSA) is housing that is used for the sole purposes of providing accommodation to students during the academic term. The new rules will to be tailored to suit how this type of accommodation operates, as student tenancies generally change each year. Landlords will not be able to reset rents upon the commencement of each student tenancy/ licence. They will only be able reset the rent to market value every 3 years.

Conclusion

The new rules certainly create some food for thought for both tenants and landlords alike. While tenants may have greater protections and security of tenure by virtue of the new rules, they may argue that the new rules will only exacerbate the issue of steadily rising rents. Meanwhile, landlords, and particularly large landlords may be unhappy with the more limited circumstances in which they can end a tenancy.

We will need to wait until the proposed legislation is published to make a full assessment on the impact the new rules will have. It remains to be seen whether the Government’s goals (creating further protections for tenants and increasing private investment in the rental market) will be achieved. Furthermore, it remains to be seen if these goals can be achieved without producing any unforeseen negative consequences for tenants and landlords of residential properties.

For further details on this or related matters, please reach out to Noelle Whelan  or any member of the Power Law team, including our Property & Construction Department.