Allowable expenses/deductibles for a landlord for a rental property in Ireland

In this document we will inform you of deductible expenses on your rental property

General expenses

• Rates paid to a local authority for the property
•  Rents paid for the property e.g. ground rents
•  Paid insurance premiums against fire and public liability
•  Property fees paid before renting out the property e.g. management, legal, advertising, or accountancy fees
•  Maintenance work carried out on the property e.g. cleaning, decorating, and painting
•  The cost of services/goods supplied to your tenant e.g. electricity, central heating, service charges, telephone, water, and refuse collection
•  Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) registration costs
•  Certain mortgage protection policy premiums, see revenue’s part 04-08-08 – Mortgage Protection Policy Premium  
•  Expenses in between renting out the property in certain circumstances. It is important to note that costs cannot be claimed if the landlord/owner occupies the property during this time.
•  Capital allowances on the cost of furniture and fittings in your property. This is known as ‘wear and tear allowances’ or ‘depreciation’. The current rate for these allowances is 12.5% of the cost per year, for a maximum of eight years. The allowances may include furniture you purchased for your rental property and the cost of the purchase of white goods such as a fridge or a dishwasher.
•  Repairs to the property e.g. mending windows, rot treatment, doors, and machines
•  Certain pre-letting expenses on vacant residential properties see revenue’s part 04-08-11 pre-letting expenses on vacant residential property for further details

You must keep full and accurate records of all expenses for each property you rent out.

If a property is only partly let you may only claim the portion of which the expenses are related to. For example, if only half the rooms of a property are rented out then only half the expenses can be claimed.

Mortgage interest

You may be allowed to claim Mortgage Interest Relief against your rental income. The interest must be from a mortgage that is used to purchase, improve or repair your rental property.

You can claim Mortgage Interest Relief if you are registered with the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) while your property is rented out and in between renting out the property as long as you do not live in it during that time. You cannot claim Mortgage Interest between the time you buy the property and the time you first rent out the property.

For the purposes of the restriction, interest is treated as accruing on a daily basis. The date the loan is taken out is not relevant.

In certain situations, you may be able to claim 100% mortgage interest relief in the years when the relief was restricted. To qualify you must have rented out your property for three years to tenants receiving certain social housing supports and be registered with the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB).