Last reviewed: 27 July 2026. Ireland's national short-term letting register has not yet opened and its start date has moved. This article explains where that leaves you now.
The short version
- Ireland's short-term letting threshold is 21 nights, the lowest in Europe. Stays longer than that sit outside the short-term letting definition entirely.
- Your principal private residence can be let for up to 90 days a year while you are away, without planning permission.
- Home sharing is unrestricted. Letting rooms while you continue to live there is not capped.
- Anything else needs planning permission. Letting a property that is not your principal private residence, or letting your whole PPR beyond 90 days, normally requires change of use permission from Dublin City Council in a rent pressure area.
- A national register is coming. Citizens Information states it launches 1 December 2026, with registration required by 31 December 2026. Many secondary sources still cite an earlier date that has passed.
- Planning and registration are separate. The register does not replace planning permission, and you must declare planning compliance when you register.
- Enforcement was historically weak. The register is designed to change that.
The 21-night line
Start here, because it is unusual and it drives everything.
Under Ireland's short-term letting legislation, short-term letting means stays of up to 21 nights. Above that, you are outside the short-term letting definition, outside the register, and outside the regime built around it.
For comparison: Los Angeles and New York use 30 days, Toronto and Boston use 28, Barcelona uses 31. Ireland's line at three weeks is the lowest in this series, which means a 22-night booking is simply not a short-term let.
That has made mid-term letting the dominant professional model in Dublin, helped considerably by a local economy built on multinational headquarters, pharmaceutical and financial services employers, and the relocation and contractor demand that follows them. A great deal of Dublin's furnished rental demand naturally sits above 21 nights.
At a glance
| Question | Short answer |
|---|---|
| What is short-term letting? | Stays of up to 21 nights |
| Home sharing (rooms, you living there) | Unrestricted, no planning permission |
| Whole PPR while you are away | Up to 90 days a year without permission |
| Whole PPR beyond 90 days | Planning permission normally required |
| A property that is not your PPR | Planning permission normally required |
| National register | Launching, per Citizens Information, 1 December 2026 |
| Registration deadline | 31 December 2026 |
| Does the register replace planning? | No |
| Renewal | Annual |
The two situations
Irish rules turn on whether the property is your principal private residence (PPR).
If it is your PPR
Two options, treated differently:
Home sharing. You let rooms while continuing to live in the property. This is unrestricted and exempt from planning permission. There is no annual night cap.
Letting the whole home while temporarily absent. Permitted for a cumulative total of up to 90 days per calendar year without planning permission. Note the arithmetic catches people out: a handful of weekends plus a few holidays adds up faster than expected, and the register will make the total visible to both you and the local authority.
Even where exempt from permission, notification requirements to the local authority have applied.
If it is not your PPR
Letting a property that is not your principal private residence on a short-term basis in a rent pressure area normally requires change of use planning permission from Dublin City Council.
Reporting indicates a typical processing time of around eight weeks for a valid application, with permission, if granted, valid for three years and extendable. Approval is far from guaranteed in Dublin, and operating without the required permission is an offence under the Planning and Development Act 2000.
If you own a Dublin investment property and intend to let it by the night, planning permission is the gate, and in Dublin it is a narrow one.
The national register
This is the area where guides are currently most likely to mislead you, so here is the position as carefully as we can state it.
What is being created. A national online short-term letting register, maintained by Fáilte Ireland, covering stays of up to 21 nights. You receive a unique registration number which must be displayed when you advertise on platforms and in other advertising. Registration is renewed annually, and when you register you must declare that the property complies with planning requirements.
When. Citizens Information, the State's official public information service, states that the register launches on 1 December 2026, with registration required by 31 December 2026.
Why guides disagree. The commencement date moved during the legislative process. A great many secondary sources, including some published in 2026, still cite 20 May 2026. Treat Citizens Information and Fáilte Ireland as authoritative and check for the current position before acting.
What it will change. The register is designed for data-led enforcement. Platform verification obligations mean listings without a valid number face suspension. Historically, investigations repeatedly found that a majority of Dublin listings lacked the planning permission they needed, and enforcement was limited. The register moves the question from "will anyone check" to "does a number exist."
Source: Citizens Information, Renting your property for short-term lets
Rent regulation changed too
Worth knowing because older guides describe a system that no longer exists.
Ireland's localised Rent Pressure Zone framework was replaced by a national rent control framework from 1 March 2026.
For short-term letting purposes the practical position is unchanged: Dublin remains a market where converting residential property to tourism use is actively restricted, and the planning rules that flow from housing pressure continue to apply. But if you are reading a guide that discusses RPZ designation as the live mechanism, it predates the change.
Check the current position with the Residential Tenancies Board.
Exemptions and edge cases
Reporting indicates a number of exemptions from the planning requirement have applied, including letting to family members, letting for educational, cultural or recreational purposes, and accommodation managed by Fáilte Ireland approved providers.
Because these are fact-specific and have shifted with the legislation, confirm any exemption you intend to rely on with Dublin City Council's planning department rather than assuming it still applies.
Tax and other obligations
Short-term letting income is taxable and must be declared. The treatment differs depending on whether the activity is a trade, and whether the rent-a-room relief applies, which it generally does not to short-term guest accommodation.
Registration with Fáilte Ireland will require identity and property details, including a PPS number, and per-unit administration if you operate several properties.
Separately, fire safety obligations apply to guest accommodation, and Dublin Fire Brigade is the point of contact for prevention queries.
Engage an Irish accountant. Tax treatment of short-term letting in Ireland is not intuitive and rent-a-room relief in particular is commonly misapplied.
A practical checklist
- Establish clearly whether the property is your principal private residence
- If it is not, treat planning permission as the gate and speak to Dublin City Council planning early
- If it is, decide between home sharing (unrestricted) and whole-home letting (90 days)
- Track your 90 days across the calendar year, combined across platforms
- Confirm any exemption you plan to rely on directly with the council
- Watch for the national register opening and register within the deadline
- Display your registration number on all advertising once you have it
- Be ready to declare planning compliance when registering
- Check the current rent regulation position with the RTB if relevant
- Confirm fire safety obligations for guest accommodation
- If the property cannot meet the tests, consider stays longer than 21 nights, which sit outside the regime
Verified official sources
Named, not linked
- Short Term Letting and Tourism Act 2025, the basis for the national register
- Fáilte Ireland, the register's operator, for registration and current commencement information
- Dublin City Council planning department, for change of use applications and exemptions
- Planning and Development Act 2000, under which operating without required permission is an offence
- Residential Tenancies Board, for the current national rent control framework in force from 1 March 2026
- Revenue, for the tax treatment of short-term letting income
- Dublin Fire Brigade, for fire safety in guest accommodation
Important disclaimer
This article is not legal, tax or financial advice. It is general information written for a non-specialist reader, by a key management company rather than a law firm.
Ireland's framework is mid-transition and the national register's commencement date has already moved. Many published guides, including recent ones, cite a date that has passed. Registration and planning permission are separate requirements and satisfying one does not satisfy the other. The rent regulation framework changed on 1 March 2026. Exemptions from the planning requirement are fact-specific.
Verify with Citizens Information, Fáilte Ireland and Dublin City Council before acting. For an investment property or anything involving change of use, engage an Irish solicitor and an accountant.
If you spot an error, an omission, or something that needs updating, please tell us and we will fix it.
