Major Rental Law changes to take effect in Leitrim from March 1

Significant changes to Ireland’s rental laws will come into effect on March 1, with new rules set to impact tenants and landlords across Leitrim.

According to a press release issued by the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB), the changes will apply to all new tenancy agreements entered into from March 1, 2026. Existing tenancies in Leitrim will not be affected and the new legislation will not alter the terms of current agreements.

The reforms introduce rolling six-year minimum tenancies for new agreements, aimed at strengthening security of tenure for renters. The RTB stated that landlords will face stricter rules on how and when they can end a tenancy after the first six months. While landlords may terminate a tenancy within the first six months for any reason, after that point they may only do so on specific legal grounds.

For tenancies created from March 1, the grounds available to landlords will depend on how many properties they own. Landlords with four or more tenancies, or corporate landlords, may only end a tenancy if the tenant breaches their obligations or if the property is no longer suitable for the tenant’s needs. Smaller landlords in Leitrim with one to three tenancies will have additional limited grounds, including selling the property to avoid undue financial hardship or where the landlord or a close family member requires the property to live in.

A new national system of rent control will also take effect. Under the new framework, rent may only be increased once per year and increases will be capped at two per cent annually, or the rate of inflation if that is lower. Inflation will be measured by the Consumer Price Index.

The RTB said that re-setting to market rent will be permitted in limited circumstances for new private tenancies, including when a new tenancy begins following a voluntary departure by the previous tenant or at the end of a six-year tenancy cycle. However, re-setting to market rent will not be allowed for tenancies created before March 1.

From that date, landlords will also be required to submit rent setting or rent review notices to both the RTB and their tenant explaining how the rent level was determined. They must provide three examples of comparable rents using a new online RTB Rent Register, which will go live on March 1. The register will allow landlords and tenants in Leitrim to search for rents paid for similar properties within the same Local Electoral Area, based on factors such as property type, size and BER rating.

The RTB has launched a public information campaign to support tenants and landlords in understanding the new rules and will host a series of educational webinars over the coming weeks.

Further information is available on RTB.ie.

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