CPDStore Ireland

In recent years, with the backdrop of a housing crisis, there has been a particular focus on the supply of residential property in Ireland. In that context, a range of government measures, including some in the area of taxation, have been introduced with a view to increasing the supply of property to the rental and owner-occupier markets. These measures have been a mix of the carrot and the stick and cover not only existing taxes such as Stamp Duty and VAT but also the introduction of some entirely new taxes such as the Residential Zoned Land Tax (RZLT) and the Vacant Homes Tax (VHT) which have come on stream in the past few years. The most recent Budget and Finance Act 2025 which followed it contained a futher range of measures. Practitioners might feel hard-pressed to stay abreast of all of these changes but stay abreast they must as, such is the breadth of clients potentially impacted by them, they are likely to find themselves advising in this area on a regular basis. This course will provide attendees with a good overview and awareness of these changes.

In this course Michael O’Scathaill covers the following topics:

• The reduction to 9% in the VAT rate on the sale of apartments introduced in Budget 2026.
• Residential Zoned Land Tax (RZLT) and Vacant Homes Tax (VHT) –  an overview of two new taxes that have come on stream in the past few years, designed to discourage land hoarding and the holding of vacant properties and, in turn boost the supply of residential property for sale or rent.
• Stamp Duty Measures – a recap of measures introduced in recent years, in particular those designed to increase the supply of residential property, including the Residential Development Stamp Duty Refund Scheme and the introduction of the special 15% rate to discourage bulk buying of residential properties.
• Taxation of Emergency Accommodation – an overview of the legislative provisions and Revenue practice regarding the VAT and taxation treatment of lettings of residential and hotel-type accommodation for emergency accommodation, a prominent topic in recent years.
• Forget Me Nots – a reminder of various measures pertaining to the Corporation Tax/Income Tax/CGT treatment of property transactions that could easily be overlooked when preparing tax returns.