The Emergency Measures introduced by the Government to the Residential Tenancies Act have been extended until the 20th July 2020.
Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (Covid-19) Act 2020 was signed into law on the 27th March. It includes changes to the Residential Tenancies Act, for the duration of the Covid-19 emergency. A copy of the Act is available for review HERE
Please Note:
Notices of Termination – No notice of termination may be served during the emergency period.
- Notices served prior to the emergency period will have a revised termination date. The emergency period is added to the existing termination date.
- Notices of terminations that have been determined to be valid by the RTB (at Adjudication or Tribunal) for breach of obligation are effective and the date of these terminations still stand.
- In a situation where a property owner intends to terminate before the end of a Part 4 to prevent a Further Part 4 from commencing, the notice may be served at the end of the emergency period. The emergency period of months will be disregarded for the purpose of serving the notice.
- Where a notice of termination in respect of a tenancy of a dwelling of less than 6 months duration, was served before the emergency period and specifies a termination date that falls during or after the emergency period, the termination date under that notice shall be deemed to be the revised termination date(Add on the period of the emergency). A tenant shall not, by virtue of the emergency situation, acquire any rights under Part 4 of the Residential Tenancies Act.
- Where a landlord has retained the right to serve notice in the first six months of a tenancy, it may not be served during the emergency period; the emergency period is not counted and it can be served immediately after the emergency period to prevent a Part 4 right.
Rent Arrears
- Rent is a contractual obligation; it must be paid. In view of the emergency situation, IPOA are recommending forbearance be given where possible, where tenants are in difficult with rent as a result of the loss of job due to Covid-19.
- Rent arrears letters must allow tenants 28 days rather than 14 days to bring their rent up to date. However, notice of terminations may not be served during the emergency period.
Rent Increase
- Rent review notices can be served during the emergency, however, they will not take effect until the Emergency Period ends.
- Any rent review notices served before the commencement of the Emergency Period will not take effect until the Emergency Period ends –To avoid confusion and difficulty, a property owner could consider commencing the rent increase from the next rent due date after the Emergency Period has expired.
The RTB have produced a guide featuring expected queries and it is available HERE
A document entitled Guidance Document on Covid-19 Supports for Landlords and Tenants is available HERE
The IPOA are continuing to represent and assist members during the current crisis, our website is constantly updated with relevant information and we are available to assist you by phone and email.