The Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage has issued a new planning circular confirming that an exemption from planning permission for certain short-term lettings of a person’s principal private residence now applies nationwide, rather than only in Rent Pressure Zones.
Circular SPI 02/2026, published on 21 May 2026, informs planning authorities, An Coimisiún Pleanála, the Office of the Planning Regulator and other stakeholders that the Planning and Development (Short Term Letting – Planning and Development Act 2000) (Amendment) Regulations 2026 have been made. The regulations were signed by Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage James Browne on 4 April 2026 and came into force on that date.
The change is technical, but important for homeowners, local authorities and short-term letting platforms. The new regulations amend Article 6 of the Planning and Development Regulations 2001 by deleting references to Rent Pressure Zones. The effect is that the planning exemption for short-term letting of a principal private residence is now available nationally, and is no longer dependent on whether the property is located in an RPZ.
In practical terms, this concerns people letting all or part of their own home on a short-term basis. The statutory instrument amends the wording of the 2001 regulations so that it now refers to “the short term letting of not more than 4 bedrooms in a house that is the principal private residence of the landlord or licensor” without limiting that provision to a Rent Pressure Zone. It also removes RPZ references from the exemption for short-term letting of an entire house that is the principal private residence of the landlord or licensor.
The explanatory note for S.I. No. 130 of 2026 clearly states its purpose: it removes all references to Rent Pressure Zones. This means that the exemption from needing planning permission to change a principal private residence into a short-term let now applies nationwide and is no longer dependent on whether an area is designated as an RPZ.
The circular also confirms that the new regulations revoke S.I. No. 72 of 2026. This means the operative position is now set out in S.I. No. 130 of 2026 and Circular SPI 02/2026.
The policy background is Ireland’s wider effort to regulate the short-term letting sector while protecting long-term housing supply. Since 2019, short-term letting rules have been used as part of the State’s response to rental pressure, particularly in areas where homes were being used for tourism accommodation rather than long-term residential use. The original 2019 planning reforms were focused on Rent Pressure Zones, where the use of a house or part of a house for short-term letting was deemed a material change of use requiring planning permission unless an exemption applied.
The short-term letting definition is important. The 2019 legislation defines short-term letting by reference to letting a house, or part of a house, for periods not exceeding 14 days. That definition underpins the planning rules and distinguishes tourism-style short stays from ordinary residential letting.
The 2019 model also made a distinction between professional or investment-style short-term letting and home-sharing. Letting rooms in a person’s principal private residence has generally been treated differently from using a full residential property as year-round tourist accommodation. Government guidance has previously stated that letting a room or rooms in a person’s principal private residence is permissible on an unrestricted basis and is exempt from planning requirements. It also states that homesharers may let their entire principal private residence on a short-term basis for a cumulative period of 90 days while temporarily absent from the home, with planning permission required where that threshold is exceeded.
The latest amendment should therefore not be read as a general deregulation of all short-term letting. It is more specific. It extends the geographical scope of the principal-private-residence exemption so that the exemption is no longer tied to RPZ status. The distinction between a person’s own home and a property operating as dedicated short-term tourist accommodation remains important.
The change reflects a shifting rental regulation landscape. Originally aimed at high-rent areas, Rent Pressure Zones will be replaced by a national rent control system for private and student accommodation starting 1 March 2026, according to the Residential Tenancies Board.
That matters because the short-term letting planning rules had been drafted around RPZ geography. Once the RPZ system was being altered or replaced, references to RPZs in short-term letting exemptions risked creating uncertainty. The circular addresses that by confirming a nationwide approach for the principal-private-residence exemption.
For homeowners, the practical message is that short-term letting of a principal private residence may be exempt from planning permission across the country, subject to the relevant conditions. The most relevant conditions are whether the property is genuinely the person’s principal private residence, whether rooms or the whole home are being let, and whether any annual day limits apply where the entire home is let while the owner is temporarily absent.
For owners of second homes or investment properties the position is different. The circular does not create a blanket exemption for properties used mainly as short-term tourist accommodation. Such use may still amount to a material change of use and may require planning permission, depending on the facts and the applicable legislation.
For local authorities, the circular gives a clearer basis for dealing with queries and enforcement. Planning authorities had been asked to regulate short-term letting in a context where housing supply, tourism accommodation and local enforcement capacity were all under pressure. A nationwide principal-private-residence exemption may reduce some uncertainty, but it will not remove the need to distinguish between home-sharing and commercial short-term letting operations.
For the tourism sector, the change may be seen as helpful for genuine home-sharing. Short-term letting can support local tourism, particularly in areas where hotel or guesthouse capacity is limited. It can also provide supplemental income for households. However, the housing policy concern remains that dedicated short-term lets can remove homes from the long-term rental market, particularly in cities, coastal towns and high-demand visitor areas.
Ireland needs more visitor accommodation especially in tourist areas. At the same time it faces serious housing and rental issues. The challenge is to support genuine home-sharing while preventing many regular homes from being turned into short-term rentals for tourists.
The amendment also comes as a short-term rental regulation is increasingly shaped by European law. The EU adopted a regulation in 2024 on data collection and sharing relating to short-term accommodation rental services. That framework is intended to improve transparency and help public authorities understand the scale and location of short-term rentals.
Better data is likely to become central to enforcement. One of the long-standing difficulties for local authorities has been knowing which properties are operating as occasional home-shares and which are functioning as commercial short-term lets. A more consistent registration and data-sharing system could make it easier to target enforcement at properties that are reducing long-term housing supply.
The new circular should be seen as a clarification within a broader shift in policy. It reaffirms that the exemption for short-term letting of a principal private residence applies nationwide. However it does not address the more significant policy dilemma of how Ireland should reconcile tourism accommodation, property rights, community requirements, and the long-term rental market.
The next steps for each of the involved parties like homeowners should be to check the conditions to see if they qualify for the exemption. Local authorities must make sure the new wording is applied consistently. For policymakers, the challenge is to support short-term rentals that are truly a minor part of a person’s home, while also protecting residential housing in areas that are already under pressure.
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