The Sanctions Regime of the Residential Tenancies Board Mason Hayes & Curran’s Colm Farrell provides a detailed guide to ensuring compliance with the convoluted legislative framework of the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 (as amended)
i. Introduction Irish residential landlord and tenant law is complicated. The judiciary has commented that the area is “technical and confusing” while other legal commentary considers the legislation, at times, “impenetrable”. The legislative framework comprises the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 (as amended) (the “2004 Act”) and in excess of 20 subsequent amending pieces of legislation. The prudent landlord needs to ensure compliance with the legislation not only to avoid issues with tenants and the “ordinary” RTB dispute resolution process (i.e. mediation, adjudication and the tribunal) but also so as not to find him / herself in the RTB sanctions territory. The RTB’s sanctions regime was introduced by the Residential Tenancies (Amendment) Act 2019. That Act gives the RTB powers to regulate landlords who engage in “improper conduct”. The consequences of a finding of improper conduct can be serious and include financial penalties, costs orders, cautions, publication of outcomes and enforcement.
ii. What is “Improper Conduct”? The sanctions regime is only concerned with improper conduct of landlords within the meaning of Schedule 2 of the 2004 Act. It is not a catch-all mechanism for every complaint a disgruntled tenant might raise against a landlord. Where a tenant is dissatisfied because a landlord has failed to maintain a dwelling, has retained a deposit or has otherwise acted unlawfully in a way that does not amount to improper conduct withing the meaning of the legislation, the ordinary RTB dispute process remains the correct route for a tenant to seek redress (i.e. mediation, adjudication and the tribunal). However, it is possible that a single issue may at times fall into both categories. For example, a notice of termination may be invalid for various reasons but 46 the Parchment
may also amount to improper conduct if the landlord knew the termination ground relied on was false or misleading. In such cases, the sanctions regime sits alongside the “ordinary” RTB dispute process. The main categories of improper conduct include breaches by the landlord relating to the following: 1. rent; 2. registration; 3. termination; and 4. student-specific accommodation. Where the issue does not fall within one of these four categories, it is more appropriately addressed through the ordinary RTB dispute resolution process. The sanctions regime applies only to the conduct of landlords. Where a tenant is not complying with his / her tenant obligations under his / her lease and / or the legislation, that amounts to a tenant breach rather than improper conduct.
1. Breaches Relating to Rent These are among the most common examples of improper conduct and include charging rent above the permitted level, failing to comply with rent setting and rent increase restrictions, incorrectly seeking to rely on exemptions around rent setting and increases, and requiring more than one month’s rent in advance or taking more than one month’s rent as a deposit. In Q4 2025, the RTB issued 2,500 compliance notices for potential breach of RPZ rules, highlighting the proliferation of landlord infringements in relation to rent.
2. Breaches Relating to Registration These form another major category of improper conduct. According to the RTB Director’s Quarterly Report for the period of Q1-Q3 2025, 6,027 compliance notices were issued to landlords for failure to register a tenancy. A landlord who fails to register a tenancy with the RTB or who fails to update tenancy details when