Louth Landlords Warned: Register tenancies or face fines up to €15,000

The Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) has launched a new campaign in partnership with Louth County Council to ensure landlords register their tenancies as required by law. The initiative follows research by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) last year that suggested 9.5% of tenancies in Louth that should be registered with the RTB are not. 

The RTB is targeting seven counties with higher levels of potentially unregistered tenancies through a wider campaign. The other counties in focus are Cavan, Clare, Donegal, Galway, Monaghan and Tipperary.

The campaign will see Louth County Council working closely with the RTB to increase landlord awareness of the need to register tenancies annually. Advertising on local radio, in local papers, on social media and posters in public buildings across Louth will remind landlords that they must register their tenancies annually. The campaign will also highlight the serious consequences of failure to register. These can include a civil sanction of up to €15,000 or a criminal prosecution and/or a fine of up to €4,000.

In addition to public information activities, the new drive also aims to increase data sharing and referrals of unregistered tenancies by Louth County Council’s housing teams to the RTB.

Speaking on the campaign, Rosemary Steen, Director of the RTB said:

“Ensuring that every tenancy that should be registered is registered is a key priority for the Residential Tenancies Board. I would like to thank our partners in Louth County Council for working with us to drive our message that landlords must register their tenancies or face prosecution.

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"Through their responsibility to inspect rental properties and ensure they comply with minimum standards, local authorities have unparalleled on-the-ground knowledge of the rental sector in their areas. We appreciate Louth County Council’s commitment to work with us to increase referrals of unregistered tenancies this year.”

David Conway, Chief Executive of Louth County Council said:

“Ensuring compliance with tenancy registration is essential to protecting both tenants and landlords while maintaining transparency in the rental sector. Louth County Council is committed to working closely with the RTB to improve awareness and enforcement of these requirements. By working together and sharing information, we can help improve standards and protect both tenants and landlords across the county.”

The public information campaign will run from 11th to 28th February. Collaboration between Louth County Council and the RTB to identify unregistered tenancies and drive compliance will continue throughout 2025.