Rent-a-Room Relief rises to €16,000 in 2027: what it means if you host a student

Budget 2027 raises the tax-free limit for letting a room in your own home from €14,000 to €16,000 a year from 1 January 2027. What has been announced, what Revenue's rules say today, and what it means for a homeowner who hosts a student in Dublin, Cork, Galway or Maynooth.

Updated 15/11/2026 · Gomfy

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What was announced

In Budget 2027, presented on 6 October 2026, the Government announced that the Rent-a-Room Relief ceiling is being increased from €14,000 to €16,000 per taxpayer unit from 1 January 2027. It is the first increase since 2017. The Budget also extends the relief to newly installed designated auxiliary dwellings, such as garden cabins of 32 to 45 m², installed after 27 July 2026.

The change is in the Finance (No. 2) Bill 2026, published on 19 October 2026 and now going through the Oireachtas. Until it becomes law and Revenue updates its guidance, the limit that applies to 2026 is still €14,000.

How the relief works, according to Revenue

• If your gross income from letting a room in your home, including meals and other services, does not exceed the limit, you pay no Income Tax, PRSI or USC on it.
• If it goes over the limit, even by a little, the whole amount is taxed, not only the part above the limit.
• The room must be in your own home (a «qualifying residence», as Revenue defines it).
• Lettings of 28 consecutive days or less do not qualify, but accommodation for full or part-time students, including language students, is an exception: short language courses can count.
• It does not apply to rent from your own child or your civil partner’s child, or from your employer.

Read the details on Revenue’s pages: Rent-a-Room Relief and qualifying conditions. Our host guide Rent-a-Room Relief explained for hosts goes through the same rules with examples.

What €16,000 means for one student room

Spread over 52 weeks, €16,000 is about €307 a week. For comparison, language schools in Dublin charge students a median of €295 a week for a single room with half board in a host family in spring 2027, and €320 a week in July, according to the 2027 price lists of 11 Dublin schools listed on LanguageBookings.com, Gomfy’s sister site. Those are the prices students pay the school; what a host receives is less.

In other words, one student room let all year with meals, at prices like these, is close to the new limit, and a second room would go over it. Add up everything you receive, meals included, before deciding how many rooms to let.

More than 18,000 people used the relief in 2024, according to Revenue figures reported by The Irish Times, and Dublin is short of student beds: see our guide to student residences in Dublin.

Hosting a student through Gomfy

On Gomfy you list your room for free, decide how much you want to receive, set your house rules and talk to students through Gomfy’s messages before they book. You choose who stays in your home. Students look for rooms on Gomfy in Dublin, Cork, Galway and Maynooth; you can see the rooms already listed in Dublin.

Rooms and host families on Gomfy in Dublin

• ★ Recommended by Gomfy
  Triple/ Quad room Available
  Host Family
  from €37 a night
  See the listing ›

  More rooms in this house: A nice quiet house · Triple Shared Room

See all accommodation in Dublin

Want to take a course too? Language courses in Dublin on LanguageBookings

Frequently asked questions

Is the €16,000 Rent-a-Room limit already law?

It was announced in Budget 2027 on 6 October 2026 and is in the Finance (No. 2) Bill 2026, which is going through the Oireachtas. It is due to apply from 1 January 2027. For 2026 the limit is still 14,000 euro, as Revenue’s guidance says.

Can I host a language student for a few weeks and still use the relief?

Yes, according to Revenue. Lettings of 28 consecutive days or less are excluded, but accommodation for full or part-time students, including language students, is an exception.

Do meals count towards the limit?

Yes. Revenue counts the income from the room and from services such as meals together. If the total goes over the limit, all of it is taxed.

What happens if I earn more than €16,000?

The whole amount is taxed, not only the part above the limit, under Revenue’s rules. Keep a record of everything you receive.

Does it cover a garden room or cabin?

Budget 2027 extends the relief to newly installed designated auxiliary dwellings of 32 to 45 square metres installed after 27 July 2026. The detail is in the Finance (No. 2) Bill 2026; check it with Revenue before relying on it.

Does it cost anything to list a room on Gomfy?

No. Listing a room on Gomfy is free. You decide how much you want to receive and you talk to students through Gomfy’s messages before accepting a booking.

Other guides

• Host family in Ireland for students: prices in Dublin, Cork and Galway
• Homestay in Dublin for students: host families, prices and areas
• Student residences in Dublin 2026/27: prices, who gets a place and the alternatives
• Student accommodation in Cork 2026/27: UCC, MTU, private residences and host families
• Student accommodation in Galway 2026/27: university residences, ATU, digs and host families
• Student accommodation in Maynooth 2026/27: campus residences, digs and host families

Sources

1. Department of Finance, Budget 2027: Taxation Measures (6 October 2026)
2. Revenue, Rent-a-Room Relief
3. Revenue, Rent-a-Room Relief: qualifying conditions
4. Chartered Accountants Ireland, Budget 2027 housing and property measures (6 October 2026)
5. Forvis Mazars, Personal tax: Budget 2027
6. The Irish Times, Will rent-a-room scheme increase encourage more landlords to participate? (11 October 2026)
7. The Irish Times, More than 18,000 availed of €14,000 rent-a-room tax relief in 2024 (21 July 2026)

Prices and rules change: check the source before you decide. Information read on 15/11/2026.