If you rent out a room (or rooms) in your home to private tenants, the rental income you earn will be exempt from income tax, provided this income does not exceed a certain limit in a tax year. This is called the rent-a-room relief .

Depending on their circumstances, your tenant(s) may be entitled to claim Rent Supplement. You will have to fill out part of the tenant’s application form and provide your PPS number .

Your tenant(s) may be entitled to claim tax relief on rent paid – see details here .

If you rent out a room in your home, you are not covered by landlord and tenant legislation so the rights and obligations under that legislation do not apply to you. For example, you are not obliged to register as a landlord with the Private Residential Tenancies Board (PRTB), provide a rent book to the tenant or ensure that the accommodation provided meets any minimum physical standards .

This also means that private tenants living in your home are living under alicensee agreement ,not a tenancy agreement, and are really only entitled to reasonable notice if you choose to terminate the agreement. Tenants are, however, entitled to refer disputes to the Small Claims Court .

Common claims that are heard by the Small Claims Court include disputes about retention of a tenant's deposit for what they consider unfair reasons, or deductions from rent for damage to property that is over and above normal 'wear and tear'.

Your tenants can find out more about their rights in our document Sharing accommodation with your landlord and can also contact Threshold for advice– see 'Where to apply' below.

Before you arrange to rent out a room in your home, it is strongly recommended that you and the tenant agree some ground rules and put them in writing. If you and your tenant each sign and keep a copy of this agreement, you can both refer to its terms in the event of confusion or disagreement. These ground rules might include:

• How long is the tenancy going to last?
• How much notice will you or your tenant have to give if either of you chooses to end the tenancy?
• How much rent will the tenant pay and how often (for example, weekly, monthly)?
• How will this rent be paid (cash, cheque, standing order etc.)?
• When will the rent be reviewed and how much notice will you give the tenant of a rent review?
• How are utility bills (electricity, gas, phone, broadband, TV, water, waste charges) to be divided between you and the tenant?
• Can the tenant have visitors to stay overnight?
• Are there any restrictions regarding noise levels?

If you are getting a means-tested social assistance payment from the Department of Social Protection, any rental income you get will be assessed as means and may affect your payment.

However, rental income will not be assessed as means if:

• You would be living alone unless you rented out a room in your home.

Your home must be located in the State and you must occupy it as your sole residence during the year of assessment. This means that it is your home for the greater part of the year and is where people would normally expect to make contact with you. You do not have to own the property – you could be a tenant and be sub-letting to someone else. (In such cases, you would have to check with your own landlord that sub-letting is allowed – see our document on tenants’ rights and obligations .)

The relief applies only to residential tenancies, not to short-term guest arrangements. The occupants must be using the room on a long-term basis. For example, renting a room to a student for the academic year is covered, but taking in guests for short breaks is not.

From the tax year 2015 onward, the total (gross) rent that you get, which includes sums that the tenant pays for food, utilities, laundry or similar goods and services, cannot exceed €12,000 in the tax year (1 January to 31 December) – see ‘Exclusions from rent-a-room relief’ below .

You cannot deduct expenses from your rental income while claiming rent-a-room relief. However, depending on the circumstances, it may be worth your while to opt out of the relief in a particular year in order to offset expenses against the rental income and avail of wear and tear allowances – see 'How to apply' below.

If you qualify for rent-a-room relief, the income you get from renting out the room is not liable to PRSI, the Universal Social Charge or income tax. However, it must be included on your annual income tax return .

Rent-a-room relief will not affect your mortgage interest relief or your exemption from Capital Gains Tax (CGT) if you sell your home.

Exclusions from rent-a-room relief

You will not qualify for the relief if:

• Your gross income from rent and related services is over €12,000 (or €10,000 in 2014 and previous years). In this case, Revenue will treat your rental income minus allowable expenses as part of your total income for tax purposes and should be included in your tax return.
• You are renting the room in your home to your son or daughter (but there is no restriction in the case of other family members)
• You are an employee or office-holder in a company, and the company pays you to allow clients to use the room in your home on an occasional basis
• You are renting the room to short-term guests

Rental income from renting a room in your home (and related services) is exempt from tax, up to a maximum limit of €12,000 (or €10,000 in 2014 and previous years). Where more than one person is entitled to benefit from the rent (for example, you and your spouse), this limit is divided between the individuals concerned.

If you make an annual tax return, you should record your rental income for rent-a-room relief in the ‘Exempt income’ section of your tax return form at the end of the tax year and return the completed form to your local tax office. The tax office can answer any queries you may have and will help if you have any difficulties completing the form.

If you do not make an annual tax return and your income from rent and related services is under the exemption limit, you do not have to claim rent-a-room relief as it will apply automatically.

If you wish to opt out of the rent-a-room relief in a particular tax year, you must notify Revenue in writing, on or before the return filing date for that tax year. If you make an annual tax return, you opt out by marking the relevant box in the ‘Exempt Income’ section of the return – otherwise write to your tax district to say that you do not wish the relief to apply for that year. Read more here (pdf) .