Residential Tenancies (No. 2) Act 2021

Restrictions on amounts payable

7. The Act of 2004 is amended by the insertion of the following section after section 19A:

“19B. (1) A person shall not be required, for the purpose of securing a tenancy, to make any payment other than—

(a) an advance payment of rent, which shall be no greater than the amount of rent payable under the tenancy agreement in respect of a period of one month, and

(b) a deposit of an amount no greater than that payable under the tenancy agreement as rent in respect of a period of one month.

(2) A tenancy agreement shall not provide for an advance payment of rent, during the currency of the tenancy, which exceeds an amount that is payable under the tenancy as rent in respect of a period of one month and any payment made under paragraph (a) of subsection (1) shall be treated as an advance payment of rent for the purposes of this subsection.

(3) Notwithstanding subsections (1)(a) and (2), a tenant of a dwelling referred to in subsection (1A) of section 3 may, if he or she so wishes, and with the agreement of his or her landlord, make an advance payment of rent which exceeds an amount that would be payable under the tenancy as rent in respect of a period of one month.

(4) Nothing in this section shall prevent a landlord from requiring a tenant to pay to him or her any monies arising from any outstanding legal obligations, whether on foot of the tenancy agreement, any previous tenancy or otherwise.

(5) This section shall apply to a tenancy created not earlier than one month after the passing of the Residential Tenancies (No. 2) Act 2021.”.