7% of renters claiming tax credit earn over €100,000, report finds

The renters' tax credit was first introduced at a maximum rate of €500 for single taxpayers and €1,000 for jointly assessed couples in 2022
Around 7% of people claiming the renters’ tax credit earn over €100,000 a year, and increasing the credit further would mainly benefit higher earners, according to a Government report.
A review of the renters’ tax credit, published by the Department of Finance to coincide with its extension in Budget 2026, found that the policy addresses “symptoms but not the root causes” of the housing crisis — namely, the lack of supply.
This, it said, “poses questions about the opportunity to target exchequer money towards alternative policy instruments to advance the supply of houses across the country”.
“Since 2022, the relief amount has already doubled and it is estimated that the RTC has likely become one of the top ten costing tax expenditures,” states the review.
“The Government’s commitment to ‘progressively increase’ the RTC would represent even higher costs for the exchequer, unsupported by clear evidence of the policy instrument’s effectiveness in addressing the underlying market failure.”
First introduced at a maximum rate of €500 for single taxpayers and €1,000 for jointly assessed couples in 2022, the credit has since doubled to €1,000 and €2,000, respectively.
The amount received depends on the rent paid and the level of income tax owed.
In Budget 2026, announced on Tuesday, finance minister Paschal Donohoe said he was aware of the financial pressures faced by renters and described the credit as a “very meaningful support".
“This credit is due to expire at the end of 2025,” he said. “I am announcing that I am extending it for a further three years, to the end of 2028, in a bid to alleviate the pressure through what has been a valuable tax measure for many.”
The department’s review found that in its first year, the number of people claiming the tax credit was over 90% of the estimated 400,000 potential beneficiaries.
It said the credit is a “popular measure", with Revenue data showing that young adults, single people, and renters in Dublin earning between €20,000 and €50,000 were the most likely to claim.
“[This] suggests that those possibly most in need of such support are indeed availing of it,” it said.
It also found that more than 23,000 claimants earned over €100,000, representing 7% of all applicants.
The department described this as a “non-negligible" share of higher earners benefiting from the scheme.
“Potential increases in the rent tax credit would be mostly, if not exclusively, absorbed by high income deciles with no additional benefit for the lowest ones, posing concerns about deadweight and likely regressivity effect of the policy instrument,” concluded the report.