Rent-a-Room explainer: How to earn up to €14k tax-free by opening your home to a lodger

For anyone with a spare room or an independent living space structurally attached to their home, the scheme can be an attractive prospect 

Getting the agreement right for a voluntary Rent a Room licence is vital to create respect, understanding and day-to-day harmony for everyone. File picture

The Rent-a-Room scheme (RAR), launched way back in 2001 and now approved by the Government until 2027, has been described as everything from a band-aid on the housing crisis to a vital lifesaver for desperate house-hunters, pensioners, separated individuals and struggling students.

For anyone with a spare room or an independent living space structurally attached to their home, it’s a very attractive prospect if the environment is right, you are temperamentally suited to the arrangement and open to a lifestyle change.