Ireland operates a deposit protection scheme through the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB), intended to hold tenancy deposits securely and provide a formal process for resolving disputes about whether a deposit should be returned. This page is general information, not a guarantee about your own deposit.
How deposit protection generally works
Under the scheme, a landlord is generally required to lodge a tenant's deposit with the RTB rather than holding it themselves, and the deposit is meant to be released back to the tenant at the end of the tenancy unless there's a valid, evidenced reason (such as unpaid rent or damage beyond normal wear and tear) for withholding some or all of it.
What counts as normal wear and tear
Reasonable wear and tear from ordinary living is generally not a valid reason to withhold a deposit — minor scuffs, faded paint, or general aging of fixtures over the course of a tenancy are typically treated differently from actual damage, though there's no single universal checklist and disputes over this distinction are common.
What to do if a deposit is wrongly withheld
If a landlord withholds a deposit without what you consider valid justification, documenting the property's condition (ideally with dated photos from move-in and move-out) and raising a formal dispute through the RTB's dispute resolution service is the standard path, rather than simply accepting the landlord's decision or attempting to resolve it outside the formal process.
Key takeaways
Take dated photos of the property's condition at move-in and move-out, keep all tenancy paperwork, and use the RTB's dispute resolution service if a deposit is withheld without justification you accept.