Chapter 7 of 10 · The RTB process · 1 of 8
Appealing to an RTB tribunal within 10 working days
The deadline, the fee, the new evidence rule, the three-person panel and the published report.
Checked 27 OCT 2026 · 4 sourcesPublic hearings. Since 14 September 2026 adjudication hearings are public and the published report names both parties and the address. Mediation stays private. Choose between them knowing that.
Written in plain English for the person paying the rent. This guide covers the Republic of Ireland only.
Either party to an RTB adjudication can appeal the adjudicator's report to a tribunal, within 10 working days of the report issuing. The fee is €85. An appeal from a mediation outcome is also possible within 10 working days, for €30. The tribunal is three members, it hears the case afresh, and its report is published.
The deadline is the whole story for many tenants. Ten working days is two calendar weeks with no public holiday in them, and the RTB does not extend it. Count the days on the day the report arrives, and put the last day in your tenancy file.
Ring Threshold on 1800 454 454, Monday to Friday 9am to 9pm, before you decide to appeal and as soon as you learn the landlord has. The advisers will read the adjudicator's report with you and say whether a fresh hearing is likely to change anything. You do not need a solicitor; the tribunal, like the rest of the RTB process, is built for self-representation.
The deadline
The 10 working days run from the date the adjudication report, or the mediation outcome, is issued to you. Working days exclude Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays. A report issued on a Monday gives you until the Friday of the following week, unless a bank holiday falls in between, which adds a day.
The appeal is lodged online through the RTB's dispute service, in the same account you used for the application, and the fee is paid at the same time. Lodge it with the grounds in a sentence or two if you are short of time; the evidence and the full account can follow by the date the RTB sets. A late appeal is not accepted, the determination order issues on the adjudicator's decision, and the only remaining question is enforcement.
If you are the respondent and the landlord has appealed, you do not pay a fee and you do not need to lodge anything to take part. You will receive a notice of the appeal, the landlord's grounds, and in due course the hearing date and their evidence.
The fee
| Appeal from | Fee |
|---|---|
| A mediation outcome | €30 |
| An adjudication report | €85 |
| Responding to the other party's appeal | No fee |
The tribunal can direct one party to pay a sum towards the other's costs, but that is unusual, and you should not count on recovering the fee. Treat it as the price of a second hearing, and weigh it against what a different outcome would be worth.
Whether to appeal
A tribunal is a fresh hearing. It does not ask whether the adjudicator was wrong; it decides the dispute again on the evidence before it, which can include evidence the adjudicator never saw. That cuts both ways. An award can go up, and it can go down, and the other party can appeal in the same window whatever you decide.
An appeal is worth considering where the report misread a document or a date you can prove, or where a witness who missed the adjudication can attend the tribunal. It is also worth considering where a document you did not have at the time has since turned up, or where the sum justifies another three months. The RTB Annual Report 2024 puts the average tribunal at about 15 weeks.
An appeal is less likely to help where you would put the same bundle in front of three people instead of one and hope for a different reading. If the adjudicator's findings on the facts match your own documents and the law was applied as the Act sets it out, the second hearing is likely to reach the same place. Threshold will say so if that is the position.
The new evidence rule
Because the hearing is fresh, you can rely on evidence the adjudicator did not see. The rule is that it goes to the RTB by the date in the tribunal notice, and the RTB copies it to the other party, who can respond. Evidence produced on the day may be refused, or the hearing may be adjourned, which adds weeks and gives the other side time to answer it.
Send the whole bundle again, not only the new material, so the tribunal has one set of documents in one order. Number and name each file by date and content, and update the one-page statement that tells the story. RTB evidence: what to bring sets out the order and what to leave out.
Read the other party's bundle as carefully as your own, and expect new material from them too. A landlord who lost at adjudication often arrives at the tribunal with the inventory, the photographs or the invoices they did not produce the first time.
The hearing
The tribunal notice gives you at least 10 working days' notice of the hearing. The tribunal is three members of the RTB's dispute resolution panel, one chairing, and the hearing is public. Each side sets out its case, the members ask questions, witnesses can be called, and the other side can question them. Hearings are more formal than adjudication but still designed for people without a lawyer, and the chair will explain each step.
Bring two printed copies of the bundle, or have the files open and named for a video hearing. Have your dates ready. Answer the question asked, and say so when you do not know rather than guess.
The tribunal's determination follows in writing some weeks later, with its findings and its reasons. The RTB issues a determination order on it, and the report is published with the parties named and the address, as tribunal reports have been for years.
After the tribunal
The determination order on a tribunal decision is final, with one exception: an appeal to the High Court on a point of law only, within 21 days under s.123. A point of law means the tribunal applied the Act wrongly, not that it believed the wrong witness, and a solicitor is needed for it in practice. The solicitor page explains the cost.
If the landlord does not comply with the order, the RTB can enforce it in the District Court in its own name. Determination orders and enforcement covers that step. If the order is against you and you cannot pay by the date, contact the RTB and the landlord before the date with a proposal in writing, and ring MABS on 0818 07 2000.
Keep paying rent throughout. A tribunal does not pause the tenancy, and arrears during an appeal are a new ground the landlord did not have.
Where this leaves you
An appeal to a tribunal must be lodged within 10 working days of the adjudication report, for €85, or of a mediation outcome, for €30. The tribunal is three members, hears the case afresh in public, can take new evidence sent in advance, and can move the award in either direction. Appeal where a document, a witness or a date would change the picture, not for a second reading of the same bundle. Count the days on the day the report arrives, put the last day in your tenancy file, and ring Threshold on 1800 454 454 before you decide. RTB fees and time limits lists every window in one place.
Questions people ask
How long do I have to appeal an RTB adjudication?
10 working days from the date the adjudication report issues to you. Working days exclude Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays. The same 10 working days apply to an appeal from a mediation outcome. A late appeal is not accepted and the determination order issues on the original decision.
How much does an RTB tribunal cost?
€30 where the case came from mediation and €85 where it came from adjudication, paid when you lodge the appeal. There is no fee to respond to the other party's appeal. A tribunal can direct one party to pay towards the other's costs, but that is unusual.
Can I bring new evidence to a tribunal?
Yes. A tribunal is a fresh hearing, not a review, and you can rely on evidence that was not before the adjudicator. It must be sent to the RTB by the date in the tribunal notice so the other party can see it and respond. Evidence produced on the day may be refused.
Who sits on an RTB tribunal?
Three members of the RTB's dispute resolution panel, one of whom chairs. They hear both parties and any witnesses, read the evidence, and issue a written determination. The RTB then issues a determination order on it, and the report is published.
Can the landlord appeal if I won at adjudication?
Yes. Either party can appeal within the same 10 working days, and a landlord ordered to pay often does. You will receive notice of the appeal, the hearing date and the landlord's evidence. The tribunal hears everything again and can increase, reduce or confirm the award.
What comes after a tribunal?
The RTB issues a determination order on the tribunal's decision. The only further appeal is to the High Court on a point of law, within 21 days. The order is otherwise final and is enforced in the District Court if it is ignored.