Chapter 10 of 10 · Boundary and reference · 1 of 1
Commercial tenancies are not covered here
Shops, offices and farms are under different Acts. The five-year question explained in two paragraphs, and where to go.
Checked 27 OCT 2026 · 3 sourcesWritten in plain English for the person paying the rent. This guide covers the Republic of Ireland only.
TenantWise covers homes. Everything on this site is about the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 as amended, which applies to a dwelling let as a home: a private tenancy, an Approved Housing Body tenancy, cost rental or student-specific accommodation. If you rent a shop, an office, a warehouse, an industrial unit or farmland, none of it applies to you, and nothing on this site should be read as if it did.
Business premises come under a different statute, the Landlord and Tenant (Amendment) Act 1980, and the disputes go to the courts, not the RTB. The rent cap, the notice periods, the deposit cap, the minimum standards and the RTB dispute process on this site are residential rules only.
This page says that plainly, answers the one commercial question people arrive here with, and says where to go instead.
What is and is not covered
| Letting | Act | Where disputes go |
|---|---|---|
| A house, flat or room let as a home | Residential Tenancies Act 2004 | The RTB |
| A shop, office, unit or warehouse | Landlord and Tenant (Amendment) Act 1980 | The courts |
| Farmland or a farm with a dwelling let for the farm | The 1980 Act and the general law of leases | The courts |
| A home let together with a business, where the business rules could apply | Outside the Residential Tenancies Act | A solicitor reads the lease |
The last row is the one that causes confusion. A flat above a shop let on one lease with the shop, or a pub with living quarters, may be outside the Residential Tenancies Act altogether. Section 3 of that Act excludes a dwelling where the business tenancy rules could apply. A flat above a shop let on its own lease is an ordinary home and this site covers it. The tenancy timeline works for the second case and not the first.
The five-year question, in two paragraphs
The search people type is "commercial tenants rights ireland after 5 years". The answer is the business equity in Part II of the 1980 Act. A tenant of business premises who has been in continuous occupation for five years, using them for business, may be entitled to a new tenancy when the current one ends. The landlord can resist on limited grounds, such as a genuine intention to demolish or redevelop, and the tenant may be entitled to compensation where the landlord does. If the parties cannot agree the terms of the new tenancy, including the rent, the Circuit Court can fix them. That is a strong right, and it is the reason commercial landlords watch the five-year mark.
It is also a right the tenant can give up, which is why most modern commercial leases contain a renunciation. The law has allowed a business tenant to renounce the right to a new tenancy in writing, after receiving independent legal advice, for many years now, and a signed renunciation is effective. Whether you have one, whether it was properly executed, and whether your occupation has been continuous are questions a solicitor answers from the lease and the file. This site cannot, and it does not try.
Where to go
The Law Society of Ireland's find a solicitor service lists every practising solicitor in the State by location and practice area. Search for commercial property or landlord and tenant. For a lease dispute of any size, that is the first step, because a renunciation, a rent review clause or a break clause turns on the words of your own lease. Bring the lease, any side letters, the rent history and the correspondence.
If your business is small, the Local Enterprise Office in your county may be able to point you to a first consultation. Citizens Information covers business leases only in outline. The RTB will tell you, correctly, that it cannot help.
Our solicitor page is for residential matters and the enquiry form on it is not for commercial leases. If you rent a home as well as a business premises, the home is covered here and the guides index is the place to start.
Where this leaves you
If what you rent is a shop, an office, a unit or a farm, the Residential Tenancies Act does not apply, the RTB has no role, and nothing on this site is written for you. Your rights after five years come from the 1980 Act's business equity, which most leases now ask tenants to renounce, and whether yours did is a question for a solicitor with the lease in hand. Use the Law Society's find-a-solicitor service and go with the documents. If what you rent is a home, including a flat above a shop on its own lease, you are in the right place; start with the tenancy timeline.
Questions people ask
Do commercial tenants have rights after 5 years in Ireland?
Under the Landlord and Tenant (Amendment) Act 1980 a business tenant who has been in continuous occupation for five years may be entitled to a new tenancy when the lease ends, unless they signed a renunciation of that right. Most modern commercial leases include one. The terms of a new tenancy, including rent, can be fixed by the Circuit Court if the parties do not agree. This site does not cover it; a solicitor does.
Does the RTB deal with commercial leases?
No. The RTB deals only with residential tenancies under the Residential Tenancies Act 2004. A shop, an office, a warehouse, a unit or a farm letting is outside its remit entirely. Disputes about a commercial lease go to the courts, and the Law Society's find-a-solicitor service lists solicitors who take them.
Is there a rent cap on commercial rent increases?
No. The 2% or CPI cap applies to residential tenancies only. Commercial rent is whatever the lease says, with rent reviews on the terms the lease sets, and since 2010 an upward-only review clause cannot be written into a new lease. A dispute about a review is for the lease's own mechanism or the courts.
I live above my shop. Which Act covers me?
It depends on the lease and on whether the business tenancy rules could apply to the whole premises. Where they could, the Residential Tenancies Act does not apply to the living part either. This is one of the questions a solicitor needs to read the lease to answer.