Dáil Debates Reporting Requirements for Seven-Year Short-Term Letting Planning Exemption

Opposition TDs have sought formal reporting on short-term letting operators using a proposed seven-year planning exemption during Dáil debates on tourism legislation.

During Committee Stage of the Short-Term Letting and Tourism Bill 2026, Deputy Rose Conway-Walsh brought forward an amendment requiring the Minister to lay a report before both Houses of the Oireachtas within six months of the enactment of the Bill. The report would detail the number of properties registered with Fáilte Ireland that avail of the seven-year grandfather clause set out in section 5.1 of the Planning Policy Statement on Short-Term Lettings.

Deputy Conway-Walsh stated that the reporting mechanism is intended to establish how many properties benefit from the provision and assess its impact on residential housing supply. She highlighted the need to determine whether the planning measures distinguish between large-scale commercial operators and small, family-run rural tourism businesses.

Speaking on the amendment, Deputy Eoin Ó Broin raised concerns regarding the potential scope of the grandfather clause. Citing analysis by Indecon for the Housing Agency, Deputy Ó Broin noted that approximately 70% of operators currently listed on Airbnb in the State have traded on the platform for seven years or more.

Deputy Ó Broin warned that an overarching presumption to grant permission—save for limited exceptions such as significant road traffic hazards, serious flood risks, or existing enforcement actions within rent pressure zones—could allow an overwhelming majority of existing short-term lets to regularise their planning status rather than returning to long-term residential supply.