When can I be considered homeless?
To be considered homeless under Irish law, your local authority must be satisfied:
- there is no accommodation which, in the opinion of the local authority, you could reasonably occupy, together with anyone you normally reside with (for example, your spouse or partner and children); and
- you are, in the opinion of the local authority, unable to provide accommodation from your own resources.
If you are living in a hospital, a night shelter or other such institution because you have no accommodation, and you are unable to provide accommodation from your own resources, the local authority may also consider you homeless.
The local authority can consider you homeless if you are ‘couch-surfing’ or in another unstable living situation. ‘Couch-surfing’ means living short-term with friends, relatives or even strangers, perhaps on a couch or on some other make-shift bed.
What is emergency accommodation and how is it accessed?
You can go to your local authority and ask them to do a homelessness assessment.
If the local authority assesses you as homeless, you can ask for emergency accommodation support from the local authority. The local authority may offer you emergency accommodation, which can include:
- B&B
- hostel
- family hub accommodation – family hubs are accommodation centres where additional supports for families are often provided, such as support workers or play areas for children..
Alternatively, they might offer to pay for accommodation if you can find it yourself.
You may have difficulty getting a homelessness assessment carried out by your local authority. Sometimes the local authority may have assessed you as homeless but have not given you suitable emergency accommodation. If either of these are true, there are a range of support organisations you can contact. You can find a list of relevant organisations here:
Do I have any other rights if I am homeless?
If you are homeless, you might be able to avail of homeless HAP scheme, also known as the Placefinder Service. The Homeless HAP scheme gives more support to tenants in the form of deposits and upfront rent payments to help homeless households. You might also be able to get ‘homeless priority’ on your local authority social housing waiting list, if this applies in your area. This means that you would move up the waiting list and may get housing sooner. You should contact your local authority for information.
Eviction from social housing
I am a local authority tenant and think I might be evicted – what should I do?
A local authority must follow the correct procedures to legally evict you. There is a ‘tenancy warning’ system where a local authority must write to the tenant if they feel they are breaking their tenancy agreement. This could be because of anti-social behaviour or rent arrears.
A tenant is entitled to an independent review of a decision to grant a tenancy warning. Normally the local authority will not attempt to evict you unless you breach an earlier tenancy warning. However, in cases of severe anti-social behaviour an authority may proceed straight to eviction. This generally requires the local authority to make an application to the District Court.
The eviction process is complicated and you should seek independent legal advice as soon as possible. You should contact your local Legal Aid Board office who may be able to provide free legal assistance if you have an issue with your mental or physical capacity due to old age or other circumstances or if you have been subjected to duress or fraud:
- (https://www.legalaidboard.ie/en/contact-us/find-a-law-centre/) or Citizens Information Centre
- (https://centres.citizensinformation.ie/).
Sometimes people might live in local authority housing but are not an official tenant. For example, if a person lives with a partner or family member but is not a named tenant on the lease, they are not an official tenant. People in this situation are in a risky position. Depending on the specific circumstances, they might not be able to use eviction protections under the Housing Act 2014, or to apply for other processes like succession, where property rights transfer from one person to another.
You are more likely to be evicted if you are living in the property without the permission of the local authority and are not being assessed for rent. If you are in this situation, it is important to get advice immediately.
I am an Approved Housing Body tenant or Housing Assistance Payment tenant and think I might be evicted – what should I do?
If you are in an Approved Housing Body (AHB) or Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) tenancy, and you are being evicted, the Residential Tenancies Acts explains how this must be handled. If you have been in the tenancy for less than 6 months and your landlord wants to evict you, a reason usually does not have to be given. However, your landlord must give you 90 days notice, meaning they must inform you 90 days before the date that you must leave the property.
If you have been a tenant for more than 6 months and have not been served a notice of eviction, you gain ‘security’ and can stay in the property for another 5 and a half years. Once you have gained security, you can only be evicted for specific reasons. These reasons include: breach of obligations, rent arrears, your landlord intends to sell the property, the dwelling is no longer suitable for your needs, the property is needed for the landlord or a family member’s use, refurbishment of the property is needed, or the landlord intends to change the use of the dwelling. The number of days notice that your landlord must give you can be found here.
For more information on eviction procedures see:
While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of this information, it is provided for general legal information only. It is not a substitute for legal advice. MLRC does not accept any legal liability for the contents of these Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs). People with specific legal problems should consult a solicitor.
