“Taking The Hassle Out of Building Your Castle”
The Home Renovation Incentive scheme allows both homeowners and landlords to claim tax relief on both renovations, repairs and/or home improvement work.
Time Scale: All work must be completed between the 25th October 2013 and 31st of December 2016 Homeowners) and between the 15th October 2014 and 31st of December 2016 (Landlords).
* If you employ a number of different contractors, such as a builder, a plasterer, plumber, painter etc. you can submit the combined costs of all the tradesmen to make up the minimum qualifying amount.
The type of work that qualifies for the HRI is repair, renovation or improvement work that is subject to VAT at 13.5%. This includes extensions, garages and attic conversions; the supply and fitting of kitchens, bathrooms and built-in wardrobes; fitting of windows; garden landscaping; plumbing, tiling, rewiring, plastering and painting.
If you are having your septic tank repaired or replaced, or are installing a radon gas mitigation solution, these types of work also qualify for the HRI. Work on driveways and on rainwater harvesting systems can also qualify.
Work that is subject to VAT at 23% (such as architect’s fees) is not covered. Neither are items such as furniture, white goods or carpets.
The value of the "Qualifying Work" (you must exclude the cost of Non-Qualifying Work from your application) must cost at least €4,405 before VAT at 13.5%, which adds to a total of €5,000 with VAT included. You will only get the tax credit in relation to a maximum of €30,000 (before VAT) during the 2 years covered by the HRI.
The minimum credit is €595, based on the minimum qualifying expenditure of €4,405. The maximum is €4,050, based on the maximum qualifying expenditure of €30,000.
If you are claiming a grant for the works, or if they are covered by an insurance claim, the amount of your expenditure that qualifies for HRI will be reduced - see Revenue’s FAQs for more details.
You can claim the HRI tax credit after the end of the tax year if your qualifying expenditure has reached the minimum amount of €4,405 before VAT (a total of €5,000) and you have paid income tax. Any unused tax credit can be rolled over into the following year.
In general, the tax credit is payable over the 2 years following the year in which the work is carried out and paid for .If you are on PAYE, your HRI tax credit will be divided evenly across your pay dates for each of the 2 years that it is payable. If you are a self-assessed taxpayer, it will be included in your self-assessment over 2 years, half the tax credit each year.
For homeowners, 2015 is the first year in which you can claim a HRI credit. The claim facility is available for homeowners on HRI online.
For landlords, 2016 will be the first year in which a HRI credit can be claimed. The claim facility on HRI online will be available for landlords from January 2016.
For you to be able to claim the HRI credit, your contractor(s) must enter details of the work on the HRI online administration system. This system is only accessible to contractors who are registered for VAT and are tax-compliant.
Revenue advises homeowners and landlords to log in to HRI online to check that that their contractors have correctly entered details of the works and payments.
You should also:
If you need to check whether your work qualifies for the HRI, use the Revenue Contact Locator to locate your Revenue office.