Master checklist: college accommodation in Ireland

Figures are the latest officially published (2026/27) unless a date says otherwise. 2027/28 figures are not yet published. Budget 2027 is announced on Tuesday 6 October 2026 (Citizens Information); every national figure here is pre-Budget and must be rechecked after it. Detail and sources for each group are in files 02 to 08.

1. Timeline: CAO versus housing offers

• CAO opens 5 November 2026 (noon). Normal closing date 1 February 2027 (5pm). Discounted fee EUR 35 before 5pm on 20 January 2027; normal fee EUR 50. (CAO 2027 dates sheet)
• HEAR/DARE forms close 1 March 2027 (5pm); supporting documents to CAO by 10 March 2027 (5pm).
• Change of Mind opens 5 May 2027 and closes 1 July 2027 (5pm).
• Round A offers: "early July" 2027. Round 0: "early August" 2027. Round One has no date on the CAO 2027 dates sheet yet (it follows Leaving Cert results).
• Housing has to be decided before CAO offers are known. Check each college's own housing application dates (published per college; see campus guides).
• Late CAO applications (2026 cycle: EUR 65, 5 March to 1 May 2026) cannot be considered for HEAR, DARE or mature-student assessment. 2027 late-application dates are not on the 2027 dates sheet.
• SUSI 2026/27 opened 1 April 2026. 2027/28 dates not yet published. Applicants do not need Leaving Cert results or to have accepted a course to apply (SUSI).

2. Costs and budgeting

• Student contribution 2026/27: EUR 2,500 (permanent EUR 500 cut from EUR 3,000, Budget 2026; gov.ie). SUSI fee grant pays it for eligible students; SUSI also pays a EUR 500 student-contribution grant where household income is up to EUR 120,000 (fewer than 4 dependants; EUR 131,520 for 4-7; EUR 142,570 for 8+). 2027/28 amount not published.
• Private rent benchmark: RTB Rent Index Q1 2026 - national average for new tenancies EUR 1,839 a month; Dublin EUR 2,335, Cork EUR 1,678, Galway EUR 1,718, Limerick EUR 1,744. These are averages for whole tenancies, not room rates.
• Upfront cost: deposit up to 1 month's rent plus up to 1 month's rent in advance.
• Bills: electricity, gas, heating, broadband, TV licence (EUR 160 a year per premises).
• Travel: Young Adult / Student Leap Card (50% off).
• College-specific room prices: see campus guides.

3. Types of accommodation

• On-campus / college-owned: student-specific accommodation (SSA); RTB covers SSA tenancies and licences and the landlord must register them.
• Purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA): SSA, under RTB rules.
• Private rental (flat or house share): normal residential tenancy, but if it is used only for students during the academic year it may be SSA.
• Digs / Rent-a-Room: live-in landlord, a licence, outside RTB. Voluntary government framework and sample licence exist.
• Family home / commuting: SUSI adjacency decides the rate: adjacent when the college is "less than 30km" from your normal residence, non-adjacent at "30km or more" (SUSI).

4. Licence versus tenancy

• Tenancy: RTB registration, rent book, minimum standards, RTB disputes.
• Licence in a home shared with the owner: no RTB, no minimum standards, landlord may end it with reasonable notice; Small Claims Court is the route for money disputes.
• SSA: covered by the RTB, but tenants in SSA have no security of tenure.

5. RTB and tenancy rules

• Deposit: maximum 1 month's rent.
• Advance rent: maximum 1 month (SSA exception: student voluntarily pays tuition and rent to the same provider).
• Get a signed, dated receipt for the deposit.
• Check the RTB register: tenancy must be registered within one month of start; registration fee EUR 40 a year for private/SSA.
• SSA agreements should not exceed 41 weeks unless the student asks.
• Students in fixed-term SSA can leave between 1 May and 1 October for any reason with 28 days' written notice; 28 days' notice in SSA in general.
• No subletting or assignment in SSA.
• Rent increases (national system replacing Rent Pressure Zones from 1 March 2026): once a year, by 2% or inflation, whichever is lower. New apartments/SSA with construction commenced from 10 June 2025: CPI, no 2% cap. SSA landlords cannot reset to market rent before 1 March 2029 (then once every 3 years).
• Minimum standards (Housing (Standards for Rented Houses) Regulations 2019): heating, ventilation, fire blanket and alarm, carbon monoxide alarm.
• Disputes: self-resolution, free phone mediation, adjudication (EUR 30), tribunal. RTB 0818 303 037.
• New private tenancies from 1 March 2026 become Tenancies of Minimum Duration (6 years) after 6 months without a valid termination notice. Security of tenure does not apply in SSA (Citizens Information).

6. Scams and fake listings

• View in person before paying; never pay cash, crypto, gift cards or by direct transfer to strangers.
• Check RTB registration and compare rent with the RTB rent index.
• Check letting agents on the PSRA register (psr.ie).
• Garda: annual spike August to October; about one third of reports fall in August-September. If caught, contact your bank and your local Garda station.
• Threshold Scamwatch helpline 1800 454 454.

7. Grants and financial supports

• SUSI: apply early on susi.ie; rates in file 03.
• Adjacent rate if college is less than 30km from normal residence; non-adjacent 30km or more (SUSI's wording; Citizens Information says "30 kilometres or less" for adjacent).
• SUSI defines normal residence as your parents' permanent or home address (dependent students) or your own permanent or home address (independent students); its page does not mention term-time rentals. Distance can change if: changed permanent residence, compulsory placement of at least a semester, compulsory study abroad up to one year.
• Student Assistance Fund (HEA; apply via your college access or student services office): books and class materials, rent and other utility bills, food, essential travel, childcare, medical costs. Not tuition, registration fees or loan repayments.
• Rent Tax Credit: up to EUR 1,000 single / EUR 2,000 jointly assessed per year, tax years 2022-2028 (EUR 500 / EUR 1,000 for 2022-2023). A parent can claim for a child's rent on an approved course (child under 23 at the start of the tax year they first began one); rent-a-room/digs now qualifies.
• Student Accommodation Assistance (Department of Further and Higher Education): up to EUR 6,000 per academic year (EUR 3,000 for a single semester) toward rent for Irish Traveller, Roma and care-experienced students living independently; apply through the college access or student support office. gov.ie page shows 2025/26; 2026/27 details not seen.
• Bursary for Care Experienced Young People, 1916 Bursary Fund, Back to Education Allowance.

8. HEAR / DARE and disability

• DARE and HEAR give reduced-points places. Citizens Information: DARE "does not directly provide" accommodation; the HEAR page does not mention accommodation.
• Register early with the college disability service; ask the accommodation office about adapted rooms.
• Fund for Students with Disabilities does not cover student accommodation.

9. International, EU and non-EU students

• Non-EEA: first-time registration through ISD (Registration Office, 13-14 Burgh Quay, Dublin 2, nationwide since 13 January 2025) if staying more than 90 days; EUR 300 fee; private medical insurance; proof of funds EUR 10,000 (one-year course) or EUR 833 a month for 6-8 month courses; Stamp 2: 20 hours a week in term, 40 in vacation periods.
• ISD registration applies to non-EU/EEA/UK/Swiss nationals staying over 90 days. SUSI residency requirement: 3 of the last 5 years in the State/EU/EEA/UK/Switzerland.
• Guarantors: no official source sets a rule or states how common they are; ask the landlord or college in writing. The deposit and advance-rent caps still apply.

10. Mature, postgraduate, parents

• Mature student = at least 23 on 1 January of year of first entry. Living independently can mean independent assessment by SUSI.
• Postgraduate Fee Contribution grant up to EUR 4,500 for 2026/27.

11. Safety

• Check smoke and CO alarms, fire blanket, window restrictors. Report faults to the landlord, then the local authority.

12. Utilities and bills

• TV licence: EUR 160, one per premises; each apartment needs its own.
• Utilities: confirm in the contract whether bills are included.

13. Transport

• Young Adult Leap Card (19-25) and Student Leap Card (full-time students 16-18 or 26+): 50% off TFI services and accepted for student fares at Irish Rail.
• EUR 5 refundable deposit plus EUR 5 minimum credit; allow up to 5 working days.

14. Erasmus and placement

• SUSI may change the distance calculation for compulsory placements of one semester or more and compulsory study abroad up to one year; documents may be requested.

15. Emergency help

• Threshold 1800 454 454.
• College accommodation/welfare office and students' union.
• Focus Ireland Extension Service (ages 18-26): 01 881 5900, [email protected].
• Your students' union.

16. Complaints

• RTB dispute resolution; report an unregistered landlord or breach on rtb.ie.
• PSRA for letting agents (freephone 1800 252 712).
• Small Claims Court for digs deposit disputes.

17. Government schemes and Budget changes

• National Student Accommodation Strategy (gov.ie): 42,000 student beds by 2035; existing deficit of 15,000 beds.
• Budget 2026 changes: student contribution cut to EUR 2,500; SUSI non-adjacent increases; Postgraduate Fee Contribution EUR 4,500.
• Budget 2027: Tuesday 6 October 2026 (Citizens Information). Check after the announcement.

Official sources

See the sources list in each of files 02 to 08 and the item-by-item table in file 09.