Michael Healy-Rae (Kerry South, Independent)
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844. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government further to Parliamentary Question No. 576 of 8 December 2015, if he will clarify a matter on behalf of a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46588/15]

Paudie Coffey (Waterford, Fine Gael)
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The Residential Tenancies Act 2004 applies to every dwelling that is the subject of a tenancy, subject to a limited number of exceptions. The dwellings to which the Act does not apply are set out in section 3(2) of the Act, and include for example:

- a dwelling that is used wholly or partly for the purpose of carrying on a business;

- a dwelling within which the landlord also resides;

- a dwelling the subject of a tenancy the term of which is over 35 years.

Where a dwelling is occupied by a person under a tenancy to which the Act does not apply or under an arrangement or agreement which is not a tenancy , such as instances where a bona fide licensing arrangement exists, the PRTB does not have any function in relation to such agreements or arrangements.

Licences are not granted to landlords. A licence, in this context, is a private contractual matter between the parties concerned. In circumstances where it is unclear as to whether a particular rental agreement is a tenancy or a licence, the PRTB can adjudicate on the question and has done so in the past. Where it finds that a tenancy is unregistered due to the landlord’s wrongful claim of licence , the PRTB can serve a notice requiring registration and failure to comply is an offence.

The question of whether a particular rental agreement is a tenancy or a licence is independent of the type or nature of the development. It is not the case, for example, that owners of multi-unit developments are automatically exempt from PRTB regulations. Where the owner of a dwelling in a multi-unit development enters into an agreement with a person for the occupation of that dwelling , it is a private contractual matter between the parties as to whether that agreement is a licence or a tenancy. If the agreement entered into is a tenancy agreement, then the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 applies to that agreement, unless it falls into one of the exemptions set out in section 3 of the Act. Where the agreement entered into between the parties is a licence agreement, the Act does not apply.