Chapter 2 of 10 · Schemes and grants · 9 of 14
The Help to Buy scheme in Ireland: up to €35,000 towards a new home
Checked 21 Oct 2026the Central Bank's mortgage measures, Revenue's rules and the scheme operators' published terms.
Help to Buy after Budget 2027: up to €35,000 for first-time buyers of new builds and self-builds. Eligibility, the 70% rule and how it's paid.
Check before you hire: a snag list should be on the register kept by the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland or Engineers Ireland. SCSI: find a chartered surveyor
Written in plain English for the person buying, selling or switching. This guide covers the Republic of Ireland only.
Help to Buy is a refund of tax you have already paid. Revenue gives it back to you to help with the deposit on a new home. It is for first-time buyers only, and only on a new build or a self-build.
This guide explains the whole scheme in plain words. The Help to Buy calculator works out your own figure.
A worked example first
Aoife and Tom are buying a new three-bed house for €400,000. Neither has owned a home before. Between them they paid €28,000 in income tax over the last four years.
Here is how the refund is worked out. It is the lowest of three figures:
- The cap: €30,000 (€35,000 announced for 2027, see below).
- 10% of the price: €40,000.
- The tax they paid over four years: €28,000.
The lowest figure is €28,000. That is their refund.
Their deposit is 10% of the price, so €40,000. Help to Buy covers €28,000 of it. They need €12,000 of their own savings for the rest. Their mortgage is €360,000, which is 90% of the price. That is well above the 70% minimum the scheme needs.
What Help to Buy is
Help to Buy is a scheme run by Revenue, the Irish tax office. It refunds income tax and DIRT (the tax taken from interest on your savings) that you paid over the last four tax years. The refund goes towards the deposit on a new home.
The scheme is in section 477C of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997. It runs to 31 December 2029.
The refund is not a loan. You do not pay interest on it. You only pay it back if you break the five-year rule, which this guide explains below.
How much you can get
The refund is the lowest of three figures:
| Figure | How it works |
|---|---|
| The cap | €30,000 for a home bought from 23 July 2020. €35,000 announced for 2027. |
| 10% of the price | 10% of the price you pay, or of the valuation on a self-build. |
| Tax paid | The income tax and DIRT you paid in the four tax years before you apply. |
The cap used to be €20,000. It rose to €30,000 on 23 July 2020.
Budget 2027 announced a rise to €35,000. Revenue's page gives 7 October 2026 as the start date, and the Budget 2027 documents say 2027. The rise is announced, not yet law. It becomes law when the Finance Act 2026 is signed. Until then, treat €35,000 as announced. The changes page tracks it.
The price of the home must be no more than €500,000. If the price is €500,001 or more, you get nothing at all. There is no partial refund above the cap.
Who qualifies
Every person on the application must be a first-time buyer. That means nobody on the application has ever owned or built a home, in Ireland or anywhere else. If one of a couple has owned a home before, the couple does not qualify.
You must also:
- Be buying a new build from a qualifying contractor, or building your own home.
- Live in the home as your main home once it is finished.
- Take a mortgage of at least 70% of the price (or the valuation on a self-build).
- Pay no more than €500,000 for the home.
- Have your tax affairs in order and be registered for Revenue's online services.
A qualifying contractor is a builder Revenue has approved for the scheme. Revenue publishes the list. Ask the builder before you pay a booking deposit. If the builder is not on the list, you cannot claim.
The 70% rule
Your mortgage must be at least 70% of the price. This is called the loan-to-value ratio: the loan as a share of the home's value.
Take a €400,000 home. 70% of that is €280,000. Your mortgage must be €280,000 or more. If you have a large deposit and only need €250,000, you do not qualify.
The rule is there so the refund goes to people who need a mortgage to buy. It is in the Tax and Duty Manual rather than on Revenue's summary page, so check it if your deposit is large.
How the money is paid
On a new build, Revenue pays the refund straight to the builder. It counts as part of your deposit. You never see the money yourself. The builder confirms the sale on Revenue's system and Revenue sends the payment.
On a self-build, Revenue pays the refund into your mortgage loan account. This happens at the first drawdown. The drawdown is the point when the lender pays out the first part of your loan. See the Help to Buy application guide for the steps.
The five-year rule
You must live in the home for five years from the date you move in. If you sell it, move out or let it to a tenant within that time, Revenue can claw back the refund. Claw back means take back.
The amount Revenue takes back depends on how many of the five years you lived there. The Help to Buy clawback guide sets out the sums.
How Help to Buy fits with your mortgage
Under the Central Bank's rules, a first-time buyer can borrow up to 4 times gross income and up to 90% of the price. Gross income is your pay before tax. The deposit is the other 10%.
Help to Buy counts towards the 10% deposit. Lenders accept it as part of your savings. On the €400,000 home above, the deposit is €40,000. Help to Buy can cover up to €30,000 of it (€35,000 announced), so the cash you need from savings falls.
Help to Buy does not raise the amount you can borrow. Your income still sets that limit. See the first-time buyer grants guide for the other schemes that can help.
Help to Buy with the First Home Scheme
You can use Help to Buy and the First Home Scheme together. The First Home Scheme takes a share of your home in return for money towards the price. With Help to Buy, that share is capped at 20% instead of 30%. The First Home Scheme and Help to Buy guide has the worked examples.
Self-builds
A self-build qualifies. The figure used is the valuation the lender approves, not the cost of the build. Revenue's refund goes into your loan account at the first drawdown.
The 70% rule applies to the valuation. The €500,000 cap applies to it too. If the valuation is above €500,000, there is no refund.
The snag list on a new build
Before you close on a new build, a snag list is worth having. A snag list is a report on the small faults in a new home: doors that stick, missing sealant, uneven tiles. A snag list surveyor, an engineer or building surveyor (Engineers Ireland or the SCSI), walks the home and lists them. The builder fixes them before you close. Help to Buy does not pay for this, but it protects the home you are putting the refund into.
What Help to Buy does not do
- It does not apply to second-hand homes.
- It does not apply to buy-to-let homes.
- It does not raise your borrowing limit.
- It does not change the stamp duty you pay: 1% on a new home, charged on the price without VAT.
- It does not cover a home over €500,000.
Dates to know
| Date | What happens |
|---|---|
| 23 July 2020 | The cap rose from €20,000 to €30,000. |
| 7 October 2026 | The date on Revenue's page for the rise to €35,000 (announced). |
| 1 January 2027 | The date in the Budget 2027 documents for the same rise (announced). |
| 31 December 2029 | The scheme ends, unless extended. |
Where this leaves you
Check your own figure on the Help to Buy calculator: your price, your tax paid and the cap. Then follow the first-time buyer journey for the steps that come next. When you are close to closing on a new build, get quotes for a snag list.
Questions people ask
How much is Help to Buy in Ireland?
The refund is the lowest of three figures: a cap, 10% of the price, and the income tax and DIRT you paid in the last four years. The cap is €30,000. Budget 2027 announced a rise to €35,000, and Revenue's page gives 7 October 2026 as the start date. That rise is not law until the Finance Act 2026 is signed.
Can I get Help to Buy on a second-hand house?
No. Help to Buy is only for a new build bought from a qualifying contractor, or a home you build yourself. A second-hand home does not qualify, even if it has been renovated.
Do I have to pay Help to Buy back?
Not if you live in the home for five years. If you sell, move out or let it within five years, Revenue can claw back some or all of the refund. The amount depends on how long you lived there.
Does Help to Buy count as my deposit?
Yes. The refund is paid to the builder as part of your deposit, so it reduces the cash you need to find. Lenders count it towards the 10% deposit the Central Bank rules require.
What is the 70% rule for Help to Buy?
Your mortgage must be at least 70% of the price of the home, or of the valuation on a self-build. If you borrow less than that, you do not qualify. The rule is there so the scheme helps people who need a mortgage.