Tenancy Inventory and Condition Report Ireland (Check-in and Check-out)

In practice, the report is a schedule attached to a tenancy that lists each room, the fixtures and furniture in it, and a short verdict on their condition, backed by numbered photographs. At check-in it fixes the baseline: the scratch on the worktop, the stained carpet, the blind that sticks. At check-out the same headings are filled in again, and the difference between the two versions is what any deduction for damage turns on. Nothing in the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 obliges either side to prepare one. Its value is evidential. Before the Residential Tenancies Board, a signed record made on the day outweighs two conflicting recollections a year later.

The report is not the tenancy agreement and does not change it. The lease or written agreement sets the rent, the term and the obligations; the inventory records facts about the property at two moments in time. It therefore sits alongside the other Irish tenancy and property templates, from the agreement itself to the notices served during the tenancy.

Two sections of the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 do most of the work. Under section 12(1)(d), the landlord must return or repay the deposit promptly, subject to section 12(4), which allows the landlord to keep the part that covers rent, or other charges or taxes payable under the tenancy agreement, in arrears at the date the tenant asks for the deposit back, and the reasonable cost of restoring the dwelling where the tenant has caused a deterioration. That second limb points to section 16(f): the tenant must not do any act that would cause a deterioration in the condition the dwelling was in at the commencement of the tenancy, disregarding normal wear and tear. The Act measures wear and tear by the time that has passed since the tenancy began, the extent of occupation the landlord must reasonably have foreseen, and any other relevant matters.

The landlord carries the mirror obligation in section 12(1)(b): repairs and replacement of fittings needed to keep the interior in at least its starting condition, except where the tenant caused the damage. Deposits themselves are capped at one month's rent for tenancies created since August 2021 (section 19B). The deposit protection scheme that the Residential Tenancies (Amendment) Act 2015 wrote into the Act has not been commenced, so the landlord or the agent holds the money. Disputes about "the retention or refund of a deposit" go to the RTB under section 78(1)(a). The RTB's guidance on normal wear and tear and deposit deductions recommends date-stamped photographs and an inventory signed and dated by both parties, and warns that a landlord cannot charge the full replacement cost of an item that was already significantly worn.

The first use is on the day the keys change hands. A landlord letting a furnished apartment in Dublin or a family home outside Cork should walk through every room with the incoming tenant, fill in the report and sign it there and then, because any defect left off the list becomes harder to prove later. When the landlord is a company, the person who attends signs for it and should hold that authority under the company's constitution; our documents for Irish limited companies include one.

When the tenancy ends, the report records what is returned (keys, fobs, furniture), the final MPRN reading, the gas or heating oil level, and any item the landlord says goes beyond normal wear and tear, with the tenant's position next to it. Joint tenancies add a wrinkle. If only one of three housemates turns up, the report says so, names who attended, and gives the others seven days to comment; no deduction is agreed on the spot. A tenant who has moved abroad is recorded as absent, even if a parent walks round with the landlord. If that tenant wants someone to act more widely while away, a written authority from our personal legal documents for Ireland is the cleaner route.

Each version opens with the parties, the dwelling with its Eircode and furnishing, the tenancy start date and the amount of the deposit, followed by a short purpose clause stating that the report is not legally required and is not an admission of liability. The inspection clause records who was present, how an absent tenant was told about the visit, and the method used.

• Up to ten rooms or areas, each with its contents, a Good, Fair or Poor rating and observations wherever the rating is not Good, so the garden, shed or parking space can be listed as well.
• Meter readings come with the MPRN and, where relevant, the GPRN or the oil tank level.
• At check-in, any repair the landlord promises is written down with a deadline and is not treated as damage caused by the tenant.
• Deductions are framed by section 12(4): normal wear and tear is excluded, age is taken into account, and unless an amount was agreed in the report, the landlord gives a written statement with evidence before keeping anything.
• Smoke, heat and carbon monoxide alarms are tested and noted.

At check-out, a final clause records the outcome for the deposit: full return, an agreed amount for listed items only, or nothing agreed yet. The signature block distinguishes a party who attended from a tenant who signs only to confirm receipt.

You start by choosing whether this is a check-in or a check-out report and entering the date of the inspection. The questionnaire then asks for the landlord's name and address, whether the landlord attended in person or through an agent or other representative, and the names of every tenant. A short step asks whether all, some or none of the tenants attended, and if anyone was missing, how and when they were told about the visit. The preview on the right changes as you answer.

Next come the dwelling, the furnishing and the deposit, then the questions that only apply to one moment: repairs promised at check-in, or the end date, forwarding address and earlier check-in report at check-out. You choose how many rooms to record and describe each one in turn. Keys, the MPRN reading and the alarms follow, then the items raised by the landlord, the tenant's position and the outcome for the deposit. Use "Next" and "Back" to move between steps and "Finish" when the preview reads correctly; the inventory and condition report is then ready to download, print and sign. Other documents for Irish landlords, employers and families are listed on the Captain.Legal Ireland homepage.

The usual failure is vagueness. "Living room: good condition" proves nothing eighteen months later, while "grey three-seater sofa, small tear on the left arm, photo 9" settles the point in seconds. Unshared photographs are almost as weak, since the tenant can claim they were taken later; send them on the day and say how in the report. Landlords also forget the meters, then argue over a final electricity bill that one MPRN reading would have settled. Another mistake is holding the check-out without inviting the tenant. The report can still go ahead, but invite the tenant in writing and keep a copy of that invitation, since an adjudicator is likely to ask whether the tenant had a fair chance to attend.

At the deposit stage, the errors are about money. Charging for a new carpet when the old one was eight years old ignores its age, which the RTB's guidance does not accept for an item already significantly worn. Deducting for faded paint or worn flooring after a long tenancy charges the tenant for normal wear and tear, which the Act excludes. Agreeing a deduction with one joint tenant while the others are absent invites a dispute from the rest. Finally, never let the check-out start without the check-in report to hand; without it, the landlord has to prove the starting condition some other way.