Living City Initiative (LCI)

Commercial Relief

Commercial Relief is for individuals or companies who:

convert or refurbish a property in a Special Regeneration Area (SRA) during the qualifying period
and
use it as a shop, office or other premises for providing services in Ireland.

You may use the property in your own business or rent it to another business.

Conditions for Commercial Relief

To qualify, all of the following must apply:

The property must be in an SRA.
The property must be used for a retail business or for the provision of services.
You must use the property in your business or rent it to another business.
Conversion or refurbishment expenses must be above €5,000.

There is no age limit on the property.

There is no need for a Letter of Certification.

How to make a claim

Relief is claimed on the Revenue Online Service (ROS) using the Income Tax or Corporation Tax Return for the year in which the expenditure is incurred.

Rate of relief

Relief is given as capital allowances. If you rent the property, allowances are given against rental income. If you use the property in your business, allowances are given against trading income.

For qualifying expenditure:

before 2026:
- allowances are given over 7 years at:
  - 15% for 6 years
  - 10% in year 7.
- unused allowances may be carried forward against rental income for up to 7 years.
from 2026 onwards:
- allowances are given at 50% a year for two years
- unused allowances may be carried forward against rental income for up to 10 years.

Grants

You may be entitled to a grant towards the cost of refurbishing or converting the property. When calculating the amount of relief, you must subtract the amount of grant received, or receivable, from qualifying costs.

If making a claim for 2025 or earlier, you must reduce the qualifying costs by three times the amount of the grant.

Limits

This relief is subject to the passive investor restrictions and the high earner restrictions. It is also subject to the de minimis regulation. This means the maximum relief is capped at €300,000 in any three-year period. This limit includes any other aid (grants or tax relief) from de minimis sources.

Prior to 2026, Commercial Relief was limited to €200,000 per project. The relief was not available to property developers before 2026.