Buying a home in Dublin: Help to Buy and stamp duty

Buying in Dublin is less about finding the money for stamp duty and more about how much the Central Bank lets your lender lend you.

The short version

Central Bank rules cap most mortgages at 4 times gross income for first-time buyers and 3.5 times for everyone else, with a minimum 10% deposit [1].
Help to Buy refunds Irish income tax to first-time buyers of new homes: up to €35,000 (about £29,200) for applications from 7 October 2026 to the end of 2029 [2][3].
The First Home scheme can fund up to 30% of a new home's price in exchange for a state equity stake, or 20% if you also use Help to Buy [4].
Stamp duty on homes is 1% up to €1 million, 2% up to €1.5 million and 6% above that, with no extra charge for foreign buyers [5].
If you've ever owned a home anywhere, including the UK, you're not a first-time buyer for Help to Buy [3].

Pound conversions use the Bank of England spot rate of 5 November 2026 (£1 = EUR 1.20).

How much can you borrow? The Central Bank rules

Back home in Blighty, lenders run their own affordability tests. In Ireland, the Central Bank of Ireland sets hard limits for every lender [1].

Buyer	Maximum loan-to-income	Minimum deposit
First-time buyer	4 × gross income	10%
Second and subsequent buyer	3.5 × gross income	10%
Buy-to-let	No income limit	30%

Source: Central Bank of Ireland mortgage measures [1].

Lenders can go above these limits for a slice of their lending each year: 15% of first-time buyer loans, 15% of second-time buyer loans and 10% of buy-to-let loans [1]. These exceptions are rationed, so don't plan around getting one.

What it means in practice: a couple earning €110,000 (about £91,700) between them can usually borrow up to €440,000 (about £366,600) as first-time buyers. If one of you owned a flat in Manchester years ago, you'll probably be treated as a second-time buyer under the Central Bank rules, which caps you at 3.5 times. Ask the lender how it classes you before you go house-hunting.

Getting a mortgage as a newcomer

Irish lenders want to see a settled job, a PPS number and an Irish bank account, and many want you to have passed probation. Income paid in sterling by a UK employer is a harder sell than an Irish payslip, and some lenders won't touch it. Build a few months of Irish bank history first; our guide to banking in Ireland as a Brit covers opening an account.

Your UK credit history doesn't follow you to Ireland, which is worth knowing if you assumed a spotless Experian score would help.

Help to Buy: up to €35,000 off your deposit

Help to Buy (HTB) is a refund of income tax and Deposit Interest Retention Tax (DIRT) you've paid in Ireland, put towards the deposit on a new home [2][3].

You get the lowest of [2]:

€35,000 (for applications from 7 October 2026 to 31 December 2029; it was €30,000 before that)
10% of the purchase price of the new home
the Irish income tax and DIRT you paid in the four years before you apply

To qualify you must [3]:

Never have bought or built a home before, alone or jointly, in Ireland or anywhere else.
Buy or self-build a new home costing no more than €500,000 (about £417,000).
Take a mortgage from a qualifying lender of at least 70% of the price.
Live in it as your main home for five years.
Be tax compliant.

That third bullet in the "lowest of" list is the catch for newcomers. HTB refunds Irish tax, so tax you paid to HMRC doesn't count. Arrive in 2025, earn well and you may have paid enough Irish tax within a couple of years; arrive last month and your HTB will be tiny. It's one reason many Brits rent for a while first, which our guide to renting in Dublin covers.

The First Home scheme

First Home is a shared equity scheme backed by the State and participating banks. It pays part of the price of a new home in return for a matching stake in the property, which you can buy back later [4].

Up to 30% of the price, or 20% if you're also using Help to Buy [4].
For first-time buyers, first-time self-builders and some "fresh start" applicants [4].
You need mortgage approval in principle from a participating lender [4].
The price ceiling in all four Dublin council areas (Dublin City, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown, Fingal and South Dublin) is €500,000 for houses and flats alike [7].

It helps bridge the gap between what the Central Bank lets you borrow and what new homes in Dublin cost. It isn't free money, though: the State's stake has to be bought back or repaid when you sell. Read the terms carefully, and get independent advice if you're unsure.

Stamp duty and the other costs

Ireland's residential stamp duty is refreshingly simple next to the UK's. There's no first-time buyer relief, but there's no surcharge for buyers who aren't Irish either. For instruments executed on or after 2 October 2024 [5]:

Part of the price	Rate
Up to €1 million (about £833,000)	1%
€1 million to €1.5 million	2%
Above €1.5 million (about £1.25 million)	6%

So a €450,000 home in Clontarf or Lucan costs €4,500 in stamp duty (about £3,750). Your solicitor works it out and pays it to Revenue [6].

Budget for these too [6]:

Booking deposit to the estate agent once your offer is accepted. It can be a fixed sum such as €5,000 (about £4,170), and you can get it back until contracts are signed.
Solicitor's fees, plus VAT, Land Registry fees and searches. There's no fixed scale, so get several quotes and check VAT is included.
Lender fees for valuation and arrangement, and an optional independent survey.
Mortgage protection insurance, which lenders require.
Home insurance, which most lenders insist on.
Management fees if you buy a flat or a house in a managed development.
Local Property Tax, the closest thing to council tax, charged on the home's value. Your solicitor should check what's owed before completion [6].

Buying step by step

Get mortgage approval in principle from an Irish lender, or through a broker regulated by the Central Bank.
Check Help to Buy and First Home if you're a first-time buyer of a new home. Apply for HTB through Revenue before you sign [2].
Make an offer through the estate agent and pay the booking deposit. Offers aren't binding in Ireland until contracts are signed, so gazumping happens here too.
Instruct a solicitor, who checks title and planning and raises queries on the contract.
Sign contracts and pay the contract deposit, less the booking deposit you've already paid.
Draw down the mortgage and close, at which point your solicitor pays the stamp duty.

The UK side: your old home and HMRC

If you still own a home in the UK, decide what to do with it before you buy in Dublin. Keeping it makes you a second-time buyer in Ireland, and renting it out brings in the Non-Resident Landlord Scheme. Selling it as a non-resident means reporting to HMRC within 60 days. Our guides to keeping your UK home or selling it and selling UK property as a non-resident take you through it. A tax adviser who knows both countries can check your case.

Fancy comparing notes on lenders and estate agents with Brits who've just bought? Ask in our community group for Brits in Ireland.

Buying a home in Dublin: mortgage limits, Help to Buy, First Home and stamp duty