Irish letting agents can chase rent arrears with prompt, factual reminders by email, SMS or WhatsApp, a clear statement of what's owed, and an easy way for the tenant to pay, with every contact recorded. If the arrears aren't cleared, the landlord must follow the Residential Tenancies Board's process, and a warning or notice that doesn't follow it can be invalid. Residential tenants are consumers, so late fees and interest shouldn't be added to rent arrears.
In this article
The short version
- Send a short, factual reminder the day after rent is missed.
- Keep a record of every contact with the tenant.
- Don't add late fees or interest to a residential tenant's arrears.
- Formal steps must follow the Residential Tenancies Board's process.
- A tenant can reclaim a rent direct debit within eight weeks.
The limits on chasing a residential tenant
Chasing rent isn't the same as chasing a business invoice, and a few rules shape what you can do as an agent.
- Residential tenants are consumers. The statutory late payment interest and compensation that apply between businesses don't apply to rent, and late fees or interest shouldn't be added to arrears.
- Formal steps for rent arrears have to go through the Residential Tenancies Board's process, whoever you act for. If a warning or notice doesn't meet the RTB's requirements, it can be invalid, so check the RTB's current guidance before the landlord takes any formal step.
- You can't add a surcharge if a tenant pays with a consumer debit or credit card.
- Everything you send may be read later by the RTB or the landlord, so keep it accurate and keep a copy.
Within those limits, your job in the early weeks is to make the arrears visible to the tenant and the landlord, and to make paying straightforward.
A routine for the first weeks of arrears
Agree this routine with each landlord when you take on the property, so everyone knows what happens and when. Adjust the timings to suit the tenancy and the landlord's wishes.
- Confirm the rent really is missing before you contact anyone. Check that a bank transfer hasn't arrived under a different reference, and that a direct debit wasn't returned for a reason you can fix.
- Contact the tenant the day after the due date with a short, factual reminder. Say how much is due, for which period, and include a link or details so they can pay straight away.
- If there's no reply, follow up a few days later on a different channel, such as SMS or WhatsApp if the first reminder went by email.
- Send a statement showing every rent period, what was paid and what's outstanding, so the tenant and the landlord are looking at the same figures.
- Log every contact with the date, channel and what was said, including any reply from the tenant.
- If the tenant proposes a way to clear the arrears, confirm it in writing and send a copy to the landlord.
- Tell the landlord where things stand at a point you've agreed in advance, and agree together whether to start the RTB process.
Keep the first contacts plain and polite, because something may have gone wrong with the tenant's bank, their pay date may have moved, or they may not have noticed. A reminder that states the facts and offers a way to pay leaves room for any of those.
When rent is paid by direct debit
SEPA direct debit takes the rent on its due date without the tenant having to remember, but missed collections still happen, and they need handling differently from a missed transfer.
A collection you've submitted can be rejected or returned for reasons such as insufficient funds or a closed account. Check each collection run for these as soon as it's reported, contact the tenant, and agree when you'll collect again or how they'll pay instead.
Your tenant can also ask their bank for a refund of any collection within eight weeks of the debit date with no questions asked, or within 13 months if they say it wasn't authorised. So a rent payment you'd recorded as received can come back weeks later. When that happens, reopen the rent period in your records so the arrears show correctly, and tell the landlord.
Two more scheme rules apply when you collect rent this way. You send a pre-notification at least 14 calendar days before the collection unless you've agreed a different timeline with the tenant, and it can go on the rent demand. And if no collection is made under a mandate for 36 months, the mandate has to be cancelled, which can matter for a long tenancy where the tenant switched to paying another way.
Tools that do the routine work
Most of the routine above is the same each month, so it suits software, while the judgement about when to involve the landlord and the RTB stays with you.
With Adfin, your tenants can pay by SEPA direct debit, card, Apple Pay, Google Pay or bank transfer, from a payment link sent by email, SMS or WhatsApp. Pricing is 20c + 1% per successful payment, with the 1% part capped at €2 on direct debit and bank transfer, so a €1,350 monthly rent collected by direct debit costs €2.20. Card payments aren't capped, and there's no monthly fee, setup fee or contract. Adfin isn't a client account, so if the rent you collect is held for landlords, check how it has to be held before you route it through any payment tool.
Adfin's free Essential credit control sends unlimited reminders by email, SMS and WhatsApp, produces statements and gives you an aged debtors view where each tenant in arrears has a named person in your office and a next step. It doesn't add late fees or interest to rent. Adfin is a certified Xero and QuickBooks app, and rent paid through it is marked paid in your accounts automatically, so you don't have to match those payments by hand before checking who's in arrears.
Common questions
Can a letting agent charge a late fee on rent in Ireland? Your residential tenants are consumers, so statutory late payment interest and compensation don't apply to their rent. You shouldn't add late fees or interest to arrears.
What should a letting agent do first when rent is late? Check the payment really is missing, then send the tenant a short, factual reminder with the amount, the period and a way to pay. Record the contact.
When does the RTB process start for rent arrears? The landlord you act for decides when to start it, and you both need to follow it exactly. Check the Residential Tenancies Board's current guidance before taking any formal step.
Can a tenant reverse a rent direct debit? Yes, a tenant can ask their bank for a refund within eight weeks of the debit date with no questions asked, or within 13 months if it wasn't authorised. Reopen the rent period if that happens.
Can rent arrears go to the Small Claims procedure? Debt claims, including unpaid rent, are excluded from the Small Claims procedure. For residential tenancies, follow the Residential Tenancies Board's process.
Can tenants pay rent by card? Yes, if you choose to offer card payments, but you can't add a surcharge when a tenant pays with a consumer debit or credit card.
Sources
- Residential Tenancies Board - Guide on ending a tenancy for breach of tenant obligations (accurate as of November 2026) https://rtb.ie/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/01.1-Guide-on-ending-a-tenancy-for-breach-of-tenant-obligations-1.pdf
- Irish Statute Book - S.I. No. 580/2012, European Communities (Late Payment in Commercial Transactions) Regulations 2012 (accurate as of November 2026) https://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/2012/si/580/made/en/print
- European Payments Council - 2025 SEPA Direct Debit Core Rulebook, version 1.0 (accurate as of November 2026) https://europeanpaymentscouncil.eu/sites/default/files/kb/file/2024-11/EPC016-06%202025%20SDD%20Core%20Rulebook%20version%201.0.pdf
- Courts Service - About small claims (accurate as of November 2026) https://courts.ie/guides/about-small-claim
- Citizens Information - Payment Services Directive (accurate as of November 2026) https://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/money-and-tax/personal-finance/eu-payments/psd2/
