What is NPPR?

Non Principal Private Residence charge was a charge payable in the years 2009 – 2013 inclusive. It applied to any residential property that was not the sole or principal residence of the owner. The Act imposed an obligation on the property owner to pay a charge of €200 for each of the liability dates (31 July 2009 and 31 March 2010 to 2013 inclusive) on any residential property that was not the sole residence of the owner. The Act further imposed a penal late payment fee of €20.00 per month in respect of non payment of the charge.

In August 2009, the Law Society’s Conveyancing Committee issued a practice note advising that solicitors should seek a receipt for payment of the charge and/or a letter of discharge of the charge on the purchase of a property. If the vendor claimed that the charge did not apply, solicitors should seek such confirmation by way of a Statutory Declaration.

This changed in 2011 with the provisions of the Local Government (Household Charge) Act 2011. From 01 January 2012, a vendor of a residential property must furnish a Certificate of Discharge and/or a Certificate of Exemption from the relevant Local Authority prior to or on closing.

This certificate must include every liability date since the date of the last sale of the property.

This can sometimes cause issue where the property was acquired in the years 2009, 2010 and 2011 as prior to January 2012, it was not possible to obtain a Certificate of Discharge or Exemption. In such cases, the solicitor for the current vendor must contact the solicitor for the previous vendor to obtain a Statutory Declaration or Certificate of Discharge / Exemption.

If you were liable for NPPR on a property but never made a payment, you must now pay the original sum due together with late payment fees and penalties.

If you are planning to sell a residential property which was not your sole residence during any or all of the liability dates (31 July 2009 and 31 March 2010 to 2013 inclusive) you must obtain a Certificate of Discharge / Exemption. To do so, you can contact your Local Authority. Some may require proof of payment / residency or a Statutory Declaration.