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Tax Residence, Ordinary Residence and Domicile in Ireland

1. Residence – when are you Irish tax resident?

You are tax resident in Ireland for a tax year if you meet either test:

1. 183‑day test

  • You are in Ireland 183 days or more in that tax year.

2. 280‑day test (2‑year test)

  • Add the days you are in Ireland in the current year and previous year.
  • If total is 280 days or more, and you are in Ireland at least 30 days in each year, you are resident in the current year.

If you do not meet either, you are non‑resident (unless you choose to elect in a year of return – see split year below).

“Day” means any part of a day spent in Ireland.

2. Ordinary residence – longer‑term connection

  • You become ordinarily resident in Ireland from the start of the fourth tax year after you first become resident and remain resident for three consecutive years.
  • You cease to be ordinarily resident from the start of the fourth tax year after you stop being resident.

Example:

  • Resident 2022, 2023, 2024 → ordinarily resident from 1 Jan 2025.
  • Last resident year 2024 → still ordinarily resident for 2025, 2026, 2027 → not ordinarily resident from 1 Jan 2028.

Ordinary residence mainly matters for tax on foreign income and gains when you are otherwise non‑resident.

3. Domicile – where your permanent “home” is

  • Domicile is a legal concept, not just where you live:
    • You have a domicile of origin (usually where your parents were domiciled).
    • You can acquire a domicile of choice if you move and genuinely intend to live in another country permanently or indefinitely.
  • Ireland treats many long‑term emigrants as Irish‑domiciled unless they clearly establish a new domicile elsewhere.
  • Domicile is crucial for the remittance basis.

4. Tax scope by residence / ordinary residence / domicile

(a) Resident and Irish‑domiciled

  • Taxable on worldwide income and gains.
  • Credit may be given for foreign tax under double tax treaties.

(b) Resident but non‑domiciled (remittance basis)

  • Irish source income and Irish gains: fully taxable.
  • Foreign income and foreign gains: taxable only to the extent remitted (brought) into Ireland, subject to detailed rules.
  • This is the remittance basis of assessment.

(c) Non‑resident, but ordinarily resident

In general, taxable on:

  • Irish source income and Irish gains, and
  • Certain foreign investment income (e.g. foreign deposits) even if not remitted,
  • But not usually on foreign employment income where duties are exercised abroad.

(d) Non‑resident and not ordinarily resident

  • Taxable only on:
    • Irish source income (e.g. Irish employment, Irish pensions, Irish rental income, Irish public offices),
    • Irish‑source capital gains (e.g. Irish land and buildings, certain Irish shares).

5. Split year treatment – year of arrival or departure

When you come to live in Ireland or leave Ireland permanently or for a long period:

  • If you are resident in the year, you can usually claim split year treatment for employment income:
    • Arrival:
      • Employment income earned before arrival and performed outside Ireland can be treated as not taxable here.
      • Employment income from the date of arrival to 31 Dec is taxed as normal.
    • Departure:
      • Employment income after departure, where duties are performed abroad, can be treated as not taxable here (if conditions met).

Other income (e.g. foreign investment income) does not get split; you are resident for the full year for these, subject to domicile / remittance rules.

6. Returning to Ireland with savings and pre‑arrival income

  • Savings from foreign employment while non‑resident, duties abroad:
    • If you saved this income in years when you were non‑resident and work was fully abroad, those savings are not taxable when brought into Ireland later.
    • However, income earned on those savings (e.g. foreign or Irish bank interest) is taxable once you are within the Irish tax net (subject to remittance basis if non‑domiciled).
  • Pre‑arrival employment income in the year you arrive:
    • If you are resident in the year, split year treatment can relieve income earned before arrival where duties were abroad.

7. Foreign property and proceeds brought into Ireland

  • If you sell a foreign property in a year when you are neither resident nor ordinarily resident in Ireland:
    • There is no Irish capital gains tax on that disposal.
    • Bringing the sale proceeds into Ireland in a later year does not itself create a CGT charge.
  • If the property is sold in a year when you are resident or ordinarily resident:
    • The gain may be within Irish CGT (with credit potentially for foreign tax),
    • Even if the money is left abroad or brought in later.

Again, once the proceeds (where not taxed as a gain) are in a bank, future interest or other income on them is taxable.

8. Non‑resident with Irish income or property

If you are non‑resident (and maybe not ordinarily resident) but have Irish connections:

  • Irish rental income – always within Irish tax:
    • If you don’t appoint a collection agent, the tenant must withhold 20% tax and remit it to Revenue.
  • Irish employment / trade carried on in Ireland – taxable in Ireland.
  • Irish pensions, Irish‑source investment income – normally taxable here.
  • Irish land / buildings, and certain Irish shares – within Irish CGT.

You may still get a proportion of credits/reliefs based on the ratio of Irish taxable income to worldwide income.

If you outline your own position (e.g. “Irish citizen, living in X for Y years, planning to move back on [date], with savings / property in [countries]”), a short, specific summary of how the residence, ordinary residence and domicile rules would apply can be set out for you.

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