Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 section 473

Allowance for rent paid by certain tenants

Section 473 provided an income tax credit for individuals paying rent on privately rented residential premises used as their main residence.

• The relief ceased for rent paid on or after 8 December 2010, but tenants already renting on 7 December 2010 continued to qualify, with the relief phased out on a reducing scale from 2011 to 2017 and abolished entirely from 2018.
• The credit is the lowest of: actual rent paid multiplied by the standard rate of tax; the specified limit for the individual's category multiplied by the standard rate of tax; or the amount that reduces the tax liability to nil.
• The specified limits vary by year, age and marital or civil partnership status, with higher limits for those aged 55 or over, and for married persons, civil partners, widowed persons and surviving civil partners.
• Claims must be supported by a signed certificate giving details of the claimant, the landlord and the tenancy, together with a receipt for the rent paid; the same payment cannot attract relief under any other provision of the Income Tax Acts.