Property Inheritance in Ireland: Houses, CAT & Wills (2026)

If you own a home, rental property or land, it is understandable to think: “I will just leave the house to my child.” In practice, there are a few questions worth separating before you make that decision: how the property is owned, who should receive it, whether anyone has statutory inheritance rights, and whether the beneficiary may have a CAT liability.

This guide explains those issues in ordinary language. It is aimed at straightforward Irish estates. Property with mortgages, co-ownership disputes, farms, businesses, overseas assets or significant tax exposure should be reviewed professionally.

1. Does the property actually pass under your will?

If property is owned in your sole name, your interest will generally form part of your estate and can be dealt with by your will. If you die without a valid will, the Succession Act 1965 determines who inherits your estate.

Joint ownership needs more care. The legal effect can depend on the form of co-ownership and the circumstances. In a joint tenancy, a surviving joint tenant can acquire the deceased joint tenant's interest by survivorship. A share held as a tenant in common is different and can form part of the deceased owner's estate.

2. What if there is no will?

If a person dies intestate, Irish succession law applies a statutory order rather than trying to reconstruct what the deceased probably wanted.

• If there is a spouse and no children, the spouse takes the estate.
• If there is a spouse and children, the spouse takes two-thirds and the children share the remaining one-third.
• If there are children but no spouse, the children take the estate according to the statutory rules.
• If there is no spouse or children, the estate can pass to parents, siblings and then more remote next-of-kin.

Those percentages apply to the estate as a whole, not automatically to each individual asset. In a property-heavy estate, however, the house may be the main asset available to satisfy those shares. That can create practical difficulty if the family expected one person to receive or remain in the property.

For worked examples, read What Happens If You Die Without a Will in Ireland?

3. Does the person inheriting the house pay inheritance tax?

Possibly. In Ireland, inheritance tax is generally dealt with through Capital Acquisitions Tax (CAT). The beneficiary's relationship to the deceased determines the relevant group threshold, and previous taxable gifts or inheritances in the same group can reduce the threshold still available.

For 2026, the current group thresholds are:

The standard CAT rate is 33% on the taxable amount above the available threshold, after applying any relevant exemptions, reliefs and calculation rules. A gift or inheritance between spouses or civil partners is exempt from CAT.

A simple property example

Suppose a parent leaves a house worth €500,000 to an adult child. If the child has the full €400,000 Group A threshold available, and if we ignore liabilities, reliefs and other adjustments for illustration, the simplified excess would be €100,000. At 33%, that produces CAT of €33,000.

But if that child had already used €150,000 of their Group A threshold through earlier taxable benefits, the answer would be different. That is why a property's value on its own is not enough to calculate the beneficiary's tax.

4. What is the Dwelling House Exemption?

Revenue provides a CAT exemption for an inherited dwelling house where the statutory conditions are satisfied. It is much narrower than “the family home is tax-free”.

For an inheritance on or after 25 December 2016, Revenue's conditions generally include that the house was the deceased person's only or main home at death, that the beneficiary lived in it as their only or main home for the three years immediately before the inheritance, that the beneficiary does not own or have an interest in another house at the date of the inheritance, and that the inherited house continues to be their only or main home for six years afterwards. Exceptions apply to some of those conditions, including for dependent relatives and certain age, employment or health circumstances.

If you are relying on this exemption, check the current Revenue rules against the actual facts. Do not structure a will around a presumed exemption without verifying it.

5. What if the beneficiary cannot afford the CAT?

This is where property inheritance can become a liquidity problem. A beneficiary can inherit something valuable without inheriting enough cash to meet a tax bill or the costs associated with the property.

Before leaving a large property interest to one person, it can therefore be sensible to ask:

• What is the likely current value?
• Does the intended beneficiary have previous CAT benefits?
• Is a relief or exemption realistically available?
• Is there enough cash elsewhere in the estate?
• Will other beneficiaries also need to be provided for?

For a valuable property, farm, business or estate with several beneficiaries, these are tax and legal planning questions rather than template questions.

6. What about an unmarried partner living in the property?

An unmarried cohabiting partner does not have the same automatic intestacy entitlement as a spouse or civil partner. A qualified cohabitant may in certain circumstances apply to court for provision from the deceased partner's estate, but that is a separate statutory remedy with conditions and a time limit.

If your home is important to the security of an unmarried partner, do not assume that living together is enough. Read our guide to cohabiting couples and inheritance rights and get advice where the property arrangements are significant.

7. Should you name the house specifically in your will?

Sometimes a specific gift of property is appropriate. Sometimes leaving the residue of the estate to the intended beneficiary is simpler. The right drafting depends on what else you own, whether the property might be sold before death, who else needs provision and whether the will contains sensible fallback provisions.

A common practical mistake is to focus so heavily on today's house that the will becomes awkward if the property is later sold, replaced or refinanced. Your will should work with the estate you may own at death, not just a photograph of your finances today.

When a straightforward template may be enough

A template can be suitable where your Irish assets and family arrangements are straightforward and you are not trying to solve a significant property-tax or co-ownership problem through the will itself.

Official references

• Succession Act 1965, section 67: spouse and children on intestacy
• Revenue: CAT groups
• Revenue: calculating CAT
• Revenue: Dwelling House Exemption conditions

Important: This is general information, not legal or tax advice. Property ownership, CAT and family rights can materially change the result. Get individual advice where the estate is not straightforward.