All persons established in the state (including companies, partnerships and employees) who provide the following property services in the State (regardless of where the property is located) require a licence from the Authority before providing such services:

• auction of private property other than land;
• purchase or sale, by whatever means, of land;
• letting of land;
• property management services.

There are a number of exemptions e.g. short term letting for bona fida tourism or leisure purposes (8 weeks or less), auction of State property or a charity auction. The full list of exemptions can be found in Section 3(1) of the Act - Click Here

All new and renewal licence applications must be completed and paid online through www.psralicences.ie. The website www.psralicences.ie has replaced www.licences.ie as the Property Services Regulatory Authority’s standalone online licence applications system.

You must be registered to use the site and to complete an application form. Guidance on how to register is available here. Once registered, select the appropriate application form, and follow the on-screen requirements and instructions for completion.

Licence renewals must be made online through www.psralicences.ie annually and must be received by the Authority at least six weeks prior to the expiration of the licence. You must log in to www.psralicences.ie with the email address with which you used to register (if you previously registered with www.licences.ie the credentials used should remain valid). Once logged in, you can select the appropriate “Renewal” form. Follow the on-screen requirements and instructions to complete the renewal form. You will need your licence number to renew, along with a renewal PIN which will be provided to you by the PSRA in an invitation to renew ahead of your licence renewal date. (Please refer to question 12 below if you did not receive or have lost your renewal PIN).

If you cannot complete the application process in one sitting (for any type of application) – select the SAVE and CLOSE button at bottom right of each screen to save the partially completed application. You can return to your application at a later and more convenient time. Log back into www.psralicences.ie with your email and password, click on My Applications and select the application form which should be available in Draft.

Every licence application must be completed and paid online through www.psralicences.ie and must include:-

• A completed and signed Application Form (New Business Licence Application Form),
• Evidence that the required level of Professional Indemnity Insurance, which covers both the employer and employees is or will be available to the applicant,
• A completed and signed Accountant’s Report (the specified form is available on the PSRA website: Accountant's Report)
• Tax Clearance Details for company/partnership and all company directors/partners in the partnership,
• Certificate of Incorporation (Body Corporate only), this certificate may be obtained from the Companies Registration Office (CRO) and must be dated/certified by the Registrar of Companies not earlier than four weeks before the making of the application,
• Registrar of Friendly Society Certificate (Friendly Societies only)
• Certificate of Business Name Registration (where applicable),
• Licence Fee - €1000

• at least one Principal Officer who is qualified to provide the property services being licensed and
• at least one Principal Officer or Employee licensed to provide the property service on its behalf.

In addition to the company/partnership’s business application, an individual application for a principal officer of the company should be submitted on www.psralicences.ie.

A Principal Officer, in relation to a company, means any person who is a director, manager, secretary or other similar officer of the company. A Principal Officer, in relation to a partnership means any person who is a partner in, or a manager or other similar officer of, the partnership.

Every licence application must be completed and paid online through www.psralicences.ie and must include:-

• A completed and signed Application Form (New Business Licence Application Form),
• Evidence that the applicant meets the minimum qualification requirements in respect of the licence category(s) applied for,
• Evidence that the required level of Professional indemnity Insurance is or will be available to the applicant,
• Completed and signed Accountant’s Report (the specified form is available on the PSRA website: http://psr.ie/en/psra/pages/accountant's_report),
• Tax Clearance Details,
• Certificate of Business Name Registration (where applicable),
• Licence Fee - €1000,
• Applicant’s Photograph (passport-style photograph).

A property services employer may have employees who provide property services on their behalf however an Independent Contractor is an individual who provides property services but who has no employees who provide such services.

The licence application must be completed and paid online through www.psralicences.ie and must include:-

• A completed and signed Application Form (New Individual Licence Application Form),
• Evidence that the applicant meets the minimum qualification requirements for a licence,
• Licence Fee - €100,
• Employer’s Declaration on the application form signed by a principal officer on behalf of the employer confirming that the applicant is, or will be, covered by the employer’s Professional Indemnity Insurance,
• Applicant’s Photograph (passport-style photograph).

A Principal Officer, in relation to a company, means any person who is a director, manager, secretary or other similar officer of the company. A Principal Officer, in relation to a partnership means any person who is a partner in, or a manager or other similar officer of, the partnership.

An applicant for a licence must provide documentary evidence that the minimum qualification requirements, relevant to the licence(s) being sought, have been attained:

• in the case of a Company or Partnership, by a Principal Officer of the Company or Partnership,
• in the case of an individual (i.e. Sole Trader, Independent Contractor, Principal Officer or Employee), by the applicant.

There are currently four ways in which an applicant may meet the minimum qualification requirements, as outlined below:

1. Academic Qualification: Applicants must have completed an academic qualification awarded by an “awarding body” at Level 6 or higher in the National Framework of Qualifications (NFQ) through which they have attained the minimum number of European Credit Transfers (ECTS) in each of the seven specified subjects listed below.
   
   

   	Number of ECTS Credits for Qualification at Levels 6 to 8 A total of 120 ECTS Credits overall is required		Number of ECTS Credits for Levels 9 and 10 A total of 90 ECTS Credits overall is required
   Subject	Minimum	Maximum	Minimum	Maximum
   Valuations	10	20	10	20
   Marketing/Practice Knowledge	15	30	10	25
   Economics	5	20	5	15
   Law	15	30	10	25
   Property Management	10	20	5	20
   Building Construction/Technical	10	20	5	15
   Business Studies/Professional Management	5	20	5	15

   
   Or
   
   
2. Academic Qualification: Applicant has successfully completed, in another jurisdiction outside of Ireland, a course of studies which is equivalent to that outlined in A above.
   
   Or
   
   
3. Lawful Experience: Applicant has lawfully engaged in the provision of the property service(s) for which they are seeking a licence for at least three years of the five-year period immediately preceding the making of the application. This experience must have been lawfully obtained in Ireland or another jurisdiction, in line with the property services regulations in that jurisdiction at the time.
   
   Or
   
   
4. Other Qualifications or Experience: the applicant has other qualifications or experience, or both, which, although not falling fully within the qualification requirements outlined above, satisfies the Authority that they are suitable to provide the property service(s) for which they are seeking a licence. For example, a person may have two years relevant experience and have attained 100 ECTS in the specified subjects outlined at A above.

Companies, Partnerships, Sole Traders and Independent Contractors must, at the time of making an application for a licence, supply the Authority with a report, in the specified form, by a duly qualified accountant, which states that appropriate financial systems and controls will be in place for the protection of client moneys.

The "specified form" of report which must be submitted is available on the Authority’s website: https://www.psr.ie/licensees/licence-applications/renewing-a-licence/

New Licence Applications:

• Accountant's Report PSRA S30 - Form A is required for Licence Type A, B or C
• Accountant’s Report PSRA S30 - Form B is required for Licence Type D

Where an application is made in respect of Licence Type D and any other category of licence, both reports must be completed.

Part I of the Accountant’s Report must first be completed by a Principal Officer of the Property Services Employer and Part II must then be completed by the applicant’s accountant.

Renewal of Licence:

• PSRA/S35 – Accountant’s Report Renewal ABC is to be completed where a "client account" is held.
• PSRA/S35 – Accountant’s Report Renewal D is to be completed where services charges and/or sinking fund contributions are paid into a "relevant account".

Applications for a business licence must be accompanied by evidence that the applicant has or will have Professional Indemnity Insurance (P.I.I.). The P.I.I. policy or schedule should contain the following information:

• Name of Company/Partnership/Sole Trader/Independent Contractor,
• The business name is optional but if stated, it must be in addition to above,
• The principal address of the applicant,
• Indemnity for type of services (Auctioneer, Estate Agent, Letting Agent, Management Agent),
• Level of Indemnity (minimum €500,000 or twice annual fee income),
• Indemnity for each claim,
• Indemnity with defence costs in addition,
• Policy Number,
• Expiry Date [In cases where it is a rolling policy, evidence must be supplied that policy is in force],
• Retroactive Date. This date, if shown on the policy/schedule, must not be later than the date of issue of the first licence.

In some cases at the time of making the licence application an applicant may not have P.I.I. in place. In such circumstances, a letter to the Authority from an authorised insurer, indicating a willingness to provide the necessary P.I.I. to the applicant on the grant of a licence, will suffice. However, before a licence can be granted a certificate of insurance (i.e. policy or schedule), certifying that the necessary level of insurance has been put in place, must be provided to the Authority.

Some Companies, Partnerships, Sole Traders., may conduct business under a name that is not their own name. This is generally termed a “business name” or “trading name”. In such instances the registration of the “business/trading name” with the CRO, is obligatory under the Business Names Act. A Certificate of Business Name Registration must accompany an application in respect of each “business/trading name” used.

The following applications can be made on www.psralicences.ie:

• New Business Licence Application
• New Individual Licence Application
• Business Add Category Application (for a current licensee to add another licence category)
• Individual Add Category Application Form
• Change of Property Services Employer (for a currently licensed individual moving to a different employer)
• Business Licence Renewal Application
• Individual Licence Renewal Application

Your PIN to access your licence renewal application is issued by post approximately 12 weeks before your licence expiry date. If you do not receive a PIN please contact the Authority immediately by email to info@psr.ie or by telephone at 046-9033800 or 1800-252712.

There are four categories of property service:

• The auction of property other than land.
• The purchase or sale, by whatever means, of land.
• The letting of land.
• Property management services *

* The 2011 Act defines property management services as meaning:

"… services in respect of the management of a multi-unit development carried out on behalf of a management body, and such services include-

1. administrative services, and
2. the procurement of or any combination of the maintenance, servicing, repair, improvement or insurance of the development of any part of the development."

Property management services within the meaning of the Act is typically the day-to-day tasks associated with management of a multi-unit development (such as an apartment development) and could include service charge collection and insurance and maintenance of the common areas of the development on behalf of a "management body" (an owners' management company).

To view the Register of Licensees on the Property Services Regulatory Authority website please click here

Any licensed principal officer or employee who leaves the employer for whom they were licensed must inform the Authority immediately and surrender their licence identification card to the Authority. In addition, where the person has taken up employment with a new employer they must submit to the Authority a Change of Property Service Employer form on www.psralicences.ie.

Yes. You do not need to register again on www.psralicences.ie if you previously set up an account on www.licences.ie. When you login using your original www.licences.ie account details your licence information will be available to you on the system.

The registration process is very simple. You must supply your name, email address and specify a password. An email is sent that contains an activation link that must be used before you can log in. Subsequently, you can log in to change your password and update your details.

If you have forgotten your password, click the ‘forgot password’ link on the www.psralicences.ie login page and follow the instructions. Once you have supplied the email address you used when you registered the system will send you a link by which you can change your password.

Yes. In the unlikely event that you decide not to use the service after registration, you can contact our customer support team and request to have your details removed. You will be asked some security questions to complete the process.

If you move address you must notify the Authority of your new address as soon as possible, by email to info@psr.ie.

If your email address needs to be changed on your account, log on to www.psralicences.ie and click on "My Profile" and update the relevant information. You must separately notify the Authority by email to info@psr.ie.

If you no longer have access to your old email address and cannot reset your password to login, contact our customer support team who will update your profile for you once you have answered a number of security questions to verify your identity.

Contact the customer support team – contact details available here

The licence fee is €1,000 for a Company, Partnership or Sole Trader/Independent Contractor.

The licence fee for Principal Officers or Employees is €100.

One Licence Fee applies irrespective of the number of licence types applied for.

The licence fee must be paid online at the time the application is submitted. Should your application be refused for any reason you will be refunded the application cost.

In order for a licence to be issued, the Property Services Provider (PSP) will also be required to make a contribution to the Property Services Compensation Fund. The contribution to the Compensation Fund is €200 for a Company, Partnership or Sole Trader/Independent Contractor and €50 for Principal Officers or Employees. For first time applicants the contribution will be requested by the Authority if the applicant meets all statutory requirements and must be paid before the licence can issue.

To make a payment you must use a valid debit card or credit card and make the payment in accordance with the instructions on the website.

If you are attempting to pay using a debit or credit card, please make sure you have entered the card information correctly. If your payment is refused again, contact your bank or card issuer for assistance.

If you are unable to find the answer to your query in the FAQ guidance section of the website, please contact our psralicences.ie support team at info@psr.ie.

During the application process you will be required to upload supporting documentation. The system will prompt you when documentation is required.

If you are uploading additional supporting documents, after the initial assessment of your application by the PSRA, please be sure to select ‘Submit’ after uploading the required documents to ensure your application is resubmitted to the Authority.

No, each step in the process that you complete will be saved in draft format and you can return to the system to complete your application at any time. Click ‘Save’ as you work through your application to ensure the details are saved and available the next time you login.

You will receive an email to confirm that you have submitted an online application to the Authority. The Authority will contact you in due course if further information is required.

Your application will be processed as quickly as possible by the Authority subject to the volume of applications and queries received at a given time. You will be able to see what stage your application is at on the www.psralicences.ie website. The Authority will be in contact with you regarding the progress of your application and any additional information or documentation required.

The Authority endeavours to process applications as promptly as possible. Section 35(3) of the Act states that if the Authority has not made a determination on the renewal application by its expiry date, the licence shall continue in force until a decision is made. If you do not receive your renewed licence by its expiry please contact the Authority by email or telephone.