Every home in Ireland is subject to Local Property Tax, an annual charge that Revenue collects on behalf of the local council. Here that's Wicklow County Council, and most of the money goes to local services such as roads, parks, libraries and street lighting. As homeowners on Hawk's Bay we all pay it. Many of us are recent buyers of new homes and are filing for the first time, so this page covers how the charge is worked out and how to pay it.
How LPT works
- You value your own home. LPT is self-assessed. You declare what your property was worth on the valuation date and pick the matching valuation band. Revenue doesn't send an assessor.
- The current valuation date is 1 November 2025. The band you declared for that date fixes your charge for five years, 2026 to 2030. It stays the same even if prices rise in the meantime, and even if you extend or improve the house.
- Liability is fixed on 1 November each year. Whoever owns the home on 1 November is liable for the following year's LPT. If you sell partway through a year, your solicitor will check that the LPT is up to date as part of the sale.
- The council can adjust the rate. Each council can raise or lower the basic rate by up to 15% every year. This is called the Local Adjustment Factor. Wicklow County Council has set it at +6% for 2026.
New homes
The old exemption for newly built homes ended in 2021, so new builds now pay LPT like any other home. A home completed after 1 November 2024 and on or before 1 November 2025 became liable for the first time in 2026, and its owner had to register it and file a return. If your home was finished later than that, check with Revenue when your first liability date falls. You'll still use the 1 November 2025 valuation for the rest of the 2026–2030 period.
The 2026–2030 valuation bands
Below are Revenue's basic rates, along with what each band works out to in Wicklow with the +6% adjustment for 2026:
| Band | Market value on 1 Nov 2025 | Basic rate | Wicklow 2026 (+6%) | Per month (approx.) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Up to €240,000 | €95 | €100.70 | €8.39 |
| 2 | €240,001 – €315,000 | €235 | €249.10 | €20.76 |
| 3 | €315,001 – €420,000 | €333 | €352.98 | €29.42 |
| 4 | €420,001 – €525,000 | €428 | €453.68 | €37.81 |
| 5 | €525,001 – €630,000 | €523 | €554.38 | €46.20 |
| 6 | €630,001 – €735,000 | €618 | €655.08 | €54.59 |
| 7 | €735,001 – €840,000 | €713 | €755.78 | €62.98 |
The bands keep going in €105,000 steps up to €2.1 million (band 19). Above €2.1 million the charge is calculated on the actual declared value rather than a band. The full table is on Revenue's valuation bands page. The bands in this valuation period are 20% wider than before, which means many homes land a band lower than their price growth alone would suggest.
Calculating your own bill
- Estimate what your home was worth on 1 November 2025. Use a realistic market value, not
your mortgage balance or what you paid for it (unless you bought around that time). Useful
sources:
- The Residential Property Price Register shows what similar homes in the estate and nearby sold for in 2025.
- Revenue's own valuation guidance, which you can find through the LPT online service (sign in with your PPSN and property ID, or through myAccount).
- An estate agent's opinion, if you want extra certainty.
- Find your band in the table above.
- Apply Wicklow's adjustment. Multiply the basic rate by 1.06 for 2026.
- Divide by 12 if you're paying monthly.
Worked example: a home worth €450,000 on 1 November 2025 is in band 4. The basic rate is €428, and €428 × 1.06 = €453.68 for 2026, or about €37.81 a month by direct debit.
To double-check the figure, try Revenue's online LPT calculator, which applies the local adjustment for you.
The band stays the same until 2030, but the council reviews the local adjustment every autumn, so your euro amount may change slightly from year to year. Wicklow runs a public consultation on it each year through its Online Consultation Hub, and anyone can make a submission.
How to pay
You choose a payment method on your LPT return. You can change it later through the LPT online service. For 2026 the options and dates were:
Pay in full
- Debit or credit card: by 9 January. The payment is processed the day you submit it.
- Annual Debit Instruction (ADI): the full amount comes out of your bank account in one go on 20 March.
- Cash through a payment service provider (e.g. An Post, Payzone): by 9 January.
Spread it over the year
- Monthly direct debit: on the 15th of each month, starting 15 January.
- Deduction at source: taken from your salary, occupational pension, or Department of Social Protection payment, starting in January.
- Regular cash payments through a payment service provider.
For details, see Revenue's payment methods and payment dates pages.
A few practical tips
- Keep a note of how you arrived at your valuation. Save a few Price Register sales or an agent's email. If Revenue ever questions your band, you'll be able to show it was a genuine estimate.
- Don't undervalue to save a band. Revenue can review declared values, and underpayments carry interest and penalties. If your home was right on a band boundary and you weren't sure, it's usually safer to pick the higher band.
- Bought here recently? Check that the home is registered to you for LPT. You can see this in the LPT online service or myAccount. The developer or previous owner may have been the liable person in an earlier year.
- Unpaid LPT follows the property. It has to be cleared before a sale can close, and Revenue can also collect it from your wages or pension. It's easier to set up a direct debit and not think about it.
- If money is tight, Revenue offers deferral options based on income and some other circumstances. Check whether you qualify before you fall behind.
Compiled from publicly available Revenue and Wicklow County Council information. This is general guidance, not tax advice. If you spot outdated details here, let a committee member know so we can update this page.