Capital allowance or repair

[Browneyedgirl4]

I was wondering of this would be considered a repair or capital allowance for the purpose of rental income tax return
I had an ensuite fixed - flooring replaced.waste pipe leaked and caused water damage and new shower tray/shower enclosure/shower head and pvc panels installed over damaged tiling ….came to 6k…the sink and toilet were untouched, I have a receipt from a tradesman who did the work,
Also is repainting an apt considered a repair or capital allowance…
Thanks

 

[Banquo]

All repairs (it might be helpful if the tradesmen references repair on the invoice), painting is general expenses treated the same as repairs

 

[Bronte]

It’s repair/replacement and entire amount goes off 2026 rental income. For both the bathroom and the painting. It is not wear & tear/capital.

Painting would never have a question over it. That’s very simple. Always is a repair.

 

[stormy]

I agree with Banquo and Bronte: all of this is a repair, deducted in full in the year you pay for it under section 97(2) TCA 1997.

Revenue’s old rental income guide, IT70, gave the test as (August 2004 edition):

the restoration of an asset by replacing subsidiary parts of the whole asset​

The “whole asset” here is the ensuite, or really the apartment. Replacing a damaged floor, shower tray, enclosure and head after a leak is restoring it to the condition it was in, so it’s a repair. Using PVC panels instead of re-tiling doesn’t change that. Using a modern equivalent material is still a repair, as long as you aren’t getting something materially better than what was there.

A few things that would change the answer:

• If the ensuite previously had a bath, or no shower at all, putting in a shower would be an improvement. That’s capital, so you wouldn’t deduct it against rent. It would go into your base cost for CGT instead.
• If you claimed on your insurance for the leak, you can only deduct what you paid net of the insurance payout.
• If the apartment was empty while the work was done, it’s still deductible, provided it was let before and re-let after a short gap.

Painting is always a repair or maintenance, as Bronte says. The later IT70 editions list “exterior and interior painting and decorating” under maintenance (2012 edition).

 

[Villaines]

You might also find interesting commentary here (Irish and UK law have very similar concepts of capital and revenue):

PIM2030 - Deductions: repairs: is it capital? - HMRC internal manual - GOV.UK

www.gov.uk

 

[Bronte]

I had an ensuite fixed - flooring replaced.waste pipe leaked and caused water damage and new shower tray/shower enclosure/shower head and pvc panels installed over damaged tiling ….came to 6k…the sink and toilet were untouched, I have a receipt from a tradesman who did the work,
Also is repainting an apt considered a repair or capital allowance…

Flooring replaced -- repair/replacment
Waste pipe leaked - repair
new shower tray - replacement
shower enclosure - replacement
pvc panels - repair
Painting - repair (it's not an enhancement are you are only returning it to the condition it was in originally

So everything goes off tax in one go for 2026 tax returns.

 

[Bronte]

If the ensuite previously had a bath, or no shower at all, putting in a shower would be an improvement. That’s capital, so you wouldn’t deduct it against rent. It would go into your base cost for CGT instead.

I disagree, you generally pull out a bath because there are problems with it. Your choices would be to pull out the bath and put in a newer one. And one can also argue a house that has no bath loses value so it's not an enhancement.

Using PVC panels instead of re-tiling doesn’t change that

I wondered how this kind of work is better than taking off the old tiles and replacing them from a landlords practical perspective. I've not seen this done - no idea if it's a good idea or not.