Budget 2027 for development land: what changed
For landowners, the headline is capital gains tax, and it mostly misses land. The standard rate falls from 33% to 31% for disposals on or after 7 Oct 2026, but development land (land sold for more than its current-use value, which is most zoned land) stays at 33% : on a typical zoned Dublin acre (€1.12m) the saving is €0, where the cut would have been worth up to €22,435. Land sold at its farm or current-use value gets the 31% rate.
Also in the Budget: the tax-free inheritance from a parent: €420,000; RZLT: Another chance to ask for land on the revised 2027 map to be rezoned and, in some cases, to be exempt for 2027; Help to Buy: €35,000; the Derelict Property Tax: 7% of self-assessed value a year.
No change to retirement relief, VAT on new apartments.
What changed, measure by measure
| Measure | Before | After | From | Source | What it means here |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Capital gains tax rate | 33% | 31%; development land stays at 33%Budget 2027: Tax Policy Changes, §4.1, p. 7 | Disposals on or after 7 Oct 2026 | Budget 2027: Tax Policy Changes, §4.1, p. 7Revenue: How to calculate CGT | The cut doesn't reach development land: land sold for more than its current-use value, which is most zoned land, still pays 33%. Land sold at its farm or current-use value pays 31%. CGT calculator for your land → |
| CGT annual exemption | €1,270 a person a year | No changeNot in the Budget | — | Revenue: How to calculate CGTBudget 2027: Tax Policy Changes (Department of Finance) | Small next to a land gain, but each owner of jointly owned land has one. In the calculator → |
| Retirement relief (farm or business, owner 55+) | To a child: up to €10m (aged 55–69), €3m (70+). To anyone else: €750,000 (55–69), €500,000 (70+), lifetime | No changeNot in the Budget | — | Revenue: Retirement ReliefBudget 2027: Tax Policy Changes (Department of Finance) | Can reduce or remove CGT when an owner aged 55+ passes on or sells farm or business assets. Conditions apply; we don't check them. What the calculator leaves out → |
| Inheritance and gift tax (CAT), parent to child | €400,000 tax-free (since 2 Oct 2024) | €420,000Budget 2027: Tax Policy Changes, §6.7, p. 11 | Gifts and inheritances on or after 7 Oct 2026 | Budget 2027: Tax Policy Changes, §6.7, p. 11Revenue: CAT group thresholdsRevenue: How to calculate CGT | Land you inherit takes its market value on that day as its CGT base cost, so a later sale is taxed only on the rise since. Inherited land in the calculator → |
| Residential Zoned Land Tax (RZLT) | 3% of market value a year on land on the final map; 2026: liable on 1 Feb, return and payment by 23 May | Another chance to ask for land on the revised 2027 map to be rezoned and, in some cases, to be exempt for 2027. Rate unchanged (3%)Budget 2027: Tax Policy Changes, §3.4, p. 6 | Finance (No. 2) Bill 2026 | Budget 2027: Tax Policy Changes, §3.4, p. 6Revenue: RZLTCitizens Information: RZLT | A yearly cost of holding zoned land, and a reason owners sell. Owners on the 2027 map get another window to ask for a zoning change. Is your land on the RZLT map? → |
| VAT on new apartments | 9% on completed apartments, 8 Oct 2025 to 31 Dec 2030 (13.5% on houses) | No changeNot in the Budget | — | Citizens Information: Budget 2026Budget 2027: Tax Policy Changes (Department of Finance) | The 9% rate from last year's Budget runs on. Less VAT leaves more of an apartment's price for land and build. Residual land value calculator → |
| Development levies (contributions) | The temporary waiver covered homes started 25 Apr 2023 – 31 Dec 2024; homes started since pay the council's scheme | No change in the tax measures; housing spending announcements not yet checkedNot in the Budget's tax measures | — | South Dublin County Council: the waiver schemeBudget 2027: Tax Policy Changes (Department of Finance) | Levies are a cost per home; a waiver would raise what a builder can pay for land. Development contributions calculator → |
| Help to Buy (first-time buyers, new homes) | Up to €30,000, to 31 Dec 2029 | Up to €35,000Budget 2027: Tax Policy Changes, §3.3, p. 6 | 7 Oct 2026 | Budget 2027: Tax Policy Changes, §3.3, p. 6Citizens Information: Help to Buy | More deposit help for first-time buyers of new homes, which supports demand for starter homes and so for land to build them on. Land prices per acre → |
| Derelict Property Tax | Announced in Budget 2026: at least 7% of market value, to replace the Derelict Sites Levy, not before 2027 | 7% of self-assessed value a year. Councils list derelict properties in 2027 (towns of 4,000+ first); first pay and file 23 Jun 2028Budget 2027: Tax Policy Changes, ch. 7, p. 14 | Finance (No. 2) Bill 2026; registers from 2027 | Budget 2027: Tax Policy Changes, ch. 7, p. 14Citizens Information: Budget 2026 | A yearly cost on derelict sites from 2028. Selling to an owner who fixes the property is one way out. We track Dublin's derelict sites registers. Derelict sites in Dublin → |
CGT on a typical zoned acre after the Budget
- All Dublin: median €1.12m an acre (5 deals), CGT €370,171 at 33%, unchanged (the cut would have saved €22,435)
- Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown: median €1.54m an acre (1 deal), CGT €507,781 at 33%, unchanged (the cut would have saved €30,775)
- South Dublin: median €1.14m an acre (2 deals), CGT €375,121 at 33%, unchanged (the cut would have saved €22,735)
- Fingal: median €570k an acre (2 deals), CGT €187,516 at 33%, unchanged (the cut would have saved €11,365)
- Kildare: median €1.53m an acre (1 deal), CGT €504,481 at 33%, unchanged (the cut would have saved €30,575)
The whole price treated as gain, as for land owned for decades. Work it out for your own sale, with what you paid or inherited it at →
Indicative, not tax advice. We don’t say whether any relief or scheme applies to you: ask an accountant or tax adviser. Buildable isn’t an estate agent and takes no fee. See also selling land in Dublin and land prices per acre.