Up to 12,000 properties could be freed up by a crack-down on short-term letting going before Cabinet this morning.

Under the proposed legislation, anyone offering a property as accommodation for three weeks or more per year would need to be registered with Fáilte Ireland.

Property owners will have to register and confirm they have the correct planning permission for short term letting - with penalties for non-compliance.

It is hoped the legislation will reduce instances where a property is being used as a short term rental without the correct planning permission.

New planning requirements were brought in under a 2019 bill to require planning permission in rent pressure zones to free up more properties for long term rental or the private market, rather than having them let on a short term basis through sites like AirBnB.

Ministers hope the legislation could  see 12,000 properties switched from short-term lets to long-term rental accommodation.

Main image: Airbnb App on an iPhone smart phone. Picture by: Alamy.com