Tenants living in rent pressure zones could be facing a rent increase of 8% from July 13th.
People Before Profit TD Paul Murphy says the current rent freeze needs to be extended to stop that from happening.
Landlords in rent pressure zones are restricted from raising their rents by any more than 4% per year.
However, they've not been able to increase rents at all since last March due to the ongoing pandemic-related rent freeze.
With the current freeze set to expire in July, there are concerns some landlords will raise rents by up to 8% when the freeze ends - encompassing two years' worth of increases at once.
Deputy Murphy questioned the Tánaiste about the issue in the Dáil yesterday.
Leo Varadkar said he "did not envisage that people would be able to apply a retrospective year" of rent, and that he would talk to the Housing Minister about the issue.
However, the Department of Housing has confirmed to the Irish Independent that an 8% increase would be possible when a landlord carries out a rent review for the first time in two years.
On Newstalk Breakfast, Deputy Murphy said it shows why the current rent freeze and eviction ban must be extended until the pandemic is over.
He said: “The general issue - which everyone knows about - is how expensive rents are… and the threat of evictions in the context of the pandemic.
“But there’s also [this] very particular issue which has emerged. In March, under pressure, the Government did move to impose a rent freeze. That rent freeze will be up on July 13th.
“From that point onwards… effectively landlords in rent pressure zones - where rent increases are meant to be limited to 4% per year - will be able to increase by 8%.”
He said the levels of unemployment the country is seeing are likely to continue even when COVID-19 has "fizzled out".
Dismissing suggestions that people are taking advantage of the eviction ban, he said: "People are not entitled to just not pay their rent... the law is that tenants have to pay landlords.
"Unfortunately, the law also is that from July 13th, landlords who haven't imposed rent increases - because of the rent freeze - can increase the rent by 8%.
"That's an actual issue - as opposed to an imaginary issue - people are facing."
While the current rent freeze is an emergency measure, there have been repeated calls from opposition parties for an extended rent freeze until people's incomes 'catch up' with soaring rents.
