Help to Buy (HTB) scheme

Can Revenue claw back a refund?

Revenue can claw back refunds if you:

  • were not entitled to the refund
  • do not live in the property for a minimum of five years
  • did not finish the process to purchase the property
  • or
  • did not finish building the property.

Revenue can claw back refunds from the contractor if:

  • the property is not purchased by you within two years from when the refund was made to the contractor
  • or
  • Revenue has reasonable grounds to believe that the property will not be purchased by you within that two-year period.

There is some flexibility around the two-year period. This can apply if Revenue is satisfied that the property is either:

  • almost complete at the end of the two years
  • or
  • likely to be completed within a reasonable time period.

Once the property is completed and purchased by you, you are solely responsible for meeting the conditions for the Help to Buy refund. The developer is no longer responsible after this point.