Solar panels and planning permission

Size of solar panel array allowed

The installation of solar panels on domestic properties is exempt from planning permission. Since the 7th of October 2022, there is no longer a limit to the area of solar panels which can be installed on rooftops of homes, anywhere in the country. Solar installations will be able to cover the entire roof of a house. The 12m² or 50% roof limit which previously applied to houses has been removed nationwide.

There are some rules around protected buildings though. You may need to check if you need planning permission if:

• Your home is a protected structure

• Your home is located in a protected area, for example, an architectural conservation area

• If your house lies within a solar safeguarding zone - solar safeguarding zones are necessary to address aviation safety concerns due to the potential impact of glint and glare arising from increased solar developments in proximity to sites such as airports and hospitals which have helipads. Anyone seeking to avail of larger rooftop solar installations within solar safeguarding zones can apply for planning permission through the relevant local planning authority.

Positioning on the roof

There are rules for how close to the edge of your roof solar panels are allowed. Effectively you need to leave a margin around the edge of your roof.

• Bottom edge of roof: 50cm space

• Top of roof: 25cm space to ridge line

• Side edges of roof: 50cm space (where it's the open end of the roof, ie. not adjoining another property)

• To adjoining property: no space required. If you are mid-terrace / semi detached, you can go right up to the adjoining wall.

Free standing solar panels

The above is assuming the solar panels are on your roof. The rules are slightly different for free-standing panels (i.e. those mounted on a frame on the ground.)

You do not need planning permission for free standing solar panels as long as:

• the solar panels are less than 2 metres above ground

• the private open space to the rear or side of the house is not reduced to less than 25 square metres

More Information

As always please do check planning permission yourself. We are not planning experts and there'll be other cases we don't know about. You can find out more information here:

Information on New Solar Panel Planning Permission rules on Gov.ie

Citizens Information website on planning permission rules.

Official current planning permission rules for solar panels on IrishStatusBook.ie