Useful links about the defective concrete scheme

These are the official pages, laws, standards and research that come up most often. Most are run by government bodies. Where a document is legal or technical, check with your engineer, solicitor or local authority about what it means for you.

Official scheme pages

• The Defective Concrete Blocks Grant Scheme on gov.ie: the Department of Housing's main page for the scheme.
• Statistics for the Defective Concrete Block Scheme 2026
• Scheme legislation and ministerial guidelines: the Department's collection of the laws and guidelines behind the scheme.

Legislation and regulations

• The Remediation of Dwellings Damaged by the Use of Defective Concrete Blocks Act 2022: the main law that sets up the scheme.
• Legal definitions in section 2 of the 2022 Act: where terms such as "defective concrete blocks" and the reference to I.S. 465 are defined.
• S.I. No. 85 of 2022: early amendment regulations.

Other regulations and orders made under the Act include:

• the Regulations of 2023
• the Amendment Regulations of 2024
• the Increased Grant Regulations of 2026
• commencement orders, for example S.I. 57 of 2026
• section 11 orders and local authority designation orders

You can find these through the Department's legislation and guidelines collection.

Key scheme documents

• Your Questions Answered (PDF, Housing Agency)
• Circular on the commencement of the Defective Concrete Blocks (Amendment) Act 2025 and the Increased Grant Regulations 2026

Technical standards

I.S. 465:2018 (as amended) is the standard used to assess homes for defective concrete blocks.

• The I.S. 465:2018 standard (PDF, NSAI)
• NSAI's protocol to assess homes suspected of being affected by mica: the background to I.S. 465.
• Engineers Ireland's IS 465 training course

Tax

• Revenue: Local Property Tax exemption for properties built with defective concrete blocks

Banking and finance

• Banking & Payments Federation Ireland's information on defective concrete blocks
• PTSB's help for customers with defective concrete blocks

Other supports and information

• SEAI's information for homeowners affected by defective concrete blocks
• Citizens Information: schemes for houses affected by pyrite or mica
• Resources from defectiveblocks.ie
• HomeCheck: pyrrhotite and mica in Donegal concrete blocks

Scientific research

The government has also published research updates on pyrrhotite and internal sulfate attack, the processes behind the damage. Published studies include:

• Defective homes in Donegal, Ireland: effect of exposure conditions and concrete quality on pyrrhotite oxidation and internal sulfate attack (ScienceDirect)
• High risk ACMU from County Donegal: insights from the mass IS465 dataset, macroscopic quantification of pyrrhotite risk and the petrographic atlas (ResearchGate)
• Internal sulphate attack in masonry mortars with thaumasite formation (PubMed Central)

For a plain-language explanation, see our page on the science.