You have the mortgage application half filled in, and then you hit the line asking for your Notice of Assessment for the last three years. If you are self-employed, that document lives in your Revenue Online Service (ROS) account, and it takes about two minutes to find once you know where to look. Here is the exact route, plus the separate route for PAYE taxpayers, who need a slightly different document.
What is a Notice of Assessment and why might I need one?
A Notice of Assessment is Revenue’s formal record of your Income Tax position for a given tax year. It is generated after a Form 11 has been filed and processed, and it pulls the figures from that return into one page.
- Your assessable income for the year, broken down by source
- Tax credits and reliefs allowed
- The Income Tax, Universal Social Charge (USC) and Pay Related Social Insurance (PRSI) charged
- Payments already made against the liability
- The resulting balance, whether that is an amount owing or a refund
It applies to anyone who files a Form 11 as a chargeable person: sole traders, proprietary directors, landlords with rental income, and people with significant income outside the PAYE system. The pay and file deadline for the 2025 Form 11 is 31 October 2026, extended to 18 November 2026 for returns both filed and paid through ROS.
So why do lenders want it? Because a Notice of Assessment is income evidence that you did not write yourself. Bank statements can be selective and management accounts are unaudited, but an assessment shows what you actually declared to Revenue and what tax arose on it. Mortgage lenders typically ask for the last two or three years. Grant bodies, Local Enterprise Office schemes and some tender processes ask for the same thing, often alongside a Tax Clearance Certificate.
Is a Statement of Liability the same as a Notice of Assessment?
Not quite, and this trips people up constantly. They do a similar job, but they come from different systems and carry different names.
A PAYE-only employee who completes an Income Tax Return through myAccount receives a Statement of Liability, which confirms whether they overpaid, underpaid or broke even for the year. A self-assessed taxpayer filing a Form 11 through ROS receives a Notice of Assessment instead.
| Taxpayer type | Return filed | Online service | Document produced |
|---|---|---|---|
| PAYE employee or pensioner | PAYE Income Tax Return (Form 12 equivalent) | myAccount | Statement of Liability |
| Sole trader or freelancer | Form 11 | ROS | Notice of Assessment |
| Proprietary director | Form 11 | ROS | Notice of Assessment |
| Employee with a small side income | Depends on the amounts involved | myAccount or ROS | Statement of Liability or Notice of Assessment |
Most checklists use “Notice of Assessment” as a catch-all term. If you are a PAYE worker and a Statement of Liability is all you have, ring the lender and ask before you panic. In our experience they almost always accept it, but get that confirmed rather than assumed. If you are unsure which category you fall into, our tax return service can confirm which return you are registered for.
What do I need before I look for the document?
Five minutes of preparation saves a frustrating session of failed logins.
- For ROS: your ROS digital certificate loaded in the browser you are using, plus the password for it. The Form 11 for the year in question must already have been submitted and processed.
- For myAccount: your usual sign-in details and your phone for two-factor authentication, or a supported identity service such as MyGovID.
- If you are not registered for myAccount yet: Revenue asks for your PPS number, date of birth, phone number, email address and home address.
- Before you download anything: confirm exactly which tax years the lender or grant body wants. Downloading 2024 when they asked for 2022, 2023 and 2024 just means doing it twice.
Where do I find and download my Notice of Assessment in ROS?
The route runs through your Revenue Record, which is the document archive attached to your ROS account.
- Go to revenue.ie and select Sign in to ROS, then load your digital certificate and enter your password.
- From the My Services screen, open the Revenue Record tab. This is your ROS Inbox.
- Use the search or filter controls to narrow the list: set the tax type to Income Tax, set the period or date range to the tax year you need, and set the document type to Notice of Assessment.
- Click the notice number in the results list to open the document.
- Select the PDF or download option, then save it with a filename you will recognise later, for example “Notice of Assessment 2024.pdf”. Print it only if a paper copy is specifically requested.
Earlier years work the same way. Change the period or date filter and the older notices appear, subject to what Revenue holds online for your record. If nothing loads, click Refresh Inbox, check that pop-ups are allowed for ROS, and note that Revenue confirms it is not possible to open Revenue Record documents in Microsoft Edge. Chrome, Firefox or Safari with Adobe Reader installed is the reliable combination. Revenue also publishes short video walkthroughs of the Revenue Record service.
Where do I find my Statement of Liability in myAccount?
PAYE taxpayers take a different path, and it is shorter.
- Go to revenue.ie and select Sign in to myAccount, then complete two-factor authentication.
- Open PAYE Services and choose Review your tax for the previous 4 years if you still need to request the statement for that year.
- Once the statement exists, click the My Documents folder on the myAccount home page.
- Select the relevant year folder from the Summary screen.
- Click View PDF, then save the file.
Revenue notes that you can review your tax for the previous four years, so in 2026 that covers 2022 to 2025. Menu labels in both services get tweaked occasionally, so if a heading reads slightly differently on screen, look for the nearest equivalent rather than assuming the service has moved.
When should my assessment become available?
No return, no assessment. The document cannot exist until the relevant Income Tax return has been submitted and processed by Revenue.
- ROS filers: check the submission receipt in your Revenue Record rather than assuming the Form 11 went through. A part-completed return sitting in your work-in-progress list has not been filed.
- myAccount users: the Statement of Liability is generated after Revenue processes the PAYE Income Tax Return. Revenue indicates it is normally available within five working days of the request.
- Either service: watch for messages asking for further information. An unanswered query stalls processing.
Allow reasonable time, particularly around the November ROS deadline when volumes peak. If you are up against a lender’s deadline, file early rather than at the last minute.
Frequently asked questions
What should I do if my Notice of Assessment is missing or will not download?
Work through the basics first: confirm the return was actually submitted for the correct year, check the ROS acknowledgement receipt and your Revenue Record inbox, and try a different supported browser with pop-ups enabled. If the document still will not appear, contact Revenue through MyEnquiries, the secure correspondence service available in both ROS and myAccount.
What should I do if the income or tax figures on the assessment are wrong?
Compare the assessment line by line against the return you filed and your underlying records. If the assessment matches the return but the return itself was wrong, an amended Form 11 is usually the fix. If the assessment does not match what you filed, that is a different problem and worth raising with Revenue directly. Either way, talk to your accountant or tax adviser before you amend anything, because an amendment can affect interest, surcharges and your preliminary tax position for the following year.
How do I appeal a Notice of Assessment, and what is the deadline?
A formal appeal goes to the Tax Appeals Commission, not to Revenue. You are generally allowed 30 days from the date on the Notice of Assessment, and you submit a Notice of Appeal form along with a copy of the assessment. Revenue also sets conditions before an appeal can be accepted, principally that you have submitted the return and paid the tax you declared on it. Thirty days goes quickly, so do not sit on a disputed assessment.
Can my accountant download the Notice of Assessment for me?
Yes, provided they are an authorised tax agent linked to your ROS record with the appropriate access. Confirm the authorisation is actually in place for the tax year concerned, and ask for the copy to be sent by a secure method rather than ordinary email. Many of our sole trader clients simply ask us for the last three years when a mortgage application starts.
What should I do next?
Work out which document you need, then go and get it.
- Self-assessed and filing a Form 11? You need a Notice of Assessment from your ROS Revenue Record.
- PAYE only? You need a Statement of Liability from My Documents in myAccount.
- Select the exact tax years requested, download each PDF and check that your name, the year, the income figures and the closing balance are all legible before sending.
- Share the files only through the secure upload portal or channel your lender, grant body or adviser specifies. Tax documents in an email chain are a data protection headache waiting to happen.
Sign in to ROS or myAccount now, pull the years you need, and use MyEnquiries if the document is not there. If the figures do not look right, or you are not certain the return was filed correctly in the first place, get in touch with the team in Limerick and we will check the record with you.
The information in this blog is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute accounting, tax, business, or legal advice. While Coffey & Co aims to ensure the content is accurate and up to date, no guarantee is given regarding its completeness or suitability for any particular purpose.