Right to rent checks

From 1 February 2016, anyone who rents out private property in England, including those subletting or taking in lodgers, will have to make right to rent checks. This means checking that tenants have the right to be in the UK.

This new ruling will help to protect against immigration abuse and prevent people from staying in the UK illegally. For new tenants who will live in the property as their main or only home, the checks will involve three steps:

• Obtain - tenants original documents that allow them to live in the UK
• Check - the validity of the documents with the tenant present
• Copy - and keep the copied documents on file and record the date of the check.

The checks need to be undertaken on all new tenants on or after 1 February and applies to all tenants, not just foreign nationals.

Failure to carry out the correct checks could leave a landlord liable to a civil penalty of £3000 per tenant.

More information can be found at Right to rent checks (opens new window)