Right to Rent is a legal requirement for landlords in England to check that all adult occupants of a rented property have the legal right to rent residential property in the UK before granting a tenancy. The requirement was introduced by the Immigration Act 2014 and applies to all private landlords.
Applies to England only: Right to Rent checks are not required for tenancies in Scotland, Wales, or Northern Ireland.
All adults (aged 18 or over) who will occupy the property as their only or main home must be checked, including:
You do not need to check children under 18. You do not need to check occupants who are staying for fewer than 28 days if the property is not their main home.
There are three ways to conduct the check:
| Document type | Check required | Follow-up check? |
|---|---|---|
| British/Irish passport or right of abode certificate | Before tenancy starts | No — indefinite right to rent |
| Biometric Residence Permit (BRP) | Before tenancy starts | Yes — before expiry date on BRP |
| UKVI share code (visa granted) | Before tenancy starts using online service | Yes — before visa expiry |
| Home Office Positive Verification Notice | Before tenancy starts | Yes — when notice expires |
| Offence | Civil penalty |
|---|---|
| First offence — letting to disqualified person | Up to £10,000 per occupier |
| Repeat offence | Up to £20,000 per occupier |
| Agent conducting checks (first offence) | Up to £5,000 per occupier |
You have a statutory excuse (protection from penalty) if you carried out the check correctly before the tenancy started and kept a copy of the documents. Keep all Right to Rent check records for the duration of the tenancy plus one year.
Covers all start-of-tenancy obligations including Right to Rent checks, deposit protection, prescribed information, How to Rent guide, gas safety, and EICR requirements.
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