Right to Rent

All private landlords have to make right to make rent checks. This means checking that tenants have the right to be in the UK.

What this means for landlords

You need to make right to rent checks if you:

• are a private landlord
• have a lodger
• are sub-letting a property
• are an agent appointed by a landlord to make right to rent checks.

What this means for tenants

All tenants with tenancy agreements for privately rented accommodation after 1 February 2016 will be checked by a landlord or agent to make sure they have the right to rent.

Tenants who sub-let their room will also need to make right to rent checks.

Documents tenants can provide

Landlords will need to see certain documents which prove that the tenant has the right to be in the UK

Landlords who don't make the checks can be fined up to £3,000 if they rent out a property to someone who's in the UK illegally. Right to rent checks have been introduced as part of the government's ongoing reforms to the immigration system.

How to Rent Guide

Landlords must make sure their tenants receive a copy of the "How to Rent" guide put together by the Government, this should be the current version at the time it is given. Landlords who have not issued tenants with a How to Rent guide will not be able to serve a Section 21 until they have done so. This does not impact the landlord's ability to issue a Section 8 notice. For more information on the process for issuing a valid notice seeking possession please see the Gov.uk website