Latest Right to Rent checks for landlords

The Government has updated its Right to Rent regulations for landlords.

Every landlord must carry out Right to Rent checks on all new tenants to ensure they have the right to live in the UK. This means checking the immigration status of all potential tenants before they move into a rented property.

British and Irish citizens enjoy an unlimited Right to Rent in the UK as do individuals who have the right of abode, have been granted settlement or who enjoy settled status including via the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS).

Time-limited right to rent

Some tenancy applicants may have a time-limited right to rent, if they have valid immigration permission for a limited period. They will have a right to reside here and will be able to provide documentary evidence (physical or digital) to prove this. This group will include:

• individuals with valid Permission to Enter or Stay for a time limited period, or time-limited permission under the points-based immigration system
• individuals with an outstanding application with the Home Office

For those individuals who have been granted an eVisa, the Home Office online service ‘Check a tenant’s right to rent in England: use their share code’ page will confirm whether you will need to conduct a follow-up check and, if so, the deadline for when the follow-up check is required.

Landlords will not be liable for a civil penalty if they let accommodation for occupation by someone with a time-limited right to rent but they can conduct checks on potential tenants with a time-limited right to rent up to 28 calendar days before the start of a tenancy and should retain evidence of the check along with the date of when the check was made for the duration of the tenancy plus at least one year.

The Government updates its  guidance from time to time and the latest amendment was implemented on 18^th October this year and the most significant change removed the requirement of landlords to verify a Certificate of Application ((CoA) with the Landlord Checking Service when conducting a Right to Rent online digital check involving an EU settlement scheme application made on or after 1^st July, 2021.

Can responsibility for the checks be transferred?

Responsibility under the Right to Rent Scheme lies with the landlord but there are some circumstances in which responsibility for compliance can be transferred. Landlords can use the services of a letting agent to manage or let their properties – although there should be a written agreement outlining the responsibilities of each party. In these cases, letting agents will incur any penalty for non-compliance or breach of regulations.

If an agent establishes that a potential tenant does not have a right to rent, they should report this to the landlord. If the landlord then rents a property to this individual, then it is the landlord who becomes liable for the penalty.

Are children included in Right to Rent checks?

This scheme does not apply to children. Landlords do not need to check a tenant’s children but should satisfy themselves that they are under the age of 18 when the tenancy begins.

Landlords may allow those who will turn 18 during a tenancy to continue to carry on living at the property. They are not required to conduct a right to rent check at the point the child becomes 18 but where follow-up checks are required for the existing tenants, the now adult should be included in those checks.

Treat all potential tenants fairly

Landlords must ensure they do not discriminate when carrying out right to rent checks.

They should:

• be consistent in how they conduct right to rent checks on all adult prospective tenants, including those who the landlord believes are more likely to be British citizens
• ensure that no prospective tenants are discouraged or excluded, either directly or indirectly, because of known or perceived protected characteristic

They should not:

• discriminate when conducting right to rent checks
• simply check the status of those who the landlord thinks appear or are likely to be migrants
• treat those with a time-limited right to rent more or less favourably
• treat those who have access to the Home Office online checking service more or less favourably
• treat those who provide a manual documentation as listed in the list of acceptable documents more or less favourably
• make assumptions about a person’s right to rent or their immigration status on the basis of their colour, nationality, ethnic or national origins, accent or length of time they have been resident in the UK.

This is a brief summary of the Right to Rent regulations. For more details, visit the Government website here.

For further assistance and expert guidance, we recommend consulting a Phillip Mann agent. At Phillip Mann, we provide an extensive range of services to landlords and tenants. To learn more, please contact us today.