Right to Rent checks: the landlord's guide
Right to Rent is a legal duty, not a referencing option. If you let residential property in England, you must check that every adult who will live there has the right to rent — before the tenancy starts. Get it wrong and the civil penalty is up to £10,000 per occupier for a first breach, and double that for a repeat.
The single most common mistake
Checking only the person on the tenancy agreement. The duty covers every adult aged 18 or over who will occupy the property as their only or main home — including a partner, an adult child, or a friend moving in — whether or not they are named on the agreement, and whatever their nationality.
Where it applies
England, and only England. The scheme comes from the Immigration Act 2014 and was never commenced in Scotland or Wales; it does not apply in Northern Ireland. If your property is outside England, you have no Right to Rent duty — though you still have every commercial reason to verify who your tenant is.
The three valid ways to check
Only these three discharge the duty. A scanned passport emailed over does not.
- Manual check of original documents. You see the originals with the person present — in person, or on a live video call while you physically hold the documents. You check they are genuine, that the photo and date of birth are consistent, and that the person in front of you is the person in the document.
- IDVT check through a certified identity service provider. Available for British and Irish citizens holding a valid passport, and increasingly the easiest route for those applicants.
- Home Office online service using a share code the tenant generates. This is now the normal route for anyone with a biometric residence permit, settled or pre-settled status, or a visa — many of whom have no physical document to show you at all, so refusing a share code effectively refuses a lawful applicant.
Whichever route you use, keep a clear, dated copy for the duration of the tenancy plus one year. That record is what gives you a statutory excuse if the Home Office ever comes calling.
What a breach actually costs
| Breach | Lodger | Occupier |
|---|---|---|
| First breach (no penalty in the previous 3 years) | £5,000 per lodger | £10,000 per occupier |
| Repeat breach (within 3 years of a previous penalty) | £10,000 per lodger | £20,000 per occupier |
Levels verified against the Home Office code of practice on 2 August 2026. They have applied since 13 February 2024 and carry forward unchanged into the code taking effect 1 October 2026. A lodger shares the accommodation with their landlord; an occupier is anyone authorised to occupy under the tenancy, named or not — which is why the per-head arithmetic gets expensive quickly in an HMO.
One mitigation exists: the Faster Payment Option takes 30% off a first-breach penalty paid within 21 calendar days — £5,000 down to £3,500, £10,000 down to £7,000. It does not apply to repeat breaches, and you lose it if you arrange to pay by instalments.
Follow-up checks
Only needed where someone had a time-limited right to rent. The follow-up is due when their permission expires or after 12 months, whichever is later. If it shows they no longer have the right to rent, you must report it to the Home Office — the report is what preserves your excuse. Anyone with a permanent right to rent, including British and Irish citizens and people with settled status, needs no follow-up at all.
Don't let compliance turn into discrimination
There is a real trap here, and the Home Office publishes a whole separate code of practice about it. Faced with unfamiliar documents, some landlords quietly default to “British passport holders only”. That is unlawful discrimination under the Equality Act 2010, it gives you no protection under the penalty scheme, and it rejects applicants who have a perfectly good right to rent.
The defensible position is the simple one: check everybody, the same way, every time, and accept any of the three valid methods. Applying one written process to all applicants is both fairer and far easier to defend than a judgement call made document by document.
Where it fits alongside referencing
Right to Rent answers one question — may this person lawfully rent in England? It tells you nothing about whether they can afford the rent, how they have handled credit, or whether their last landlord would take them again. Those need actual referencing. A £19 full reference includes a Right to Rent check alongside income and affordability, employer and previous-landlord references and anti-fraud — which is the tidiest way to discharge the duty and vet the applicant in one go.
FAQ
Does Right to Rent apply in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland?
No. Right to Rent is an England-only scheme under the Immigration Act 2014. It was never commenced in Scotland or Wales and does not apply in Northern Ireland. If your property is outside England you have no Right to Rent duty at all — though you still have identity and anti-fraud reasons to know who your tenant is.
Who do I have to check?
Every adult aged 18 or over who will occupy the property as their only or main home — not just the person named on the tenancy agreement. That catches an adult partner, an adult child, and a friend moving in with them. It applies regardless of nationality: checking only people who look or sound foreign is exactly the discrimination the Home Office's own code of practice warns against, and it is unlawful under the Equality Act 2010.
What are the three ways to carry out a check?
A manual check of original documents with the person present (in person or over a live video call while you hold the originals); an identity document validation technology (IDVT) check through a certified provider, available for British and Irish citizens with a valid passport; or the Home Office online service using a share code, which is how most people with a biometric residence permit, settled status or a visa now prove their right to rent. You must keep a clear copy, dated, for the tenancy plus one year.
How much is the fine if I get it wrong?
For a first breach, up to £5,000 per lodger or £10,000 per occupier. For a repeat breach within three years, up to £10,000 per lodger or £20,000 per occupier. A lodger is someone who shares the accommodation with you as their landlord; an occupier is anyone authorised to occupy under the tenancy, whether or not they are named on it. These levels have applied since 13 February 2024 and carry forward unchanged into the code of practice taking effect on 1 October 2026.
Is there any way to reduce a penalty?
Yes, for a first breach only. The Faster Payment Option cuts the penalty by 30% if you pay within 21 calendar days of the Civil Penalty Notice or Objection Outcome Notice — £5,000 becomes £3,500, and £10,000 becomes £7,000. It is not available on repeat breaches, and it is lost if you arrange to pay by instalments.
Do I need to do follow-up checks?
Only where the person had a time-limited right to rent. In that case a follow-up check is due when their permission expires, or after 12 months, whichever is later. If a follow-up check shows they no longer have the right to rent, you must report it to the Home Office — reporting is what preserves your statutory excuse. People with a permanent right to rent, including British and Irish citizens and those with settled status, need no follow-up check.
Does a Right to Rent check prove the tenant can afford the rent?
No, and conflating the two is a common mistake. Right to Rent is an immigration check: it establishes whether someone may lawfully rent in England, and nothing else. It says nothing about identity fraud beyond the documents shown, credit history, income, or whether a previous landlord would house them again. It is a legal duty you discharge alongside referencing, not a substitute for it.
Can I just refuse anyone without a British passport to keep it simple?
No. That is unlawful discrimination, and the Home Office publishes a separate code of practice specifically on avoiding it. Refusing applicants who hold a perfectly valid right to rent because their proof is less familiar to you exposes you to an Equality Act claim, and the civil penalty scheme offers no defence for it. Check everyone, the same way, using the methods above.
Disclaimer: This guide is general information for UK landlords, not legal or financial advice. Law and practice change — always confirm the current position, and take advice on anything that matters. Right to Rent is immigration law and the consequences of getting it wrong are financial and personal. Penalty levels and check methods were verified against GOV.UK on 2 August 2026; always confirm the current Home Office code of practice before relying on this page.