Right to rent checks
Before any adult moves into a property you let in England, you must check they have the right to rent, and keep the evidence. Manual, online share-code or certified digital checks, and what to do about time-limited permission.
England. Checked against the law on 27 September 2026. Information, not legal advice.
Who you check
Every adult who will live at the property, tenant or not, before the tenancy starts. Checking only some applicants because of how they look or sound is discrimination.
How
- British and Irish citizens: see the original passport (or other listed document) in person or via a certified identity service provider, copy it, date the copy.
- Everyone else: the Home Office online service with the applicant's share code and date of birth. Keep the result.
- Time-limited permission: diarise a follow-up check before it ends. MyLandlordPA keeps the date on the tenant record.
Keep
The copies or the online check result for the whole tenancy and a year after. Penalties for letting to someone without the right to rent run into thousands per occupier, unless you can show you did the check.
Referencing is separate
Right to rent is a legal check. Referencing (income, previous landlord, credit) is your choice; MyLandlordPA can order it from the firm you pick and shows you the report. It never scores or ranks applicants for you.
Questions landlords ask
Do I need to check right to rent for a lodger?
Yes. The check applies to anyone over 18 who will occupy the property as their main home under any arrangement, lodgers included.
Can I do the check by video call?
For a share-code online check, the result itself is the check. For manual document checks you must see the original in person, or use a certified identity service provider.
What if the applicant's permission is time-limited?
You can let to them, but you must re-check before the permission expires (or after twelve months, whichever is later). Record the date.
More guides
What changed for landlords on 1 May 2026
The Renters' Rights Act came into force in England on 1 May 2026. Section 21 is gone, every tenancy is now periodic, and rent rises follow one procedure. Here is what a self-managing landlord actually has to do differently.
The assured periodic tenancy explained
Every private tenancy in England is now an assured periodic tenancy. What that is, how it starts, how it ends, and what your agreement can and cannot say.
How to raise the rent (once a year, section 13)
In England you can raise the rent once every twelve months, by a section 13 notice on the prescribed form with two months' notice. Here is the procedure and what the tenant can do about it.
Deposits: the cap, the 30 days and the prescribed information
A tenancy deposit in England is capped at five weeks' rent, must be protected in a government-approved scheme within 30 days, and the tenant must get the prescribed information. Miss any of that and you face a penalty of up to three times the deposit.
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The PA keeps every date in this guide for you and asks before anything that costs money.