Right to rent checks: who checks, when, and what an agent can take on
Before a tenancy begins, landlords and their agents in England must check that every adult who'll live in the home as their only or main home has the right to rent, whatever their nationality. Done correctly, with records kept, the check gives you a statutory excuse against a civil penalty if an occupier later turns out not to have the right. It doesn't help if you knew they had no right to rent.
Who you have to check
Check every tenant aged 18 or over, even if they aren't named on the agreement, or there's no agreement, or it isn't in writing. Lodgers count, and checking only the people you think aren't British is against the law. Children under 18 aren't checked.
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Who you don't have to check
You don't need to check tenants in social housing, care homes, hospices or hospitals, a qualifying hostel or refuge, accommodation a council arranges because it owes the person a housing duty (homeless or threatened with homelessness), student halls (or a student nominated by their college, university or a charity), tied accommodation from an employer (unless the employee pays rent under a tenancy), a mobile home on its site, or a lease of 7 years or more that can't be ended early. If you let any other home to students in the private rented sector, or let a mobile home to someone else, you check everyone, British citizens included.
Agreements first made before 1 February 2016 (1 December 2014 in Birmingham, Wolverhampton, Dudley, Sandwell and Walsall) aren't covered.
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When to check
Check before the tenancy agreement is entered into, which for a written agreement is usually the day it's signed, not the day the tenant moves in. Someone with a time-limited right to rent must be checked no earlier than 28 days before then; someone with an unlimited right, such as a British or Irish citizen, any time before. Your excuse depends on the check being made before the agreement; a report to the Home Office later can't make up for a missed initial check.
When a new adult joins through a variation, assignment or surrender and regrant, check all the adults, not only the newcomer; a renewal with the same tenants and no break needs no new check. Nor does a tenancy that arises by a court order, by or under a statute, or by operation of law, rather than by a new agreement.
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How to check
You can check the tenant's original documents yourself; for a British or Irish citizen you can use a registered Digital Verification Service instead; and if they have a share code you can view their right to rent online, checking that the photo on the result is your tenant. With original documents, check them with the tenant present, in person or on a live video call with the originals in your hands, make copies that can't be changed, and record the date. British and Irish citizens can't get a share code, so check their documents, such as a passport, current or expired. You can't accept a biometric residence card or permit; ask for a share code instead. A share code lasts 90 days and works with the person's date of birth, and if a tenant has an accepted original document you can't insist on the online route.
If they have neither the documents nor a valid share code, you must use the Home Office Landlord Checking Service, which answers within 2 working days. Keep the copies, or the saved online result, for the whole tenancy and one year after. The Home Office guidance updated for checks from 1 October 2026 requires registered providers for digital checks.
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Follow-up checks
Where the right to rent is time-limited, do a follow-up check shortly before the later of 12 months after your last check and the end of their permission to stay (or of their immigration document's validity, if that is later still). Where the online check gives a follow-up date, that's the date. If they fail it, report it to the Home Office as soon as reasonably practicable after you find out, and before your current excuse runs out. Making the report keeps your excuse, so you don't have to end the tenancy. Not reporting a failed follow-up check can mean a fine or up to 5 years in prison.
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Using a letting agent
You can ask an agent who lets or manages the home to do the checks for you, and the agreement should be in writing. Where a letting agent (a business) has taken the checks on in writing, any civil penalty falls on the agent; otherwise the responsibility stays with you. The agreement should say whether it covers follow-up checks as well as the first ones.
A tenant who sub-lets or takes in a lodger becomes responsible for checking them, unless you agree in writing to take it on. Buying a home with tenants in it, confirm with the seller that checks were done and keep the evidence.
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What it costs to miss
If you let to someone without the right to rent and can't show you checked in time and followed up when due, the Home Office can fine you for each of them, at the amounts below. It counts as a repeat if you were in breach, and had a penalty notice you can no longer object to or appeal, within the previous three years. Paying a first penalty within 21 days cuts it by 30%. You can object within 28 days, then appeal to the county court.
| Who | First breach | Repeat breach |
|---|---|---|
| Lodger in a private household | £5,000 | £10,000 |
| Tenant in rented accommodation | £10,000 | £20,000 |
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Knowing breaches and discrimination
It is also a criminal offence to be the landlord of a home occupied by an adult you know, or have reasonable cause to believe, has no right to rent, with up to five years in prison, a fine, or both, on conviction on indictment. Treat everyone the same way: compensation for unlawful discrimination has no upper limit.
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What Datestone does for you
Each tenancy's checklist carries the right to rent check, dated to the tenancy start, which is the latest it could fall. If you sign before the tenant moves in, the check has to be done before you sign. It links to GOV.UK's guidance. Record a check that found a time-limited right and the checklist dates the follow-up for you: the later of a year after your check and a month before the permission ends.