To let a home in England you need your lender's consent, an EPC of band E or above, a gas safety record (if there is gas), an EICR, any HMO or selective licence, a Right to Rent check on every adult, a written statement of terms before signing, and the deposit protected within 30 days. No landlord registration exists yet.
By Stevie Hayes · Updated 16 October 2026 · Figures checked against legislation.gov.uk and GOV.UK on 16 October 2026 · How we verify · Statutory penalties are maximums; councils and courts decide the amount.
| Fact | Position | Since / status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registration | No landlord register is in force in England; the PRS Database is not yet in force and GOV.UK has announced a regional rollout from 15 December 2026 | Checked 16 October 2026 | GOV.UK: Renting out your property (landlord responsibilities, HMOs, mortgage consent) |
| Licence | Mandatory HMO licence for five or more people in two or more households; additional and selective schemes vary by council | Housing Act 2004 Part 2 (HMO licensing) | |
| Certificates | EPC band E or above; gas safety record every 12 months; EICR every five years; copies to the tenant | Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 reg 36 | |
| Advertising | State a single rent and take no bids; no blanket bans on children or benefits; penalties up to £7,000 | 1 May 2026 | Renters' Rights Act 2025 s.56 (requirement to state rent and avoid rental bidding) |
| Before signing | Right to Rent check on every adult; holding deposit no more than one week's rent; no rent before the agreement is signed | 1 May 2026 for rent in advance | Renters' Rights Act 2025 s.9 (no rent in advance before the tenancy is entered into) |
| Written statement | Prescribed terms in writing before the tenancy is entered into; penalty up to £7,000 | 1 May 2026 | Housing Act 1988 s.16D (written statement of terms) |
| Deposit | Up to five weeks' rent; protected and prescribed information given within 30 days beginning with receipt | Housing Act 2004 s.213 (deposit protection within 30 days) | |
| Tax | Property allowance £1,000; Self Assessment above £2,500 net or £10,000 gross; Making Tax Digital above £50,000 gross, falling to £20,000 by April 2028 | GOV.UK: Renting out your property: paying tax (property allowance and Self Assessment thresholds) |
Four things come before any tenant, and three of them are not housing law at all. This guide sets out the duties in the order they arise for a first let in England; it describes the law and is not advice on your situation.
GOV.UK's definition is the one to apply: a property is a house in multiple occupation if "at least 3 tenants live there, forming more than one household" and "toilet, bathroom or kitchen facilities are shared". A couple, or a family, is one household; three friends are three. The consequences:
Registration is different from licensing, and it is not here yet. The Private Rented Sector Database created by the Renters' Rights Act 2025 is not yet in force: the registration duty has not been commenced and the regulations are a draft, with GOV.UK announcing a regional rollout from 15 December 2026. Until then there is nothing to register on. Our PRS Database guide tracks the dates.
Three certificates, two sets of alarms and the general standard of the home. Each has its own cadence and its own penalty; the figures are statutory maxima and the council or court sets the amount.
| Item | What the law requires | Penalty (up to) | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy Performance Certificate | Valid EPC (ten years) made available free to prospective tenants no later than the first written particulars or the viewing; the home must be band E or above to let unless an exemption is registered | £200 for not providing it; £5,000 per property for a band F or G let | EPB Regs 2012 reg 6, reg 38; MEES reg 40 |
| Gas safety record | Every appliance and flue checked by a Gas Safe registered engineer at intervals of not more than 12 months; copy to a new tenant before they occupy | Criminal offence: unlimited fine, up to two years' imprisonment | GSIUR 1998 reg 36; HSWA 1974 s.33 |
| Electrical Installation Condition Report | Fixed wiring inspected and tested by a qualified person at least every five years; copy to a new tenant before they occupy | £40,000 per breach | SI 2020/312 reg 3, reg 11 |
| Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms | A smoke alarm on every storey with living accommodation and a CO alarm in any room with a fixed combustion appliance (gas cookers excepted), in working order on the first day of the tenancy | £5,000 for not complying with a remedial notice | SI 2015/1693 reg 4, reg 8 |
| Furniture | Upholstered furniture you supply must meet the fire-resistance requirements and carry the permanent label | Criminal offence under consumer-protection law | Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988 |
| Water system | Assess the risk from legionella and act on it; HSE says a simple assessment by the landlord is usually enough for a domestic property and no certificate is required | Health and safety enforcement | HSE: legionella and landlords |
| Repair and fitness | Structure, exterior and installations kept in repair, and the home fit for human habitation throughout; the council can inspect under the HHSRS and serve notices | Tenant claim (no cap); £40,000 for ignoring a council notice | LTA 1985 s.11, s.9A; HA 2004 Pt 1 |
The EICR figure was raised from £30,000 on 1 November 2025. Our guides on which certificates a landlord needs and the EICR go into each one.
The Renters' Rights Act 2025 changed what a first advert may say and what you may ask for before anyone signs. Since 1 May 2026:
Section 21 was abolished for private tenancies on 1 May 2026. Possession now needs a ground in Schedule 2 to the Housing Act 1988, a Section 8 notice on Form 3A with the notice period that ground carries, and a court order if the tenant does not leave. The grounds a first-time landlord most often needs are selling (Ground 1A), moving in yourself or a close family member (Ground 1) and serious rent arrears (Ground 8). Two points catch new landlords:
Changing the locks or pressuring a tenant out is unlawful eviction: a criminal offence, and since 1 May 2026 also a council civil penalty of up to £40,000 (RRA 2025 s.58). Our guides to Section 21's abolition, the Section 8 notice and every ground set out the procedure.
In the order a first let actually happens:
The landlord register, the ombudsman, the private-sector Decent Homes Standard, Awaab's Law for private tenancies and the EPC band C requirement are all enacted or announced but not in force for private landlords on 16 October 2026; the table below gives each one's status. Nothing in this guide is a substitute for advice on your own letting.
Government changes that bear on this duty. Where the status says in force the rule already applies; everything else is not yet law for private landlords. Dates are quoted as the government has published them, checked on 15 October 2026.
| Change | Status today | Published timing | Sensible preparation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mandatory landlord and property registration on the Private Rented Sector Database (the landlord register), with an annual fee | regulations in draft | Regional rollout from 15 December 2026 (West Midlands first) to 15 September 2027 for all other purposes, per the draft Private Rented Sector Database Regulations 2026 | Keep copies, not just dates, of the gas safety record, EICR and EPC for each property, and know whether a licence applies; those are what the draft regulations say the entry needs. Source |
| Mandatory membership of a Private Rented Sector Landlord Ombudsman scheme | announced, dates to be confirmed | Government roadmap: landlords required to join "in 2028", after the Database launches; scheme conditions set during Phase 2 from 2026 | Keep a written complaints process and records of how tenant complaints were handled; the scheme will expect both. Source |
| Awaab's Law extended to private rented tenancies: fixed timescales to investigate and make safe serious hazards such as damp and mould | consultation open | Consultation published 9 October 2026, closes 18 December 2026; the government's impact assessment models phased implementation in 2028, 2029 and 2030. Not in force for private landlords. | Log every repair report with the date received and the date fixed, and keep dated photographs; the social-sector rules already turn on those dates. Source |
| A Decent Homes Standard applied to the private rented sector for the first time, enforced by councils | consultation closed, response awaited | Consulted 2 July to 12 September 2025 with a proposed start in 2035 or 2037; the roadmap lists implementation as "TBC, subject to consultation" | Nothing is required yet; the government's stated expectation is that landlords start works earlier where feasible. Source |
| Minimum energy efficiency standard for private rented homes raised from EPC band E to the equivalent of band C, measured against new EPC metrics, with a £10,000 per-property cost cap | policy decision, regulations not yet made | Government response published January 2026 alongside the Warm Homes Plan: a single compliance date of 1 October 2030 for all tenancies; properties without an EER C before 1 October 2029 must meet the new-metric standard. The amending regulations have not been made, so band E remains the only binding minimum. | If a property is below band C, read its EPC recommendations now; spending on recommended measures from 1 October 2025 is stated to count towards the cost cap. Source |
| Right to Rent digital checks must use a provider registered as a "RtR DVSP" on the government's digital verification register | in force | In force since 1 October 2026 (7th edition of the code of practice; SI 2026/700) | If you use an identity-checking app, confirm it appears on the register; the manual and share-code routes are unchanged. Source |
Not yet. There is no national landlord registration in force in England. The Private Rented Sector Database in the Renters' Rights Act 2025 has not been commenced and its regulations are a draft; GOV.UK has announced a regional rollout from 15 December 2026. Licensing is different: a mandatory HMO licence, or a licence under a council's additional or selective scheme, must be held before you let where one applies.
Your lender's consent, an EPC of band E or above, a gas safety record if there is gas, an EICR, smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, any licence the council requires, a Right to Rent check on every adult occupier, a written statement of terms given before the tenancy is entered into, and the deposit protected within 30 days of receipt. Each has its own penalty if missed.
No. Since 1 May 2026 a private tenancy in England is periodic from the start, and any term purporting to fix an end date has no effect (Housing Act 1988 s.4A). The tenant can end the tenancy on two months' notice at any time; you can end it only on a Schedule 2 ground.
A tenancy deposit of up to five weeks' rent (six weeks where the annual rent is £50,000 or more), and a holding deposit of up to one week's rent. You cannot ask for rent before the agreement is signed; between signing and the start date you can ask for one month's rent (28 days' for a non-monthly tenancy).
Not as a class. Refusing or discouraging applicants because they have children or receive benefits is prohibited by the Renters' Rights Act 2025 (ss.33 and 34), with a council penalty of up to £7,000. You can still assess each applicant's affordability and references individually.
Rental profit is added to your other income and taxed at your marginal rate. The first £1,000 of property income is covered by the property allowance; above £2,500 after expenses, or £10,000 before expenses, you must file a Self Assessment return, registering by 5 October after the tax year ends. Mortgage interest is not an allowable expense for an individual landlord, though you get a basic-rate (20%) tax reduction on it. Qualifying income (before expenses) over £50,000 brings you into Making Tax Digital, with the threshold falling in April 2027 and to £20,000 from April 2028.
By a Section 8 notice on Ground 1A (selling) or Ground 1 (moving in), with a date at least twelve months after the tenancy began and a four-month notice period, followed by a court order if the tenant stays. After using either ground you cannot re-let or market the home to let until twelve months after the date in the notice.
Answer a few questions about the property you are about to let and see which of these duties are covered, which are missing and the maximum penalty each carries. The app then holds every date and reminds you before the last compliant day.
Free landlord exposure checkFrom the ComplyWithMe news feed: enforcement decisions and legislation changes, each linked to its official source.
Download the free app, then subscribe on the web at complywithme.co/subscribe — launch offer £59.99 for your first year with one property, then £119/year (until 28 February 2027, while 100 launch places last)from £119 a year for one property. Sign in with the same account and the full app unlocks.
