For landlords
Right to Rent checks: what landlords must do
Right to Rent checks are a legal requirement in England before letting a room or property. What to check, when, how to do it, and why it applies to lodgers too.
Updated
Who has to do it
Right to Rent applies in England to anyone letting private residential accommodation as someone's main home. That includes a homeowner taking in a lodger, not just professional landlords.
You must check every adult occupier aged 18 or over, whether or not they are named on the agreement and whether or not they are paying rent. If three workers are sharing, you check all three.
Worth knowing. Right to Rent is England only. It does not apply in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.
How to do the check
There are two routes. For most people who hold a biometric residence permit, eVisa or similar digital status, you use the Home Office online checking service: they give you a share code, you enter it along with their date of birth, and you get a response you can save.
For British and Irish citizens, you either check original documents in the person's physical presence — or on a live video call while you hold the originals — or use a certified Identity Service Provider for digital identity verification.
Whichever route you use:
- Do the check before the agreement starts, not after
- Check every adult occupier, not just the lead tenant
- Keep a clear copy or the online response for the whole tenancy plus one year
- Record the date you made the check
- Apply exactly the same process to everyone — do not check based on how someone looks or sounds
Time-limited status and follow-up checks
If someone's right to be in the UK has an end date, their right to rent is time-limited and you need to repeat the check. The follow-up is due either when their permission expires or twelve months after the previous check, whichever is later.
If a follow-up check shows someone no longer has the right to rent, you must report it to the Home Office. Doing so is what protects you from a penalty.
Discrimination is the real risk
The most serious practical danger with Right to Rent is not missing a check — it is doing checks unevenly. Refusing to let to someone because they have a foreign name or accent, or asking only some applicants for documents, is unlawful discrimination under the Equality Act.
The safe approach is a single documented process applied identically to every applicant, every time, regardless of nationality. On a project drawing workers from across the country and beyond, this matters more than usual.
Primary sources
Check these rather than taking our word for it. Rules and thresholds change.
This guide is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Rules change and individual circumstances differ — check the primary sources above, your council, or take professional advice before making a decision.
Common questions
- Do Right to Rent checks apply to lodgers?
- Yes. If you take a lodger into your own home in England and it is their main home, you must carry out a Right to Rent check on them before the arrangement starts, exactly as a landlord letting a whole property would.
- Can I just take a photo of a passport over WhatsApp?
- No. A manual document check requires you to see the original document with the person physically present, or on a live video call while you are holding the original. A photo sent to you does not satisfy the requirement.
- How long do I keep the records?
- Keep the copies or online check responses for the duration of the tenancy and for one year after it ends. Record the date the check was made.
- What is the penalty for not checking?
- Civil penalties apply per occupier and are substantially higher for repeat breaches. Knowingly letting to a person who does not have the right to rent, or having reasonable cause to believe it, is a criminal offence carrying a prison sentence.