Right to Rent requires lettings agents in England to check that all tenants who occupy their properties have legal status to live in the UK. This means that before you can rent a home in England, a letting agent must undertake ID checks prior to letting out the property. The Home Office introduced Right to Rent checks with the aim of making it harder for people to live and work in England illegally....
| Right to Rent Check | When carrying out a Right to Rent check, your letting agent must carry out a check on all prospective tenants over the age of 18, even if they are not named on the tenancy by either: Checking an original form of ID (from a list of acceptable identification documents) in the presence of the prospective tenant or using an approved identity service provider (IDSP) to check your ID or viewing a tenant’s Right to Rent online via the Home Office ‘share code’ system Agents are also legally required to make follow-up checks where identification is time-limited (e.g. student visa). |
| Home Office Share Code system | As an overseas national with a Home Office immigration status, you can simply provide a share code along with your date of birth to any letting agent. They will be able to check the Home Office’s real-time system to generate your Right to Rent decision without needing any other documentation. |
| Right to Rent for overseas tenants | If you are trying to arrange a tenancy from abroad, landlords can agree to a tenancy in principle subject to an ID check on arrival. If you are unable to provide the accepted documents confirming your identity and right to live in the UK then you will not be able to rent property in England. |
| Application with the Home Office | If the Home Office is holding your documents because of an ongoing application or outstanding case/appeal, your letting agent can request that they carry out the Right to Rent check. This can be done via an online form or by calling the Landlords Helpline on 0300 069 9799, they will need your Home Office reference number to do this |
| Time-limited stay in the UK | Landlords and letting agents are legally obliged to carry out the Right to Rent check again to establish a time-limited statutory excuse. If the agent is not able to complete this check they will need to make a report on you to the Home Office, otherwise, they can incur significant fines. If the follow-up check shows that you no longer have the right to live in the UK, they must report it to the Home Office. If you don’t have any restrictions on your right to stay in the UK (such as if you are a British or Irish citizen or an EU national who has documents to prove your ‘Settled Status’) then your landlord or letting agent won’t need to carry out any further checks |
Take a look at the Government’s guidance A short guide on right to rent for more information.
https://www.gov.uk/prove-right-to-rent
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