Temporary changes to the way right to rent checks are carried out, made during the pandemic, have been extended. This month, Anna Pettinger explains how this impacts landlords…
I need to carry out right to rent checks on prospective tenants. I believe changes were made to the procedure – are they still in place?
Landlords are legally required to undertake right to rent checks to verify the identity of tenants or lodgers and ensure they are entitled to reside in the UK.
If you rent to someone who is not a British or Irish citizen or does not have a ‘right to rent’ here, you could incur a civil penalty of up to £1,000 for your first offence and £3,000 for any subsequent breaches.
In response to the Covid pandemic, temporary adjustments were made to right to rent checks, which were due to end on April 6, however, they have now been pushed back to September 30 this year.
This extension gives you sufficient time to develop a relationship with a right to rent service provider and make the necessary changes to your pre-tenancy checking processes. Should you wish to put face-to-face document checking measures in place, you still have the opportunity.
There were three main changes to the right to rent checks implemented on March 30, 2020. They are:
- Checks can be carried out via video call
- Tenants can send scanned or photographed documents to be checked using email or a mobile phone app
- Landlords should use the Home Office Checking Service if a prospective or existing tenant cannot provide any acceptable documents. Likewise, tenants can evidence their right to rent by sharing their immigration status digitally using the Home Office’s Right to Rent service.
From April 6, certified identity service providers can also use Identification Document Validation technology to carry out right to rent checks on British and Irish citizens.
In summary, if a tenant doesn’t have the right paperwork, make sure you contact the Home Office’s Landlord Checking Service. If you need further guidance on the checks that are required and how to complete them, click here.
For more information about your right to rent responsibilities, don’t hesitate to contact me. Email: anna.pettinger@tayloremmet.co.uk
