The Home Office has significantly increased its enforcement activity in the private rented sector since 2023. The civil penalty regime was strengthened by the Illegal Migration Act 2023, and the penalty amounts were raised substantially in February 2024. Landlords who relied on informal verbal assurances or did not retain copies of documents are now the primary target of civil penalty notices.
This guide explains the current penalty regime, which checks you must carry out, how to document them correctly, and what to do if you receive a civil penalty notice.
Current Right to Rent civil penalty amounts (2026)
The civil penalty amounts for landlords were increased in February 2024 under the Immigration (Residential Accommodation) (Prescribed Requirements and Codes of Practice) Order. Current rates:
- First breach — £10,000 per occupant without the right to rent, where the landlord did not knowingly permit the occupation
- Subsequent breach (repeat offender) — £20,000 per occupant where the landlord has received a previous civil penalty notice in the preceding 3 years
- Knowingly permitting occupation — criminal offence: If you know or have reasonable cause to believe that a tenant or occupier does not have the right to rent, the offence becomes criminal. The criminal penalty on summary conviction is an unlimited fine; on indictment, up to 5 years' imprisonment
- Per occupant, not per property: The penalty is assessed per person without the right to rent. A property with three occupants none of whom had valid checks could generate a £30,000–£60,000 penalty
- Agent liability: Where a letting agent has been given responsibility for Right to Rent checks in writing, the civil penalty falls on the agent rather than the landlord. This must be agreed in the management agreement — verbal arrangements do not transfer liability
Who must carry out Right to Rent checks
The obligation falls on the landlord of a residential tenancy in England. This includes:
- Private landlords of any residential property in England — houses, flats, HMOs, rooms in a house
- Rent-to-rent operators who grant sub-tenancies are the immediate landlord for those tenants and must carry out checks on all adult occupants
- Lodger agreements: Resident landlords who take in a lodger must carry out Right to Rent checks on the lodger
- Letting agents: Only exempt if the landlord has formally assigned the obligation to them in writing in the management agreement
- Social housing and exempt accommodation: Local authority housing, student accommodation provided by certain educational institutions, and other prescribed categories are exempt. Private student landlords renting to international students are not exempt and must check
What the Right to Rent check involves
There are three methods for conducting a compliant Right to Rent check:
- Method 1 — Manual document check: Inspect the original document in person, check it is genuine and valid, copy it, and date-stamp the copy. Acceptable documents are listed in the Home Office's Landlords' Guide to Right to Rent. A UK or Irish passport, or a biometric residence permit, are the most common documents
- Method 2 — Home Office online check (Share Code): The tenant or occupier obtains a 9-character share code from the Home Office online immigration status service. The landlord enters the share code and the occupier's date of birth at gov.uk/landlords-online-right-to-rent. A valid online result provides a statutory excuse
- Method 3 — Registered Identity Service Provider (IDSP) check: Certain certified identity verification organisations can carry out a digital right to rent check using biometric and document verification. This provides an equivalent statutory excuse to a valid manual check
- Time-limited leave: If the occupier has a time-limited right to remain (e.g. a visa with an expiry date), you must carry out a follow-up check before the earlier of 12 months from the initial check or 1 month before the leave expires
- Retain documentation: Keep a clear copy of the document or the online check result for the duration of the tenancy plus 12 months after it ends
Common mistakes that generate civil penalty notices
The Home Office issues civil penalties for these errors most frequently:
- Accepting a copy rather than an original document: The manual check requires inspection of the original document in person. A photocopy or scanned image presented by the tenant is not valid
- Not checking all adult occupants: Every adult aged 18 or over who will occupy the property must be checked — not just the named tenant. Sub-letters, partners who move in, and any adult regularly occupying the property all require a check
- Not retaining copies: You must retain a copy of the document(s) checked, or the online check result. A log entry without a copy does not provide a statutory excuse
- Relying on an expired document: If the occupier's leave to remain has expired and you have not carried out a follow-up check, any subsequent period of occupation without the right to rent is a breach
- Using an IDSP that is not registered: Only Home Office-certified IDSPs provide a statutory excuse. Verify the provider's registration before commissioning a check
- Not dating the check: The copy of the document must be dated on the date you inspected the original to show when the check was carried out
What to do if you receive a Right to Rent civil penalty notice
A civil penalty notice will be sent to you by the Home Office. You have 28 days from the date of the notice to respond. Your options are:
- Pay the penalty: If paid within 21 days of the notice date, a 30% discount applies
- Object (within 28 days): You can object to the penalty by writing to the Home Office. Grounds for objection include: you are not the landlord; the person does not live at the property; you carried out a correct and compliant check and hold evidence of a statutory excuse
- Appeal to the County Court (within 28 days of an objection decision): If your objection is refused, you can appeal to the County Court on the same grounds
- Statutory excuse: The most powerful defence is evidence that you carried out a compliant check before the tenancy started and retained the required documentation. If you have a valid online check result or a copy of an acceptable document dated at the time of check, the Home Office cannot impose a civil penalty for that occupant
- Evidence required: Gather: your copy of the document(s) checked; the date of the check; confirmation you inspected the original; or the online right to rent check result printout
Right to Rent and the Renters' Rights Act 2025
The Renters' Rights Act 2025 does not change the substance of the Right to Rent obligation — that remains under the Immigration Acts. However, the RRA 2025 changes the tenancy landscape in ways that affect how Right to Rent checks must be managed:
- Periodic Assured Tenancies with no fixed end: Under a PAT, the tenancy runs indefinitely. You must carry out follow-up Right to Rent checks for any occupier with time-limited leave throughout the entire tenancy — not just at renewal
- Additional occupiers: If a tenant requests permission to take in a lodger or sub-letter, you must verify that any proposed additional adult occupier has the right to rent before they move in
- Eviction for Right to Rent failure: If a tenant loses the right to rent during a tenancy, the Home Office issues a notice to the landlord requiring them to evict. Under the RRA 2025, this is a mandatory Section 8 ground (Ground 7B). Failure to act on the notice exposes the landlord to continued civil penalty liability
Frequently asked questions
What is the maximum Right to Rent civil penalty in 2026?+
The maximum civil penalty for a landlord who failed to carry out a Right to Rent check, where the landlord did not knowingly permit the occupation, is £10,000 per occupant for a first breach and £20,000 per occupant for a subsequent breach (where a previous penalty was issued within the preceding 3 years). If the landlord knowingly permitted occupation by a person without the right to rent, the offence is criminal: on summary conviction an unlimited fine; on indictment up to 5 years' imprisonment.
What documents can a tenant show for a Right to Rent check?+
The most commonly used documents are: UK passport, Irish passport, Biometric Residence Permit, or the Home Office share code from the online immigration status service. The full list of acceptable documents is published in the Home Office Landlords' Guide to Right to Rent (available on gov.uk). Some documents provide unlimited leave and only need to be checked once; others provide time-limited leave and require a follow-up check.
Can I transfer my Right to Rent obligation to my letting agent?+
Yes, but only if the transfer is in writing in your management agreement. A verbal agreement with your agent does not transfer the civil penalty liability to them. If the written agreement specifically states that the agent has accepted responsibility for Right to Rent checks, and the agent fails to carry them out, the civil penalty falls on the agent rather than you. Confirm this is clearly stated in your management terms before relying on it.
I checked my tenant's documents — they looked genuine. Am I protected?+
You are protected from a civil penalty (you have a 'statutory excuse') if: (a) you carried out the check using the correct method (inspecting originals in person, or using the online share code system), (b) you retained a copy of the document dated on the day you inspected it, and (c) the document reasonably appeared genuine on the face of it. If you accepted a photocopy, did not retain the copy, or did not date it at the time of check, you may not have a statutory excuse even if the tenant had the right to rent.