On 1st February 2016 Right to Rent went live across England. This means all private landlords, including anyone subletting or taking in lodgers, need to carry out quick and simple checks on all new tenants to make sure they have the right to rent property in this country.
The roll out of Right to Rent has been informed by input from a panel of experts from trade bodies, local authorities, and housing charities and the Equality and Human Rights Commission and backed up by stakeholder events with landlords and agents.
Landlords need to check identity documents for all new tenants and take copies. A wide range of documents can be used for the checks, and the Government has worked closely with housing and homelessness charities to design a document list which can accommodate different individual circumstances. This includes where people do not have traditional identity documents such as a passport.
There are resources available to help landlords comply with the new rules, including an online checking aid which landlords can use to guide them through the process and to request a check on anyone who has an outstanding case with the Home Office.
For more information about making the checks go to www.gov.uk/righttorentchecks