Certain Right to Rent Checks Become Online Only

Landlords or their agents are legally required to carry out right to rent checks and have had to do so since the 1^st February 2016. Up until now, these checks have mostly been done manually with the landlord or their agent physically checking the documents of a prospective tenant. This is due to change on the 6^th of April 2022 when certain checks will only be able to be completed using the Home Office online right to rent check system. In this article we will cover what right to rent checks are and which ones will only be accessible online.

What are right to rent checks

Under the immigration act 2014 it became a requirement for landlords to check that any new tenants had the legal right to reside in the UK. This required a review of the tenant’s residency documents, such as passport, identity card, residence card or immigration status document to ensure that they have the right to live in the UK. Without these checks and without a right to reside in the UK, a landlord is legally not allowed to let the tenancy commence.

What is changing?

For certain document types, the right to rent check, from April 6^th, 2022, will only be accessible online. At the moment, the tenant can choose whether to provide paper copies or use the online system. For prospective tenants who have a biometric residence card, a biometric residence permit or a frontier work permit, the right to rent check will have to be done online from the April the 6^th date. The landlord will no longer be allowed to accept the physical documents and take a copy as part of the process, even if the paperwork and the permits are completely in order. This will not apply retrospectively, so anyone in an existing tenancy who provided physical documents and started their tenancy prior to the 6^th April 2022, will not need to be re-checked.

How will the process work?

More guidance will be published by the Government closer to the time, but in essence a tenant will be set up on the Government database when they get their residence permits. They will also get what is called a share code. All a landlord will need to do is access the online website, enter in the tenant’s details and the share code and they can then carry out the appropriate check.

At the moment, this system is mostly set up for foreign nationals who have to register with the immigration office. For British and Irish citizens there is no “automatic” registering on the Home Office system. The Government does intend, however, to introduce certified Identification Document Validation technology service providers who will be able to carry out the required digital checks. It is anticipated that these would also come into force on the 6^th of April and, again the Government will give more guidance closer to the time.

The right to rent checks are a legal requirement and the new online service will make things a lot simpler for landlords and their agents. As the government releases the new guidance, landlords should make sure they fully understand it.