Right to Rent: What’s Changed From October 2026? A Landlord’s Guide
Right to Rent checks remain an important legal responsibility for landlords and letting agents in England but the way those checks are carried out is becoming increasingly digital.
From 1 October 2026, the Home Office has updated its Right to Rent guidance, including important changes around digital verification service providers, digital immigration status and the evidence landlords need to retain.
For landlords who have been using the same process for several years, now is a good time to ask a simple question:
Is your Right to Rent process still up to date?
At Allen Residential, we believe good compliance is about more than completing a checklist. It is about having a clear, consistent process that gives landlords confidence while ensuring prospective tenants are treated fairly.
Here is what landlords need to know.
What is Right to Rent?
The Right to Rent Scheme applies to residential lettings in England.
Landlords must establish that every adult who will occupy a property as their only or main home has the legal right to rent in England.
This applies regardless of nationality.
Importantly, an adult occupier does not necessarily have to be named as a tenant on the tenancy agreement. If they will be living at the property as their only or main home, they may need to have their Right to Rent checked.
The responsibility can fall on the landlord directly or, where the landlord has appointed an agent to carry out the relevant responsibilities, the agent.
What’s changed from 1 October 2026?
The Home Office’s updated guidance reflects the continuing transition towards digital immigration documentation and introduces clearer requirements surrounding Digital Verification Service Providers (DVSPs).
The updated guidance includes:
● New requirements relating to registered Right to Rent Digital Verification Service Providers.
● Clarification of the role that registered DVSPs can play in the Right to Rent process.
● Updates concerning acceptable documents and digital evidence.
● Further guidance reflecting the increasing use of eVisas.
● Updates relating to EU, EEA and Swiss citizens and their family members.
● Changes to the guidance so that Right to Rent checks apply consistently across nationalities.
● Updates to guidance concerning visa vignettes and other forms of immigration evidence.
The important point for landlords is that the Right to Rent obligation has not gone away.
The process is evolving.
The move towards eVisas
One of the most significant developments landlords need to understand is the move towards eVisas.
An eVisa is a digital record of a person’s immigration status and the conditions attached to their permission to stay in the UK.
Where an individual has an eVisa, they will generally demonstrate their Right to Rent through the Home Office’s online checking service.
Landlords should therefore be careful about relying on physical immigration documents simply because a tenant has provided one.
The Home Office has confirmed that Biometric Residence Permits (BRPs) are no longer issued, and individuals with digital immigration status should use the appropriate online service to demonstrate their status.
This means that a landlord’s traditional approach of simply photocopying a physical immigration document may no longer be sufficient in every case.
How does an online Right to Rent check work?
Where a prospective tenant has an immigration status that can be checked online, they can provide the relevant Right to Rent share code and their date of birth.
The landlord or agent then uses the Home Office’s online Right to Rent service to view the person’s status.
It is important that the landlord or agent accesses the relevant Home Office service directly.
A screenshot, email or document supplied by the prospective tenant should not simply be treated as a substitute for completing the prescribed online check.
The purpose of the process is to establish the person’s Right to Rent and, where applicable, any time limit attached to that right.
What is changing with Digital Verification Service Providers?
This is one of the areas landlords and agents should pay particular attention to.
A landlord can choose to use a Right to Rent Digital Verification Service Provider (DVSP) where the relevant conditions are met.
However, from the October 2026 guidance, landlords using a DVSP need to ensure that the provider is appropriately registered and authorised for Right to Rent purposes.
This is particularly relevant where landlords use third-party referencing, tenant-screening or identity-verification services.
A company offering an identity-checking service does not automatically mean that the service constitutes a compliant Right to Rent check.
Don’t assume outsourcing removes the landlord’s responsibility
Using a registered DVSP does not mean that a landlord can simply hand over the entire responsibility and forget about it.
The prescribed process still needs to be followed.
Where a DVSP is used, the landlord must obtain and retain the relevant output and satisfy themselves that the photograph and biographical information relate to the person who will
occupy the property.
The landlord should therefore understand exactly:
Who is carrying out the check?
What type of check is being carried out?
Is the provider appropriately registered?
What evidence will be supplied to the landlord?
How will that evidence be retained?
These are sensible questions to ask before relying on a third-party verification service. Manual Right to Rent checks haven’t disappeared. The increasing use of digital verification does not mean that every Right to Rent check must be completed digitally.
Where an individual has acceptable documents that can be checked manually, the manual process remains available.
Broadly, a manual check involves three key stages:
1. Obtain - Obtain the relevant original documents from the prospective occupier.
2. Check - Check the documents carefully to establish that they appear genuine, relate to the person presenting them and demonstrate a Right to Rent. The landlord or agent should also consider the relevant photographs, names, dates of birth and other identifying information.
3. Copy and retain - Make a clear copy of the relevant evidence and retain it securely, together with the date on which the check was carried out.
The Home Office requires landlords to retain the evidence for the duration of the tenancy and for at least one year after the tenancy ends.
When should a Right to Rent check be completed?
Timing matters.
For a person with an unlimited Right to Rent, the check can be completed before the tenancy agreement is entered into.
For a person with a time-limited Right to Rent, the check should generally be completed no earlier than 28 calendar days before the tenancy agreement is entered into.
That wording is important.
The relevant date is generally connected to when the tenancy agreement is entered into, rather than simply the date on which the tenant physically moves into the property.
For a written tenancy agreement, the Home Office guidance explains that this will generally be when the agreement is signed.
A professional letting process should therefore make sure Right to Rent checks are carried out at the correct point in the tenancy process.
What happens when a tenant has a time-limited Right to Rent?
A Right to Rent does not always last indefinitely.
Where a tenant has a time-limited Right to Rent, a follow-up check may be required.
Landlords and agents should have an effective system for monitoring these dates.
If the tenant remains in occupation and their Right to Rent is time-limited, the relevant follow-up check needs to be completed in accordance with the Home Office requirements.
This is an area where a diary or compliance management system can be particularly valuable.
A check being completed correctly at the beginning of a tenancy does not necessarily mean that the landlord’s Right to Rent responsibilities end there.
Is tenant referencing the same as a Right to Rent check?
No.
This is one of the most important distinctions for landlords to understand.
A tenant referencing report may contain information about:
● identity;
● employment;
● income;
● previous addresses;
● credit history; and
● other relevant information.
But a general referencing process is not automatically a Right to Rent check.
The Home Office makes clear that checks undertaken for other purposes, such as identity verification or tenant referencing, do not necessarily establish the statutory excuse available under the Right to Rent Scheme.
A landlord should therefore make sure that their referencing and Right to Rent processes are properly aligned.
What is a statutory excuse?
Correctly completing the prescribed Right to Rent checks and retaining the necessary evidence can provide a landlord with a statutory excuse against a civil penalty if an occupier is subsequently found not to have the right to rent.
However, that protection depends upon the prescribed process having been followed correctly.
Simply having:
● taken a copy of someone’s passport;
● completed a tenant reference;
● checked someone’s identity;
● used an online identity service; or
● received documents from a prospective tenant does not necessarily mean the landlord has established the required statutory excuse.The detail of the process matters. Right to Rent and discrimination. Right to Rent checks must be carried out fairly and consistently.
Landlords and agents should not make assumptions about someone’s immigration status based on:
● nationality;
● ethnicity;
● accent;
● appearance;
● name; or
● any other personal characteristic.
The Home Office has published a specific Code of Practice concerning avoiding unlawful discrimination when conducting Right to Rent checks.
Landlords should therefore apply their Right to Rent procedure consistently to prospective adult occupiers.
The objective is to establish whether an individual has a Right to Rent using the prescribed process not to make assumptions about whether they are likely to have one.
Prospective occupiers should also be given a reasonable opportunity to demonstrate their Right to Rent using any prescribed method that is available to them.
A Right to Rent health check for landlords.
If you manage your own property, now could be a good time to review your process.
Ask yourself:
✓ Are all adult occupiers being identified?
✓ Are Right to Rent checks being completed at the correct stage?
✓ Are you using the Home Office online service where appropriate?
✓ Are you familiar with the move towards eVisas?
✓ If you use a Digital Verification Service Provider, is it appropriately registered for Right to Rent purposes?
✓ Are you checking that the person presenting for the check matches the identity information returned?
✓ Are you aware of whether a follow-up check will be required?
✓ Are copies and dates being securely retained?
✓ Are your records retained for the required period?
✓ Are you applying the process consistently and avoiding discriminatory assumptions?
✓ Have you reviewed your procedure against the Home Office guidance updated on 1 October 2026?
If you cannot confidently answer each of these questions, your Right to Rent procedure may be worth reviewing.
The bigger picture for landlords
Right to Rent is just one part of the increasingly detailed compliance responsibilities involved in letting property.
The challenge for landlords is not simply knowing that a check needs to happen.
It is making sure that the right person is checked, using the right process, at the right time, with the right evidence retained afterwards.
The move towards eVisas and digital verification means landlords should not assume that a process that worked several years ago will necessarily remain appropriate today.
And while technology can make the process easier, it does not remove the need for landlords to understand their responsibilities.
Is your Right to Rent process ready for 2026?
The October 2026 update is a timely reminder for landlords to review their procedures.
If you manage your own property, take a few minutes to check that your current process reflects the latest Home Office requirements.
If you use a letting agent, it is also worth asking how Right to Rent checks are carried out, what records are retained and how follow-up checks are monitored.
At Allen Residential, we understand that effective property management is about more than finding a tenant. It is about helping landlords navigate the responsibilities that come with letting property professionally.
If you would like to discuss your current letting arrangements or how your property is being managed, contact the Allen Residential team.
This article is provided for general educational purposes and is not legal or immigration advice. Right to Rent requirements can change. Landlords should always refer to the latest Home Office guidance and applicable legislation when carrying out Right to Rent checks.
Sources: Home Office, Landlord’s guide to Right to Rent checks: 1 October 2026; Home Office, Code of Practice on Right to Rent: avoiding unlawful discrimination.
