Right to Rent: why we ask for ID

Right to Rent checks apply to tenancies in our areas that began on or after 1 February 2016. If you have an older, protected tenancy, they don't apply to your current home. See Are you a protected tenant?.

Before a new tenancy starts, we'll ask every adult who is going to live in the home to show that they have the right to rent in the UK. It isn't a judgement about you, and it isn't something we can skip. It's a check the law asks every landlord in England to make, and we make it in the same way for everyone.

Why we ask

The Immigration Act 2014 says a landlord must not let an adult live in a home under a tenancy if that person does not have the right to rent. The government's guidance says landlords must check all tenants aged 18 and over before a new tenancy starts, including adults who are not named on the tenancy agreement.

The same guidance is clear that it is against the law to check only the people a landlord thinks are not British citizens. So we ask everyone. That's what makes it fair.

How you can show it

You choose the way that suits you.

• British and Irish citizens can show a British passport or an Irish passport or passport card (current or expired), or a certificate of registration or naturalisation as a British citizen. No passport? You can use two documents from the government's list instead, such as a UK driving licence and a UK birth certificate.
• Everyone else can get a share code online from the Home Office and give it to us with your date of birth. We then check your status on the government's online service. You can use your original immigration documents instead, if they are on the accepted list. The government says a landlord cannot turn you down because you gave an eligible document rather than a share code.

If we look at original documents, we need to see them with you there. We then keep a copy and note the date of the check. The guidance asks landlords to keep these records while you rent from us and for one year after.

If your permission to stay has a time limit

The check has to happen in the 28 days before your tenancy starts. We'll also need to check again later, just before the end of your permission to stay or 12 months after the last check, whichever is later. This is a routine step the law requires, not a sign that anything is wrong.

Find out more

• Prove your right to rent (GOV.UK)
• Get a share code online (GOV.UK)
• Using other documents to prove your right to rent (GOV.UK)
• Landlord's guide to right to rent checks (GOV.UK)
• Immigration Act 2014, section 22 (legislation.gov.uk)