When does the landlord register open?

The government's Register your rental property service launches on 15 December 2026, starting in the West Midlands and rolling out to other areas over 12 months. When your area is called, you have three months to register. All landlords actively letting property must be registered by 14 November 2027.

How often can a landlord increase the rent?

Under the Renters' Rights Act, you can increase the rent no more than once a year, using Form 4A (the section 13 process) with at least 2 months' notice. Tenants can challenge an increase that is above the open market rent.

When did landlords have to give tenants the information sheet?

For tenancies that existed on 1 May 2026 with a written agreement, landlords had to give tenants the Renters' Rights Act Information Sheet by 31 May 2026. If the tenancy was verbal, landlords had to give written information about the key terms by the same date.

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Renters’ Rights Act: a landlord’s compliance checklist

The rules for private landlords in England changed on 1 May 2026, and the national landlord register opens in December. Here is what you must do now, what’s coming next, and the safety certificates that still apply to every let.

Based on GOV.UK guidance for landlords and MHCLG announcements, last checked 25 October 2026 · England only · General information, not legal advice

1 May 2026tenancies became assured periodic; section 21 ended

15 Dec 2026the landlord register opens, region by region

14 Nov 2027every landlord letting must be registered

The short version

All tenancies are now assured periodic tenancies with no end date, and you need a legal reason (a ground for possession) to evict.
Existing tenancies needed the information sheet (or written terms, if verbal) by 31 May 2026.
Rent can go up once a year at most, using Form 4A with at least 2 months’ notice.
Register on the new landlord register within 3 months of your region being called, and by 14 November 2027 at the latest.
Keep up the safety basics: gas safety check every 12 months, electrical inspection every 5 years, a valid EPC, alarms, and deposit protection within 30 days.

What changed on 1 May 2026

Assured shorthold tenancies became assured periodic tenancies, running on a rolling basis (for example monthly). A tenancy agreement can’t have an end date.
If you had a written agreement, you didn’t need a new one, but you had to give your tenants the Renters’ Rights Act Information Sheet by 31 May 2026. If the tenancy was verbal, you had to give written information about its key terms by the same date.
Section 21 “no fault” evictions have ended. You must serve a section 8 notice using one or more grounds for possession — often with 4 months’ notice, though some grounds are shorter.
You can’t use the selling or moving-in grounds in the first 12 months of a tenancy.
The court only has to give possession for rent arrears if the tenant owes 3 months’ rent.
You can’t take rent before the tenancy agreement is signed, discriminate against tenants on benefits or with children, or accept offers above your advertised rent. Tenants can ask to keep a pet, and you can only refuse for a valid reason.

Rent increases

To increase the rent, fill in Form 4A and give it to your tenant with at least 2 months’ notice (the section 13 process). You can’t increase the rent more than once a year, and rent review clauses can’t be used instead. Tenants can challenge an increase that’s above the open market rent. For now challenges go to the First-tier Tribunal; the government has announced that HMRC’s Valuation Office will take over these decisions in future.

The landlord register

The government’s Register your rental property service launches on 15 December 2026, starting in the West Midlands and reaching other areas over 12 months.

When your area is called, you’ll have 3 months to register.
All landlords actively letting property must be registered by 14 November 2027.
It will be a legal requirement, with a risk of a fine if you don’t register. A landlord who isn’t registered generally can’t get a possession order.
At first it applies to properties that are let or become occupied during the rollout. Later, you’ll need to register before marketing an empty property, and adverts will need to show the registration number.

Deposits

Put your tenant’s deposit in a government-approved scheme — the Deposit Protection Service, mydeposits or the Tenancy Deposit Scheme — within 30 days of receiving it, and give the tenant the required information within 30 days too: the scheme, its dispute service, the deposit amount, why you might keep some of it, and how to get it back. Under the new rules, a court will only give a possession order if the deposit was protected properly (or returned, or a challenge has been settled).

Safety certificates and alarms

What	How often	Key rule
Gas safety check	Every 12 months	By a Gas Safe engineer. Give new tenants a copy before they move in, and existing tenants within 28 days of each check.
Electrical inspection (EICR)	At least every 5 years	By a qualified person. Give tenants the report, and the council if it asks.
Energy Performance Certificate	Valid for 10 years	You must provide one. The minimum rating to let is E.
Smoke alarms	Checked on day one of each tenancy	On every storey used as living accommodation.
Carbon monoxide alarms	Checked on day one of each tenancy	In every room with a fixed combustion appliance (not gas cookers).
Right to rent	Before the tenancy starts	Check each adult tenant’s right to rent; repeat checks for time-limited permission.

Houses in multiple occupation with 5 or more people need an HMO licence, and some councils license other rented homes too — check with your council.

What’s coming next

Private Rented Sector Landlord Ombudsman. Membership will be compulsory for private landlords, likely with a small annual fee per property. The start date and fees hadn’t been set when we checked.
Decent Homes Standard. It will become a legal duty for private rented homes. No start date yet.
Awaab’s Law. Deadlines to investigate and fix hazards such as damp and mould will be extended to private renting. The government opened a consultation on how this will work on 9 October 2026.

Until timescales are set, it’s worth logging every repair request and how quickly you dealt with it — the evidence will matter if a complaint reaches the ombudsman or the council.

If a landlord breaks the rules

Councils have new powers to investigate. Tenants (and councils, for Universal Credit paid as rent) can apply for a rent repayment order for a wider range of offences, and the maximum has doubled from 1 to 2 years’ rent.

Your checklist

Confirm every existing tenant received the information sheet or written terms.
Diary the earliest date for each tenant’s next rent increase, and serve Form 4A at least 2 months before.
Check every deposit was protected, with the required information given, within 30 days.
Diary gas safety, EICR and EPC renewal dates for each property.
Get ready for the landlord register: gather property and certificate details now, and watch for your region being called.
Start a repairs and complaints log.

Landlord Compliance Workbook: dashboard and tenancies tab

Template that helps

Our Landlord Compliance Workbook keeps all of this in one Excel and Google Sheets file: a dashboard per property, your landlord register deadline, gas, EICR, EPC and alarm dates, deposits, the information sheet, right to rent, rent increase dates, repairs and complaints.

See the template on Etsy

Rental income over £30,000? Making Tax Digital starts for you in April 2027 — check your start date.

Official sources

General information for landlords in England, not legal advice. Last checked 25 October 2026.