UK Landlord Compliance Checklist 2026

Letting a property in England and Wales comes with a long list of legal requirements, and the penalties for missing them range from fines to losing the ability to evict your own tenant. This checklist covers everything you need in place in 2026.

Gas safety

If the property has any gas appliances, you need an annual Gas Safety Certificate (CP12) carried out by a Gas Safe registered engineer. A copy must be given to the tenant within 28 days of the check, and to new tenants before they move in. Failure can mean fines of up to 6,000 pounds per appliance.

Electrical safety

An Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) is required at least every five years, with a copy given to the tenant before they move in or within 28 days of the inspection. Local authorities can fine landlords up to 30,000 pounds for non-compliance.

Energy performance

The property must have a valid Energy Performance Certificate with a rating of E or above. F and G rated properties cannot legally be let, with penalties of up to 5,000 pounds. A copy of the EPC must be given to the tenant.

Fire safety

A working smoke alarm is required on every storey, and a carbon monoxide alarm in any room with a fixed combustion appliance. Any furniture you provide must meet the 1988 fire resistance regulations.

Deposit protection

The deposit must be placed in a government-approved scheme within 30 days of receipt, and the prescribed information about the scheme served on the tenant in the same window. Get this wrong and the tenant can claim up to three times the deposit — and any Section 21 notice you serve is invalid until fixed. Deposits are capped at five weeks rent where the annual rent is under 50,000 pounds.

Right to Rent

You must check that every adult occupier has the right to rent in the UK before the tenancy starts, and keep copies of the evidence. Civil penalties for getting this wrong run into thousands of pounds per occupier.

Paperwork

The tenant must receive the current version of the government How to Rent guide at the start of the tenancy, and you should have a written tenancy agreement signed by all parties, plus a signed inventory. Without the How to Rent guide, a Section 21 notice is invalid.

Keeping on top of it

Most compliance failures are not deliberate — they happen because certificate renewal dates slip past unnoticed. Diarise every expiry date the day you receive a certificate, and review the whole list before every new tenancy.