Right to Rent and the Renters' Rights Act 2025: What Changed for Landlords

The Renters' Rights Act 2025 came into force on 1 May 2026 and restructured how residential tenancies work in England. It also changed the enforcement options available when a tenant loses their right to rent — though the checking obligations themselves stayed largely the same.

Periodic Tenancy Conversion: No New Check Required

Every existing assured shorthold tenancy in England automatically converted to an assured periodic tenancy on 1 May 2026. Fixed terms are abolished — all new tenancies are periodic from day one.

This statutory conversion does not count as a new tenancy agreement. Landlords do not need to run fresh right to rent checks on existing tenants solely because their tenancy switched to periodic. Follow-up obligations continue on their existing calendar-based schedule, tied to the dates of the original check and the tenant's immigration permission expiry.

The practical effect: if a tenant was verified before 1 May 2026 under a fixed-term AST, that check and its statutory excuse carry forward into the periodic tenancy without interruption.

Section 21 Abolished: No More No-Fault Eviction

Before the Renters' Rights Act, a landlord who discovered a tenant had lost their right to rent could serve a Section 21 no-fault notice to end the tenancy without proving grounds. Section 21 is now abolished.

This matters for right to rent enforcement because the previous fast-track eviction path no longer exists. If a follow-up check reveals a tenant no longer has the right to rent, the landlord must now use the Section 8 possession route — which requires proving specific grounds.

Ground 7B: The Immigration Status Possession Ground

The Immigration Act 2014 introduced Ground 7B to Schedule 2 of the Housing Act 1988. It gives landlords a mandatory possession ground when a tenant has been served a Home Office notice confirming they are disqualified from renting due to their immigration status.

Under the Renters' Rights Act framework, the Ground 7B process works as follows:

1. The landlord discovers (through a failed follow-up check or a Home Office notification) that a tenant no longer has the right to rent.
2. The landlord reports the tenant to the Home Office using the official online reporting portal.
3. The Home Office investigates and, if the tenant is disqualified, serves a notice on the landlord confirming the disqualification.
4. The landlord serves a Section 8 notice citing Ground 7B and applies to the county court for possession.

Ground 7B is a mandatory ground — if the court is satisfied the Home Office notice has been properly served and the tenant is disqualified, it must grant possession. There is no discretion to refuse.

The notice period for Ground 7B is two weeks, shorter than most other Section 8 grounds.

What Has Not Changed

The core right to rent checking process — who must be checked, the four verification routes, the document lists, the timing rules, and the penalties — is unchanged by the Renters' Rights Act. The statutory Code of Practice updated on 1 October 2026 incorporates the periodic tenancy framework but does not alter the checking methodology.

Follow-up check deadlines remain calendar-based: the later of the immigration permission expiry or 12 months from the last check. The shift to periodic tenancies does not create new check triggers, because right to rent follow-ups were never tied to tenancy renewal dates in the first place.

Civil penalties also remain unchanged — £10,000 for a first breach, £20,000 for a repeat breach within three years.

Why This Matters for Compliance Planning

The abolition of Section 21 means landlords can no longer treat right to rent problems as something they can resolve quickly with a no-fault notice. Ground 7B requires a formal Home Office process before the court application can begin, which takes longer.

This makes prevention more important than ever. Missing a follow-up check deadline or failing to verify a new adult occupier now carries both the financial penalty risk and the prospect of a prolonged possession process if the situation escalates.

The Right to Rent Checks in England guide covers the complete compliance workflow under the current rules, including the follow-up calendar system, the reporting process, and the interaction between the Renters' Rights Act's periodic tenancy framework and immigration verification obligations.

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