Scotland Landlord Registration Advertising Rules: What to Display in Property Adverts

The Legal Requirement

Under Section 92B of the Antisocial Behaviour etc. (Scotland) Act 2004 — inserted by the Private Rented Housing (Scotland) Act 2011 — every written or digital advertisement for a private rented property in Scotland must display the landlord's registration status.

This applies to all advertising channels: Rightmove, Zoopla, Gumtree, SpareRoom, social media posts, newspaper listings, and letting agent window displays. Publishing an advert without the required information is a criminal offence.

What Must Appear in Your Advert

If you are registered: Display your Landlord Registration Number (LRN) in the format XXXXXX/XXX/XXXXX. For jointly owned properties, showing the lead owner's registration number satisfies the requirement — you do not need to list every co-owner's number.

If your application has been submitted and you are waiting for council approval: Display the exact phrase "landlord registration pending". This is the statutory wording. Your fees must have been paid and your application must be live with the council — you cannot claim "pending" if you have not actually applied.

What else to include: Alongside the registration number or pending statement, all residential rental adverts in Scotland must also display the property's Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) efficiency band. This is a separate legal requirement but applies to the same advertisements.

What Is Exempt

Physical "To Let" boards — the reusable signs displayed outside a property — are explicitly exempt from displaying registration numbers. The exemption recognises that printed signs are reused across multiple properties and lettings. This exemption applies only to physical signs, not to photographs of those signs used in online listings.

Common Mistakes

Advertising before applying. Some landlords list a property on Rightmove "just to test the market" while they get registration sorted. Under Section 92B, advertising — even an exploratory listing — without registration or a pending application is an offence. The portal listing is the trigger, not the tenancy signing.

Using an expired registration number. If your three-year registration has lapsed and you have not renewed, your old LRN is no longer valid. Advertising with an expired number is not the same as advertising with a current one — it may expose you to enforcement action.

Omitting the number from social media posts. A Facebook Marketplace listing or an Instagram story advertising a room to let is covered by Section 92B just as much as a Rightmove listing. The law says "all written and digital advertisements" — there is no social media exception.

How Tenants and Councils Use This

Prospective tenants routinely search registration numbers on landlordregistrationscotland.gov.uk before viewing a property. If the number in the advert does not match an active registration, that is a red flag — and some tenants report it directly to the council's Private Sector Housing Unit.

Tenants can report suspected unregistered letting to the council. Glasgow's Private Landlord Registration Unit uses statutory information-gathering powers and Rent Penalty Notices against unregistered operators.

Getting Your Adverts Right

The rules are straightforward once you know them, but the detail matters — particularly around the "pending" status wording and the EPC requirement. The Scotland landlord registration guide includes advertising compliance templates with the correct statutory phrasing for portal listings, agent instructions, and social media posts.

See more Scotland guides →