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IMPACT – MEDIUM
What is the change? The U.K. government’s new policy that requires landlords to check tenants’ right to rent is now in effect across England.
What does the change mean? All private landlords who are renting, subletting or taking in lodgers must check the papers of new adult tenants to make sure they have the right to live in the U.K.
Background: The U.K. government has published a user guide that details and depicts the various forms of acceptable evidence of right to rent. Foreign nationals holding temporary documents, such as travel vignettes, will be rechecked once the biometric residence permit is issued. Landlords are advised to make and keep copies of the documents, as they will have a statutory safe harbor if it is later found that they rented to someone who didn’t have the right to rent. Landlords face fines of up to £3,000 per tenant for failing to perform the checks.
BAL Analysis: The policy adds an administrative burden on property owners to understand the various immigration statuses and documents and to recognize fraudulent documents. Foreign nationals who have a pending application with the Home Office or whose identity documents are being held by the Home Office during processing may have to wait for the landlord to request a right to rent check by the Home Office and allow two days for a response.
This alert has been provided by the BAL Global Practice group in the United Kingdom. For additional information, please contact uk@bal.com.
Copyright © 2016 Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. All rights reserved. Reprinting or digital redistribution to the public is permitted only with the express written permission of Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP. For inquiries please contact copyright@bal.com.
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