Landlord compliance checklist for England (2026)

A landlord compliance checklist for England in 2026 has about a dozen items: a gas safety check every 12 months, an electrical inspection (EICR) at least every 5 years, a valid EPC rated E or above, working smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, a protected deposit, Right to Rent checks, the right paperwork for each tenancy and a licence where your council requires one. Since section 21 was abolished on 1 May 2026, only one of these, deposit protection, can currently stop a court making a possession order.

This page sets out every duty, how often it falls due, the maximum penalty and whether it affects eviction, then links to a detailed guide for each. The rules here are for England only. Wales (under the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016), Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own law.

The landlord compliance checklist at a glance

These are the landlord legal requirements that apply to most private lets in England, as of 25 October 2026.

Duty	How often or when	Copy to tenant	Maximum penalty	Can it stop possession?
Gas safety record	At least every 12 months	Existing tenants within 28 days of the check; new tenants before they move in	Prosecution: up to 2 years' imprisonment and/or an unlimited fine	No
Electrical inspection (EICR)	At least every 5 years, or sooner if the report says	Existing tenants within 28 days; new tenants before they move in	£40,000 per breach	No
EPC	Valid for 10 years; order it before marketing	Free to prospective tenants, by the first written details or viewing	£200 per breach	No
Minimum energy rating (MEES)	Band E or above, or a registered exemption (usually 5 years)	None	£5,000 per property per breach	No
Smoke and CO alarms	Check on day one of each new tenancy; repair when a fault is reported	None	£5,000	No
Deposit protection	Within 30 days of receiving the deposit	None	1 to 3 times the deposit	Yes, except Grounds 7A and 14
Deposit prescribed information	Within 30 days of receiving the deposit	Yes, to the tenant and anyone who paid for them	1 to 3 times the deposit	Yes, except Grounds 7A and 14
Right to Rent	Before the tenancy; follow-up checks for time-limited rights	None	£10,000 per occupier (£20,000 for a repeat breach)	No
Written statement of terms	Before each new tenancy is agreed	Yes	£7,000	No
Information Sheet (tenancies from before 1 May 2026)	Once, by 31 May 2026 (later in some cases)	Yes, the exact GOV.UK PDF	£7,000	No
HMO licence or selective licence	Licence lasts up to 5 years; gas certificate to the council every year	Written statement of terms to occupiers	£40,000 civil penalty or an unlimited fine, plus up to 2 years' rent repaid	No
Legionella risk assessment	No fixed interval; review when anything changes	None	Prosecution under health and safety law	No
Fire safety (furniture and HMOs)	When furniture is supplied; HMO equipment kept working	HMO fire-escape notices displayed (more than 4 occupiers)	Unlimited fine (furniture); £40,000 (HMO management)	No
PRS Database registration	From 15 December 2026 (West Midlands first); renewed yearly	None	£7,000 (once in force)	Yes, once in force, except Grounds 7A and 14

You no longer need to give tenants the How to Rent guide, except where a section 21 notice was served before 1 May 2026. See what replaced the How to Rent guide.

Which compliance failures still stop an eviction?

Until 30 April 2026, a missing gas safety record, EPC or How to Rent guide could invalidate a section 21 notice, and an unlicensed HMO or house blocked one. Section 21 was abolished for private tenancies on 1 May 2026, and those rules went with it. Every landlord now has to use a Section 8 notice.

Section 7 of the Housing Act 1988, which sets out when the court can make a possession order, contains no condition about gas, electrics, EPCs, alarms, licensing or the How to Rent guide. Some websites still say a lapsed gas certificate blocks a Section 8 claim. The statute text doesn't support that.

Two compliance duties do affect possession:

1. Deposit protection. Under section 215 of the Housing Act 2004, as substituted on 1 May 2026, the court can only make a possession order if the deposit is in an authorised scheme, the scheme's initial requirements have been met (even if late), and the prescribed information has been given. Grounds 7A and 14 are exempt. The bar lifts if you return the deposit in full or with agreed deductions, or a tenant's deposit claim has been decided, withdrawn or settled.
2. PRS Database registration. Once the registration duty is in force, the court won't be able to make a possession order while you are in breach of it, except on Grounds 7A and 14. This is not in force yet.

Watch out: "No legal bar" doesn't mean "no consequence". A safety breach can still be raised as evidence on discretionary grounds or to support a disrepair counterclaim in a defended claim, and it shapes how the council sees you. Put it right before you serve notice.

Before a new tenancy starts: the order to do things

Follow this sequence for each new let:

1. EPC. Order it before you market the property, and check it is band E or above, or that an exemption is registered.
2. Licence. Check whether the property needs an HMO, additional or selective licence, and apply before you let.
3. Gas safety check. Make sure the latest check falls within the 12 months before the tenancy starts.
4. Electrical inspection. Make sure the EICR is in date; the regulations say the installation must be inspected and tested before the tenancy begins.
5. Alarms. Fit a smoke alarm on every storey with living accommodation, and a carbon monoxide alarm in each room with a fixed combustion appliance other than a gas cooker.
6. Legionella. Assess the water system and flush it before the let.
7. Furniture. If the let is furnished, check every upholstered item and mattress carries the required fire safety label.
8. Right to Rent. Check every adult who will live there. For a time-limited right, check no earlier than 28 days before the agreement.
9. Written statement of terms. Give it before the tenancy is agreed, including any prior notice of possession grounds.
10. Move-in day. Give the tenant the gas safety record and EICR before they move in, make sure they have had the EPC, and test every alarm that day.
11. Deposit. Take no more than 5 weeks' rent (6 weeks' if the annual rent is £50,000 or more), protect it, and give the prescribed information within 30 days.

Your compliance calendar: a worked example

Take a gas-heated flat let from Tuesday 1 December 2026. The tenant's permission to live in the UK is time-limited, the agreement is signed on Friday 27 November 2026, and the deposit arrives on Monday 23 November 2026.

Item	Done on	Next deadline
EICR	Tuesday 6 October 2026	Copy to the tenant before 1 December; next inspection by the date on the report, no later than October 2031
Gas safety check	Monday 16 November 2026 (within 12 months before the tenancy)	Next check due by November 2027; a check from mid-September 2027 keeps the November anniversary
Right to Rent check	No earlier than Friday 30 October 2026	Follow-up check before the statutory excuse runs out
Deposit	Received Monday 23 November 2026	Protected and prescribed information given by Tuesday 22 December 2026, counting the day of receipt as day one
Alarms	Tested on Tuesday 1 December 2026	Next test on day one of the next tenancy, or when a fault is reported
EPC	Issued March 2021	Expires March 2031; renew before you next market the property after that

Multiply that by several properties and the dates quickly drift apart. That's what reminders are for.

What's changing next

Change	Expected date	Status in October 2026
Private rented sector database	West Midlands from 15 December 2026, then region by region; all let properties by 14 November 2027	Draft regulations laid on 9 September 2026; the government's Housing Hub gives a fee of £65 per property per year, not yet fixed in the regulations
Landlord Ombudsman membership	2028 (expected)	Framework regulations in force 17 September 2026; membership not yet required
EPC band C minimum	1 October 2030 (planned)	Government policy, not yet law
Decent Homes Standard	From 2035	Policy statement January 2026; regulations not yet made
Awaab's Law for private rentals	No date set	Consultation open from 9 October to 18 December 2026

Some changes are already in force. Since 22 June 2026 councils can impose a civil penalty of up to £7,000 for a Category 1 hazard. Penalties for HMO, licensing and HMO management offences rose to £40,000 for conduct from 1 May 2026, and rent repayment orders can now reach 2 years' rent. For the full list, see Renters' Rights Act fines and penalties.

Free compliance reminders from ValidNotice

The duties above are not hard on their own. The hard part is remembering a dozen dates for every property, years apart. ValidNotice's compliance reminders are free:

• add each property's gas safety, EICR, EPC, deposit and licence dates once;
• get email reminders before anything falls due, including in time to book your gas check inside the 2-month window that keeps your anniversary date;
• see your notice deadlines alongside your certificates if you ever need to serve a Section 8 or Section 13 notice.

Keeping certificates in date also makes the database easier when it arrives, because under the draft regulations each property's entry will need its gas safety record, EICR and EPC dates.

Guides in this section

• Gas safety certificate (CP12): the 12-month check, the 2-month window and copies for tenants.
• EICR for landlords: the 5-year inspection, remedial work deadlines and costs.
• EPC rules and MEES: band E now, band C planned for 2030.
• Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms: where alarms go and the day-one check.
• Tenancy deposit protection: the 30-day rule, the schemes and the possession bar.
• Deposit prescribed information: what to give, with a checklist template.
• Right to Rent checks: share codes, eVisas and follow-up checks.
• How to Rent guide: why it was withdrawn and what replaced it.
• HMO licence: mandatory and additional licensing, room sizes and fees.
• Selective licensing: council schemes for ordinary rented houses.
• Legionella risk assessment: what HSE expects, with a record template.
• Fire safety: furniture rules and HMO duties.

What to do next

Start with the three dates that matter most: your gas safety check, your EICR and your deposit. Add them to the free compliance reminders above. If you are preparing for wider changes, work through our Renters' Rights Act landlord checklist. If you need to end a tenancy, confirm the deposit is protected first, then use our Section 8 notice service.