Landlords who choose to carry out digital Right to Rent checks will have to use a registered digital verification provider from 1 October, after the Home Office updated its code of practice ahead of the autumn switch.
The change does not force every landlord into a digital route. Manual checks and the Home Office online service remain available. But where landlords want to use electronic identity verification for British and Irish passport holders, the system is being tightened around certified providers rather than informal or improvised checks.
That matters because Right to Rent mistakes are expensive, and the compliance risk is shifting from simple document copying toward process choice. Landlords who assume any digital ID tool will do may be heading into avoidable trouble by autumn.
Updated code points landlords toward registered providers
The government’s updated landlords’ code of practice was refreshed on 30 June and says the new versions come into force on 1 October 2026. Alongside that, the official supplementary code for digital right to rent checks sets out the rules for digital verification services that landlords can rely on when checking British and Irish passport holders.
The 1.0 supplementary code says services will only be able to certify against the new framework once the first conformity assessment body is accredited, no earlier than 1 September 2026. In the meantime, the existing 0.4 code remains part of the transition picture, but the policy direction is obvious: digital checks are being formalised and landlords will be expected to use the proper channel.
This follows Landlord Knowledge’s earlier coverage of tighter Right to Rent discrimination rules, which showed how the Home Office is trying to narrow both enforcement and fairness risks. The latest update pushes landlords toward a more controlled digital process rather than loose document handling.
What landlords still have to do themselves
Using a registered provider does not remove landlord responsibility. The supplementary code makes clear that landlords still need to obtain and retain the required information and satisfy themselves that the person presenting to rent is the same person whose identity has been checked.
The official guidance also allows facial recognition technology within this route, but only through an approved provider. That will make some checks easier, especially for remote lets, yet it also removes the excuse of casual workarounds. If a landlord wants the convenience of digital verification, the process now has to be done properly.
There is a practical warning here for self-managing landlords. Many have become used to low-friction onboarding tools, especially since remote checks became more common. But compliance systems tend to harden over time, not loosen. A digital check that feels modern is not necessarily a compliant one.
Landlords should also remember that the broader Right to Rent regime remains a live political issue. Propertymark recently argued that the guidance is too long and too complex, while ministers have continued to refine the supporting codes rather than scrap the system. That means landlords should expect more detail, not less, before October.
For the primary source, the updated Right to rent immigration checks: landlords’ code of practice confirms that revised guidance comes into force on 1 October 2026.
What this means for landlords
- If you use digital ID checks: confirm now whether your provider is operating within the registered RtR verification framework.
- Watch for: more guidance in September as the final transition to the 1 October rules gets closer.
- Bottom line: digital convenience is still allowed, but only through the approved route.
Editor’s view
Right to Rent has always punished landlords who treat process as an afterthought. This latest tweak will catch the same group again, only this time the weak point is digital compliance rather than paperwork.
Author: Editorial Team – UK landlord & buy-to-let news, policy, and finance
Published: 7 July 2026
Sources: GOV.UK, Home Office, DSIT
Related reading: Home Office tightens Right to Rent discrimination rules
