Following Brexit, a grace period of 6 months was started on the 1st of January 2021, during which eligible EEA and Swiss citizens and their families were expected to make various preparations to meet the free movement law requirements. This includes applying for the EU Settlement Scheme (“EUSS”). This grace period ended on the 30th of June 2021, but what exactly does it mean for those residing or planning a move in the UK.
What is a Right to Rent check?
A Right to Rent check is when a prospective adult renter of a property must show their landlord or letting agent their identity documents to prove their settlement status. This process is similar to presenting your passport or visa to border control when entering a foreign country.
What Is Changing?
Since the 1st of July 2021, EEA citizens are now required to prove their immigration status and the status of any family members in the UK. Simply presenting an EEA passport or national ID will not suffice when proving their right to rent property in the UK.
All landlords should be aware of these changes as they will affect who they are able to accept and when they will be able to undertake right to rent checks for possible tenancies. Documents that were once acceptable in this process, such as the EU, EEA or Swiss passports or national ID cards, are no longer sufficient for the procedure.
This change will not apply to Irish nationals who will still be able to present their passports when applying to rent a property. Other EEA citizens residing in the UK will have already applied for the EU Settlement Scheme by June of this year. They would have received digital evidence of their UK immigration status.
When asked to prove their status, residents will be able to present their digital proof using the eHome Office or ‘right to rent’ service on GOV.UK.
Other acceptable documents include endorsements via the passport, visa or vignette. These documents must all be listed on the List A, and B document list found on GOV.UK.
What Does This Mean For Existing Tenants?
This new requirement applies to all initial checks conducted on or after the 1st of July and any repeats required on or after said date. Retrospective checks will not be required of EU, EEA or Swiss tenants by the 30th of June 2021. Tenancies that were started before the 1st of July 2021 could still be approved by an EEA/Swiss passport or ID card.
When using Mortoo Homes, we’ll make sure any prospective tenants are checked out and verified before accepting them. Let us handle the work. Find out more here.