Guides › Compliance
What certificates does a landlord need in England?
The full checklist — what's legally required, how often it renews, and which pieces of paper must actually reach the tenant.
Lettright Guides · England (Wales and Scotland differ) · General guidance, not legal advice
The recurring certificates
- Gas Safety Record (CP12) — required every 12 months for any property with gas appliances, carried out by a Gas Safe registered engineer. A copy must go to existing tenants within 28 days of the check, and to new tenants before they move in.
- Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR) — required at least every 5 years (or sooner if the report says so). A copy goes to tenants within 28 days of the inspection, and to the local authority within 7 days if they ask.
- Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) — valid for 10 years; the property generally needs a minimum rating of E to be let, and tenants must be given a copy.
Alarms — checked at every tenancy start
- Smoke alarms on every storey used as living accommodation.
- Carbon monoxide alarms in any room with a fixed combustion appliance (boilers included; gas cookers excepted).
- Alarms must be shown to be working on the first day of each new tenancy — and repaired or replaced promptly if reported faulty.
The paperwork that isn't a certificate but is just as mandatory
- Deposit protection — any deposit on an assured shorthold tenancy must be protected in a government-approved scheme within 30 days, with the prescribed information served on the tenant in the same window. Miss this and you face penalties of up to 3x the deposit — and problems regaining possession later.
- The "How to Rent" guide — the current version of the government's guide must be given to tenants at the start of the tenancy.
- Right to rent checks — landlords must check every adult occupier's right to rent before the tenancy starts, and keep evidence of the check.
- Gas safety — every 12 months
- EICR — every 5 years
- EPC — every 10 years (minimum rating E)
- Alarms — proven working at every tenancy start
- Deposit protected + prescribed information — within 30 days of receipt
HMOs and licensing
If the property is a house in multiple occupation (typically 5+ people from 2+ households sharing facilities, though many councils license smaller HMOs too), an HMO licence is required, with its own conditions — fire safety measures, room sizes, and sometimes additional inspections. Some councils also run selective licensing for ordinary lets in designated areas, so it's always worth checking the local authority's scheme.
Rules are moving: the Renters' Rights reforms are changing parts of the private rented sector in England — including how tenancies end and new property standards. The certificates above remain the foundation, but check the current position before relying on the detail.
The real problem isn't knowing — it's remembering
None of this is intellectually hard. The hard part is that every property has its own set of expiry dates, and one missed gas certificate on one property is a criminal-offence-shaped hole in an otherwise well-run portfolio. Certificates need a system with dates in it, not a drawer with paper in it.
Certificates and compliance dates tracked per property, with what's due surfacing before it's overdue — part of a lettings platform built around how you actually let.
Book a demoThis guide is general guidance for England, not legal advice; Wales and Scotland have different rules, and requirements change. Check current GOV.UK guidance or take advice for your specific situation.