Landlords in England have a short new deadline to keep an eye on. The Home Office has opened a consultation on proposed changes to the statutory code of practice that sits alongside Right to Rent checks, with the stated aim of strengthening anti-discrimination protections in the lettings process. The consultation opened on 15 April and is due to close at 11:59pm on 29 April 2026.
This is not the same thing as an immediate rule change. But it is a timely signal for landlords and agents, especially with wider tenancy reforms already looming. The consultation is about how Right to Rent checks should be carried out fairly, not about whether they exist. For landlords, the practical point is that the government is now spelling out more clearly where checking immigration status can drift into unlawful discrimination.
What the consultation is about
The draft code says landlords and agents should not treat prospective tenants less favourably because of the way they prove their Right to Rent. In plain terms, that means someone who shows eligible physical documents should not be treated as a weaker applicant simply because they are not using the Home Office online service. The draft also says people with a time-limited right to rent should not be treated less favourably on that basis alone.
It also leans harder on consistency. The draft says checks should be carried out fairly across prospective adult tenants, rather than being applied more heavily to people because of accent, nationality, colour, ethnic origin, or assumptions about immigration status. Landlords and agents are also warned not to build discriminatory outcomes into digital onboarding or identity-checking processes.
Another detail worth noting is certification. The updated code points landlords toward certified digital verification services where digital checks are used, rather than treating any verification tool as interchangeable. That will matter more to agents and larger operators, but smaller landlords who rely on third-party systems should still pay attention to it.
Why it matters now
For many landlords, this will feel like one more compliance thread arriving just before the Renters’ Rights timetable starts to bite on 1 May. It is a separate policy area, but the practical overlap is obvious. The direction of travel is toward tighter process discipline, better records, and fewer informal habits in tenant selection and tenancy administration.
That does not mean landlords need to panic or reinvent their whole referencing process this week. It does mean this is a good moment to look at whether application handling is genuinely consistent. If one applicant is routinely asked for more proof than another, or if manual documents are treated as a problem by default, that is the kind of practice the revised code is trying to address.
Landlords who use agents may also want to understand how their agent handles Right to Rent checks, because discrimination carried out by someone acting on a landlord’s behalf can still create problems. The draft code says landlords and agents should take reasonable steps to avoid that. In practice, that points to documented processes, clear staff instructions, and a willingness to review any automated workflow that may disadvantage some applicants.
What changes, and when?
The consultation page says the Home Office wants views on the draft before the end of April. Property Industry Eye reports that the government intends to legislate in June, with the updated code expected to apply from 1 October 2026. The draft itself says this version would apply to residential tenancy agreements starting on or after that date, and to repeat checks carried out on or after 1 October 2026 where a further check is needed to keep a statutory excuse.
So this is best read as an early warning, not a same-day rule switch. There is still consultation and secondary legislation to come. Even so, it gives landlords a fairly clear indication of the standards the government expects around fairness and consistency.
What landlords should watch
The sensible takeaway is a simple one. Keep Right to Rent checks accurate, but do not let them become a shortcut for assumptions about who looks straightforward to rent to. Landlords should be wary of treating online proof as inherently preferable, of disadvantaging applicants with time-limited status, or of using third-party systems without understanding how they work.
It is also worth keeping an eye on the broader official guidance hub, especially as the government continues to add materials around the new tenancy regime. We have already covered the new information sheet and tenancy forms, which is another reminder that paperwork and process are becoming more central, not less.
For now, the immediate action is not to make knee-jerk changes, but to note the consultation window, review how checks are handled, and watch for the final code later this year.
