England is getting a national register of private landlords and the homes they let. Under the Renters’ Rights Act 2025, landlords will register themselves and each property on a Private Rented Sector Database, with their safety certificates, and keep the details up to date. The government calls the service “Register your rental property”.
The rollout is planned to start on 15 December 2026, region by region, with London’s window running from 15 July to 14 October 2027. This guide explains where things stand, who has to register, what you will need, what it is planned to cost and what happens if you do not. It covers England only.
What the database is
The database is part of Phase 2 of the Renters’ Rights Act, alongside the new Landlord Ombudsman. The government’s roadmap says Phase 2 starts “from late 2026”. The idea is simple: one official record of who lets which home, together with each home’s gas, electrical and energy certificates.
For landlords, it becomes another date to manage and another reason to keep certificates organised. Letting an unregistered home also has serious consequences, covered below.
Where it stands today
The penalties described later come from the Act itself, as set out in the government’s guide to the Act. They apply once the requirement to register is in force for your area.
When your region opens
Registration follows the location of the property, not where the landlord lives. Each region is planned to get three months to register, according to the government’s Housing Hub, and the draft regulations carry the same regional start dates.
| Region | Requirement starts | Deadline |
|---|---|---|
| West Midlands | 15 Dec 2026 | 14 Mar 2027 |
| East of England | 15 Jan 2027 | 14 Apr 2027 |
| East Midlands | 15 Feb 2027 | 14 May 2027 |
| South East | 15 Mar 2027 | 14 Jun 2027 |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | 15 Apr 2027 | 14 Jul 2027 |
| North West | 15 May 2027 | 14 Aug 2027 |
| North East | 15 Jun 2027 | 14 Sep 2027 |
| London | 15 Jul 2027 | 14 Oct 2027 |
| South West | 15 Aug 2027 | 14 Nov 2027 |
If you let homes in more than one region, each home follows its own region’s dates. A landlord with flats in Birmingham and London, for example, would register the Birmingham homes in the first window and the London homes in July to October 2027.
Who has to register
Landlords of assured and regulated tenancies must register, both themselves and each property they let (Housing Hub). A few points are worth knowing:
- The landlord has to start the process. A GOV.UK One Login is needed.
- Agents can upload some of the information, but the landlord stays responsible for the registration.
- For now, only homes that are let must be registered. Empty properties will be added later.
- Supported exempt accommodation is excluded.
What you will need
The Housing Hub and the schedules to the draft regulations list what landlords must provide. Most of it is information a well-run landlord already holds, so the work is in having it to hand for every home.
| What | Details |
|---|---|
| Landlord details | Your own details as the registering landlord |
| The home | Dwelling details, including contact details for any freeholder, superior landlord or property manager |
| Occupants | The number of occupants and households |
| Licences | Any HMO, additional or selective licence numbers |
| Rent | The rent, and which utilities are included |
| Gas | The gas safety record |
| Electrics | The electrical installation condition report (EICR) or certificate (EIC) |
| Energy | The energy performance certificate, and any registered exemption from the minimum standard |
These are the same certificates the law already requires. Gas appliances need an annual check by a Gas Safe registered engineer, electrical installations need inspecting at least every five years under the electrical safety regulations, and rented homes must meet the minimum energy standard of band E unless an exemption is registered.
What it costs
The government’s campaign site gives the fee as £65 per property per year, pro-rated during the rollout (Housing Hub). The draft regulations do not set an amount: they say the fee is “to be determined by the database operator”. So treat £65 as the planned figure, not a confirmed one, until the regulations are made and the operator publishes its fees.
Because the fee is per property and entries renew every year, it is worth budgeting for it as a running cost of each home, like your gas safety check.
Keeping your entries up to date
The draft regulations also set out how entries are kept current. As drafted:
- Changes must be updated within 28 days.
- Entries are renewed every 12 months, and an entry lapses the day after its renewal date.
- A dwelling entry also lapses if its tenancy and safety information is not added within 28 days.
In practice that means every new gas safety record, electrical report or energy certificate, every change of tenant and every licence renewal starts a 28-day clock. Landlords with several homes will want a reliable way to spot those changes as they happen.
If you do not register
The consequences are set out in the government’s guide to the Act, and they are serious:
- A civil penalty of up to £7,000 for letting or advertising a property that is not registered.
- Up to £40,000, or prosecution, for repeat or serious breaches, such as giving false information.
- No possession order for an unregistered home, except on the antisocial behaviour grounds, Grounds 7A and 14.
- Database offences can also lead to rent repayment orders, which can now reach two years’ rent.
Rent repayment orders have grown under the Act more generally. Tenants now have two years from an offence to apply, and repeat offenders must repay the maximum, so a missed registration is not a small matter.
Agents and rent-to-rent
Letting agents will play a big part in practice, because they often hold the certificates and tenancy details. The landlord still registers, so the most useful thing an agent can do is make the evidence easy to find and share for every managed home.
In a rent-to-rent arrangement, the draft regulations put the entry on the landlord of the assured tenancy, which is usually the operator, and the entry must include contact details for any freeholder or superior landlord (draft regulations). Whether owners at the top of a chain must register as well is not settled in the draft, so owners and operators should take advice on their own arrangements.
The Landlord Ombudsman, coming next
The database is the first half of Phase 2. The second is a new Private Rented Sector Landlord Ombudsman, which every private landlord of an assured or regulated tenancy in England will have to join, including landlords who use an agent (GOV.UK).
- It will be free for tenants, and its decisions will be binding, from apologies to remedial work and compensation.
- The rules for approving a scheme came into force on 17 September 2026, but they do not yet require landlords to join.
- Compulsory membership is expected in 2028, and the government has promised “sufficient notice” beforehand.
- A small annual fee per property is expected but not confirmed.
- Once membership is compulsory, not joining can bring a penalty of up to £7,000, or up to £40,000 or prosecution for continuing breaches.
The same records that make registration easy, such as dated certificates and a clear history of repairs and messages, are what you will want to hand if a tenant ever takes a complaint to the ombudsman.
How to get ready now
You do not need to wait for your region to open to get organised. A simple plan for every home you let:
- List each let home with its region, so you know which window applies.
- Check the gas safety record, electrical report and energy certificate are current, and diary their renewal dates.
- Gather licence numbers for any HMO, additional or selective licence.
- Note the rent, the bills included and how many people and households live there.
- Collect contact details for any freeholder, superior landlord or managing agent.
- If you use an agent, agree who will gather and upload what.
- Set up a GOV.UK One Login, which the service requires.
The plan may still change as the regulations go through Parliament, so check the Housing Hub before your region opens, and take advice if your set-up is unusual.
Where software helps
Registration is easy when the evidence is already in one place. A compliance tracker holds each home's gas safety record, electrical report and energy certificate with their dates, keeps licence numbers and tenancy details current, and flags anything missing before your region opens. When a certificate is renewed, the record is ready for the 28-day update. That is the kind of system BozApps builds for landlords and agents.
Sources
- Government Housing Hub, Get ready to register · undated, checked 23 October 2026
- legislation.gov.uk, draft Private Rented Sector Database Regulations 2026 · laid 9 September 2026, checked 23 October 2026
- House of Commons, Order Paper · 20 October 2026
- GOV.UK, Guide to the Renters' Rights Act · updated 6 November 2025
- MHCLG, Implementing the Renters' Rights Act 2025: roadmap · November 2025
- legislation.gov.uk, Private Landlord Redress Schemes (Approval and Designation) Regulations 2026 · SI 2026/1033
- HSE, Gas safety check records and what to keep · updated 23 September 2024
- legislation.gov.uk, Electrical Safety Standards Regulations 2020, regulation 3 · checked 23 October 2026
- GOV.UK, Domestic private rented property: minimum energy efficiency standard · updated 5 May 2026
This guide summarises the law and official guidance as we understand it on 23 October 2026. It is general information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change and individual situations differ, so check the sources above or take advice from a solicitor, accountant or your trade body before acting.