Landlord Database Registration in England: Dates, Fees and Rules

What is the landlord database?

The Private Rented Sector Database is a national register of private landlords and rented homes in England, created by the Renters' Rights Act 2025. The government's online service for it is called "Register your rental property".

It has two main aims. First, it gives councils a full picture of who owns which rented homes, which makes it easier to enforce standards and target rogue landlords. Second, once a public-facing part is added later, it will let tenants check basic information about a landlord and property before they sign up.

The database replaces the old Database of Rogue Landlords and Property Agents with something far broader: a register of every private landlord, not just those with banning orders or convictions. It sits alongside the other parts of the Act, including the move to periodic tenancies and the end of section 21, which came into force on 1 May 2026.

Who has to register

Landlords of homes let under assured or regulated tenancies in England must register. That covers almost every private landlord, whether you own one flat or a large portfolio, and whether you manage it yourself or use an agent.

Registration is property by property, not just landlord by landlord. You register yourself as a landlord and then add each rented property separately. Existing tenancies must be registered, as must any new tenancies that start during the rollout.

Empty homes being marketed to let do not need to be registered at this stage. That is expected to change in a later phase, when landlords will need a registration number before they can advertise a property. Agents cannot register properties on a landlord's behalf under the current approach, so even fully managed landlords need to complete registration themselves.

The database applies to England only. Wales and Scotland already run their own landlord registration schemes.

When you need to register

The service opens on 15 December 2026, starting with properties in the West Midlands. Other regions are then called forward one at a time over the next year, and each region has a three-month window to register. Every actively letting landlord in England should be registered by 14 November 2027.

Two examples show how it works. London's window runs from 15 July to 14 October 2027, and the South West, one of the last regions, runs from 15 August to 14 November 2027.

Your deadline is set by where the property is, not where you live. A landlord based in London who lets a flat in Birmingham follows the West Midlands timetable for that flat. If you let in several regions, you can register your whole portfolio early once the service opens, as long as every property is registered before its own deadline.

Check the exact dates for each of your postcodes on GOV.UK before relying on them, and put the deadlines in your diary now.

How much it costs

The fee is £65 per property per year. A landlord with one rented home pays £65, while a landlord with four pays £260. The fee is paid when you register and again at each annual renewal, usually on the same date each year.

During the regional rollout, the first year's fee is pro-rated, so landlords in regions that register first are not charged more than those who register later. Registration is renewed every year, and you must keep your entry accurate in between, for example when a tenancy changes or a safety certificate is renewed.

The fee is a cost of running the rental business, so for most individual landlords it should count as an allowable expense against rental income. Check with your accountant or HMRC guidance for your own situation. The NRLA and other landlord groups have criticised the cost, but it is now set in regulations and landlords should budget for it.

What information you'll need

The government confirmed the detail in the Private Rented Sector Database Regulations 2026. Landlords should expect to provide information about themselves and each property, including:

• the address and type of property, such as detached, semi-detached, terraced or a flat
• the type of ownership, such as freehold, leasehold or commonhold
• whether the property is licensed, and if it is a house in multiple occupation
• how many people live there
• the rent, how often it is paid and whether bills are included
• the current safety certificates, including gas safety, the EPC and the electrical safety report

The best preparation is to gather these documents now, in one place, for each property. If anything is missing or out of date, such as an expired gas safety record or an EPC that needs renewing, sort it out before your registration window opens rather than during it.

Penalties for not registering

Registration is a legal duty, and the penalties for ignoring it are significant. Landlords who should be registered but are not can face civil penalties of up to £7,000, rising to up to £40,000 for repeated or continuing breaches. Giving false or misleading information can also lead to penalties.

There is a second, very practical consequence. Once the requirement applies to your property, an unregistered landlord will not be able to obtain a possession order on most grounds, apart from those for serious antisocial behaviour. Since section 21 has already been abolished, that would leave a landlord with very limited options if a tenancy goes wrong.

Tenants may also be able to apply for a rent repayment order in some circumstances. Councils have new investigatory powers under the Act, and the database will make it much easier for them to spot rented homes that have not been registered.

How the database links to the landlord ombudsman

The database is the first half of phase two of the Renters' Rights Act. The second half is a new Private Rented Sector Landlord Ombudsman, which will give tenants a free way to escalate complaints about their landlord, with decisions that are legally binding.

Membership of the ombudsman will be compulsory for almost all private landlords, including those who use a managing agent. The government has indicated that it expects the ombudsman to be ready for landlords to join in 2028, and fees have not yet been set. It plans to link ombudsman membership with the database so landlords can manage both through one service.

Phase three will follow, bringing a Decent Homes Standard and Awaab's Law to the private rented sector, setting legal standards for the condition of rented homes and deadlines for dealing with hazards such as damp and mould. Our guide to what the Renters' Rights Act means for landlords covers all three phases.

How to get ready now

A short checklist will make registration straightforward when your window opens:

• Find your deadline for each property postcode and add it to your calendar.
• Collect your certificates: gas safety record, EPC and electrical safety report for each property.
• Check any licences needed for HMOs or under local selective licensing schemes.
• Confirm tenancy details: who lives there, the rent, payment frequency and whether bills are included.
• Budget for the fee of £65 per property per year.
• Diary the renewal and any certificate expiry dates so your entry stays accurate.

A managing agent cannot register for you, but a good one will already hold most of this information and keep certificates renewed on time, which takes much of the work out of registering and keeping your entry current.

The bottom line

The landlord database turns compliance into something visible. From 15 December 2026, region by region, every private landlord in England will need to register each rented home, pay £65 a year per property and keep the details current, or risk penalties and losing most routes to possession. Getting your certificates, licences and tenancy details in order now makes registration quick when your window opens. If you would rather have an agent keep the paperwork behind it up to date, compare local letting agents and see what management would cost.

This guide is general information about the law in England as of October 2026 and is not legal advice. Registration dates and requirements are set by the government and may change, so check the latest guidance on GOV.UK before you register.