For landlords

Can a landlord refuse tenants with children or on benefits in England?

Guide · about 12 min read · Law as at 24 October 2026 · Reviewed on 24 October 2026

Generally, no. Since 1 May 2026, a landlord in England, or anyone acting for them such as a letting agent, must not refuse someone, or put them off enquiring, viewing or renting, because they have children or because they get benefits. A local council can impose a penalty of up to £7,000, and a term in a tenancy, mortgage or head lease that bans children or benefit claimants generally no longer has any effect. A landlord can still take someone's income into account when considering whether they could afford the rent, but benefit income has to be counted like any other income.

This guide covers England only. The rules apply to homes let on assured tenancies, and not to social housing or supported accommodation. The rule on tenancy terms also reaches older regulated tenancies. It is general information, not legal advice, and it sets out the law as at 24 October 2026. It is published by VEYLO X. VEYLO X is a software platform for renting and letting in England.

What does the law say about refusing tenants with children or on benefits?

The rules are in Chapter 3 of Part 1 of the Renters' Rights Act 2025, headed "Discrimination in the rental market: England". They came into force on 1 May 2026 under regulation 3(b) of the Renters' Rights Act 2025 (Commencement No. 2 and Transitional and Saving Provisions) Regulations 2026. Section 33 deals with children. Section 34 deals with benefits. Both are built the same way.

A landlord, or anyone acting for them, must not prevent a person from doing any of four things because a child would or may live with or visit them at the home, or because they are or may be a benefits claimant:

Enquiring whether the home is available to let.
Getting information about the home.
Viewing the home to decide whether to rent it.
Entering into a tenancy of the home.

Each section then goes further. A landlord must not apply a provision, criterion or practice in order to make people with children, or people on benefits, less likely to rent the home. An advert that says "No DSS" or "no children" is the plainest example. The GOV.UK guide for landlords gives a quieter one: knowingly making it hard for someone to view, for example by offering only unreasonable times.

A "child" means anyone under 18, and the rule covers a child who would visit the home as well as one who would live there. It also does not matter whether the landlord's belief is right. Section 42(2) says acting on the basis of particular facts includes acting on a belief in those facts. So turning someone away because you assume they have children, or assume they get benefits, is covered even if the assumption is wrong.

	Children	Benefits
Section of the Act	33	34
Covers enquiring, information, viewing and entering a tenancy	Yes	Yes
Covers a provision, criterion or practice, such as an advert	Yes	Yes
Proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim defence	Yes, landlord must show it	No
Exception for an insurance policy entered into before 1 May 2026, not extended since, that contains a term requiring the restriction, until the policy ends or is renewed, extended or replaced	Yes	Yes
Maximum council penalty	£7,000	£7,000

Who counts as a benefits claimant under the new rules?

"DSS" is an old name, and it no longer describes any current benefit. "No DSS" is still the phrase many people search for, but the law does not use it. Section 42(1) uses "benefits claimant" instead, and the definition is wide.

It covers anyone entitled to payments under the main social security Acts, including payments made directly to a landlord. It also covers anyone who would be entitled to some of them if the tenancy were granted. A person getting a council tax reduction under a local scheme counts too, as does a person who would be entitled to one if they rented the home.

The GOV.UK guide for landlords lists examples of the benefits a tenant may get:

Universal Credit
Jobseeker's Allowance
Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
Employment and Support Allowance
Income Support
Legacy Housing Benefit
State Pension or Pension Credit
Council Tax Support
Tax Credits (Child and Working)
Child Benefit
Guardian's Allowance
Carer's Allowance

The same guide says the rules also reach a tenant who starts getting benefits after moving in, and a tenant who has a child join the household after moving in, through birth, adoption, fostering or any other means.

Do the rules apply to letting agents and referencing companies?

Yes. The rules bind a "relevant person". Section 42(1) defines that as the prospective landlord and anyone acting or purporting to act, directly or indirectly, on the landlord's behalf. The GOV.UK guide for landlords names letting agents, referencing services, friends and family members as examples.

The same guide explains how a council deals with a report. Where the council is satisfied that two or more people have each breached the rules, and the breaches come from the same conduct by one of them acting for the others, such as an agent placing an advert for a landlord, section 40(7) lets the council impose a penalty on them jointly. Each of them is then liable for the whole amount.

There is one narrow carve-out. Sections 33(3) and 34(3) say conduct is not a breach if it consists only of publishing adverts or information, or providing a way for a landlord and a prospective tenant to contact each other directly, by a person who does nothing else in relation to the home.

Can a landlord still consider whether the rent is affordable?

The Act says nothing in these rules stops a landlord taking a person's income into account when considering whether they could afford the rent (section 41). Government guidance says that if a landlord considers whether someone can afford the rent, benefit income must be counted in the same way as any other income. Government guidance says landlords should apply the same income requirement to everyone and should not unreasonably refuse a type of evidence of income, such as a benefit award letter.

Having children or getting benefits cannot itself be the reason one person is treated less favourably than another.

The rules also cover anyone acting for a landlord, including a referencing company. If a check leaves out benefit income, the landlord can be responsible for that.

Is there any situation where a landlord can turn down a family with children?

For children only, the Act has one general defence. Under section 33(2)(a), the rule does not apply if the landlord, or the person acting for them, can show that the conduct is a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim. The burden is on them to show it.

The GOV.UK guide for landlords says that each time, the landlord needs to be able to explain why the restriction is necessary and why it applies in that tenant's situation. It says you cannot set an age limit without explaining why. It also says you cannot refuse all children because of a staircase that an older child could use safely.

The guide gives examples of situations where the test may be met. They include shared housing, such as shared spaces in student housing used by unrelated adults, a home so small that it could lead to overcrowding, licensing conditions the landlord has to meet, and safeguarding concerns that cannot reasonably be addressed. It also describes a small housing community for retired people. These are the government's examples of how the test works, not exceptions written into the Act. Each case is looked at on its own facts, and the landlord carries the burden of showing that the test is met.

There is no such test for benefits. Section 34 has no proportionate means defence, and the GOV.UK guide says so expressly. For a landlord, the only exception for benefits is an old insurance policy, explained in the next section.

Can a mortgage, head lease or insurance policy still say "no benefits" or "no children"?

Mostly not. Since 1 May 2026, a term of this kind is "of no effect", which means it simply stops working. The Act treats each kind of document a little differently.

Where the term is	Section	Position since 1 May 2026
Tenancy agreement, including an older regulated tenancy	35	No effect, including tenancies granted before that date, subject to the children only proportionate means test and the old insurance exception
Superior lease (head lease)	36	No effect, whenever the lease was granted, subject to the children only proportionate means test and the old insurance exception
Mortgage	37	No effect, whenever the mortgage was agreed
Insurance policy	38	No effect only in a policy entered into, or extended, on or after 1 May 2026

For a head lease, section 36(5) says the terms include any agreement relating to the lease, and any consent or refusal of consent to sub-let to a category of person.

Insurance works differently from the others. Under section 38, a term requiring the landlord to bar children or benefit claimants has no effect in a policy entered into, or whose duration was extended, on or after 1 May 2026. A policy taken out before that date, and not extended since, can still be relied on under sections 33(2)(b) and 34(2). That applies where the landlord or a superior landlord is insured under it, the policy contains such a term, and the conduct is a means of avoiding a breach of that term. The exception falls away once the policy ends, or is renewed, extended or replaced. The GOV.UK guide says a tenant can ask to see the contract.

What happens if a landlord breaks these rules?

The local council is the body that imposes the penalty. Under section 40, a local housing authority may impose a financial penalty if it is satisfied, on the balance of probabilities, that a person has breached section 33 or section 34. The maximum is £7,000 per penalty. It is a civil financial penalty.

If the same conduct carries on for more than 28 days, counted from the day after the penalty is imposed, the council may impose a further penalty. If the person appeals within those 28 days, the period instead runs from the day after the appeal is finally determined, withdrawn or abandoned. Using one provision, criterion or practice more than once on the same home counts as the same conduct. If the person already had a penalty for breaching the same section within the five years before, the council may also impose an additional penalty. Neither a further nor an additional penalty can follow once the earlier final notice has been withdrawn or quashed on appeal (section 40(6)).

Schedule 5 sets the procedure. The council first gives a notice of intent, and the person has 28 days, starting the day after that notice is given, to make written representations. If the council decides to go ahead, it gives a final notice. The person can appeal to the First-tier Tribunal within 28 days, starting the day after the final notice is given, and the final notice is suspended until the appeal is finally determined, withdrawn or abandoned.

The penalty is one consequence. The other is that a term banning children or benefit claimants generally no longer has any effect, as the section above explains.

Does the Equality Act 2010 still apply as well?

Separately, the Equality Act 2010 still applies. A blanket rule that puts people with a protected characteristic, such as disabled people or women, at a particular disadvantage can also be unlawful discrimination unless it can be shown to be a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim.

Where can a landlord read the official guidance?

The government's own guide, Rental discrimination: a guide for landlords, sets out the rules with worked examples, and it is the place to start. For a specific situation, such as a clause in your mortgage, lease or insurance policy that you are unsure about, or a notice from the council, a solicitor can advise on your own facts.

These rules sit alongside the other duties that began on the same date. Our guide to landlord duties under the Renters' Rights Act 2025 sets those out one by one. The advertising rules that also took effect on 1 May 2026 are covered in can a landlord ask for more than the advertised rent.

Common questions

The short answers, in one place.

Is it against the law to put "No DSS" in a rental advert in England?

Since 1 May 2026, yes, for homes to be let on assured tenancies in England. Section 34 of the Renters' Rights Act 2025 says a landlord, or anyone acting for them, must not apply a provision, criterion or practice in order to make benefits claimants less likely to rent a home, and an advert saying "No DSS" is the plainest example of that. "DSS" is an old name; the law uses the term "benefits claimant". The only exception a landlord can rely on is an insurance policy entered into before 1 May 2026, and not extended since, that contains a term requiring it. The local council can impose a financial penalty of up to £7,000 for a breach.

Can a landlord refuse a tenant because they get Universal Credit?

Not because they get Universal Credit or any other benefit. Getting benefits cannot itself be the reason one person is treated less favourably than another. The Act says nothing in these rules stops a landlord taking a person's income into account when considering whether they could afford the rent, and government guidance says benefit income must be counted in the same way as any other income. There is no proportionate means defence for benefits. The only exception a landlord can rely on is an insurance policy entered into before 1 May 2026, and not extended since, that contains a term requiring it.

Does a "no benefits" clause in my buy-to-let mortgage still apply?

A mortgage term requiring a landlord to bar tenants who have children or claim benefits has had no effect since 1 May 2026, under section 37 of the Renters' Rights Act 2025, whenever the mortgage was agreed. Terms of the same kind in a tenancy agreement or a head lease also have no effect, subject to the children only proportionate means test and the old insurance exception. Insurance is different: a policy entered into before 1 May 2026, and not extended since, that contains a term requiring the restriction can still be relied on until it ends or is renewed, extended or replaced.

Are there any exceptions for tenants with children?

There is one general defence, for children only. The landlord, or the person acting for them, has to be able to show that the conduct is a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim. GOV.UK gives examples of where this may apply, such as shared housing, a risk of overcrowding, licensing conditions, safeguarding concerns that cannot reasonably be addressed and retirement communities, but each case is looked at on its own facts and the burden is on the landlord. An insurance policy entered into before 1 May 2026, and not extended since, that requires the restriction is the other exception. There is no proportionate means defence for benefits.

Sources

The primary sources behind this guide. Where the law and a summary disagree, the law is what counts.

This article is general information, not legal advice. It covers England only. Law as at 24 October 2026. For the official position, see the GOV.UK guide Rental discrimination: a guide for landlords, and for your own situation take advice from a solicitor.

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