For landlords

Do landlords still have to give tenants the How to Rent guide in England?

Guide · England · Last checked on 19 October 2026

No, not for a new private assured tenancy in England. The legal duty to give a tenant the government's How to Rent guide was revoked for private assured tenancies on 1 May 2026 (SI 2026/325, regulation 10). GOV.UK withdrew the guide on the same day. What the law asks of a landlord letting a home now is a written statement of the tenancy's terms, in the ordinary case given to the tenant before the tenancy is entered into (Housing Act 1988, section 16D).

This guide is written by VEYLO X, a software platform for renting and letting in England. The guide covers private assured tenancies, which since 1 May 2026 include the tenancies most landlords knew as assured shorthold tenancies. Some lettings are not assured tenancies at all, and different rules apply to those. It covers England only. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own rules.

What was the How to Rent guide, and why did landlords have to give it?

It was a government document called "How to rent: the checklist for renting in England". Regulation 3 of the Assured Shorthold Tenancy Notices and Prescribed Requirements (England) Regulations 2015 required a landlord to give the tenant the version in effect at the time. That applied to most assured shorthold tenancies in England granted on or after 1 October 2015, with some exceptions (SI 2015/1646, regulations 1 and 3).

The guide could be given in hard copy. It could also be sent by email, if the tenant had told the landlord an email address at which they were content to accept notices and documents (regulation 3(3)).

The rule mattered because of what it was connected to. While a landlord was in breach of it, the landlord could not give a section 21 notice (Housing Act 1988, section 21B(3)). Under the old rules, How to Rent had no fixed deadline of its own. That is why most letting checklists written before 2026 carry it. Our guide to when Section 21 was abolished explains what replaced that route.

What changed on 1 May 2026?

Three things happened on the same day. Regulation 10 of SI 2026/325 revoked the 2015 Regulations. Regulation 1(3) of the same instrument limits that revocation to private assured tenancies. And GOV.UK withdrew the How to Rent guide.

The GOV.UK page now says the guide "has now been withdrawn and is not up to date". It also says the guide has been kept online for tenancies where the landlord served a section 21 notice before 1 May 2026.

The guide describes the old system. It explains section 21 notices and fixed terms, and neither is available for a new private assured tenancy in England any more. Since 1 May 2026, most private tenancies are periodic, and our guide to what a periodic tenancy is covers how they work.

What do I have to give a new tenant instead?

A written statement of the terms of the tenancy, and other information the regulations require. Section 16D of the Housing Act 1988, inserted by section 12 of the Renters' Rights Act 2025, puts that duty on the landlord. Where a landlord has contracted someone, such as a letting agent, to ensure compliance, the duty applies to that person too (section 16D(8)). In the ordinary case, section 16D(4) says the statement must be given before the tenancy is entered into. Section 16D(1) and (5) to (7) set out exceptions, with different deadlines for a few special cases, so check them if your letting is not a straightforward new tenancy.

What the statement must contain is set out in the Schedule to the Assured Tenancies (Private Rented Sector) (Written Statement of Terms etc and Information Sheet) (England) Regulations 2026, SI 2026/324. The list is long. It includes, among other items:

the name of the landlord, and of each person if there is more than one;
the name of the tenant, and of each person if there is more than one;
an address in England and Wales at which the tenant can serve notices on the landlord;
the address of the property;
the date on which the tenant is first entitled to possession;
the rent, and when it is due;
a statement that a new proposal to increase the rent must be made by a notice under section 13 of the Housing Act 1988.

That is a sample, not the full Schedule. Read the Schedule itself, or use a tenancy agreement that has been prepared for the new rules, before letting.

A council can enforce the duty. Under section 16I(1) of the Housing Act 1988, a local housing authority may impose a financial penalty on a person if it is satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that the person contravened section 16D. Each penalty can be up to £7,000 (section 16I(6)). If the contravention carries on, a further penalty is possible after 28 days, under the conditions in section 16I(3). Continuing or repeated breaches can also be a criminal offence (section 16J), and a council can impose a financial penalty of up to £40,000 instead of prosecuting (section 16K). Our guide to a landlord's duties under the Renters' Rights Act 2025 sets out the written statement alongside the other duties that started on the same day.

What about tenants who were already renting before 1 May 2026?

It depended on whether the existing tenancy was written down. Where an existing tenancy was wholly or partly in writing, the landlord had to give the tenant the information required by regulations within one month beginning with the commencement date (Renters' Rights Act 2025, Schedule 6, paragraph 7(2)). For most existing tenancies that date was 1 May 2026, so the deadline was 31 May 2026. Regulation 3(2) of SI 2026/324 names that information as the government document "The Renters' Rights Act Information Sheet 2026".

Where an existing tenancy was wholly oral, the information sheet was not the document due. A full written statement under section 16D was due instead, within the same one month period (Schedule 6, paragraph 7(5)).

Some existing tenancies have a later date. Where a valid section 8 or section 21 notice was given before 1 May 2026, and the conditions in Schedule 6 about possession proceedings are met, the new rules begin to apply to that tenancy only when the notice stops being valid or the proceedings end (Schedule 6, paragraphs 3, 4, 16 and 17). The one month then runs from that later date, which may not have arrived yet. A notice that was not valid does not postpone the deadline. If you are not sure whether a notice you gave was valid, take advice.

The information sheet is not something a landlord gives on a new letting. Regulation 3 of SI 2026/324 applies only to existing tenancies covered by paragraph 7(2). The same council penalty power applies to a missed sheet (Schedule 6, paragraph 7(1)(b)). If you are not sure whether it was given, take advice on your own position.

Is there any case where the old guide still matters?

Only in a narrow set of cases, all of them about a notice given before 1 May 2026. If you gave a valid section 8 notice before that date, and the conditions in Schedule 6 are met, the How to Rent requirement can still apply to that tenancy until the notice stops being valid or the possession proceedings end. That comes from regulation 12(2) of SI 2026/325, which keeps regulations 2 and 3 of the 2015 Regulations applying to tenancies covered by paragraphs 16 and 17 of Schedule 6.

Regulation 12(2) does not extend to a tenancy where a section 21 notice was given before 1 May 2026. Paragraphs 3 and 4 of Schedule 6 keep such a notice valid, and the tenancy an assured shorthold tenancy, for a limited period, but they do not keep the How to Rent requirement running. GOV.UK keeps the withdrawn guide online for those tenancies.

If you gave a tenant a section 8 or section 21 notice before 1 May 2026, take advice on your own position. This guide does not cover how possession works.

Should I still hand the old guide to a new tenant?

No law asks you to, and GOV.UK says the guide is not up to date. It describes section 21 and fixed terms, which are not available for a new private assured tenancy. Handing it over as if it were current could leave a tenant with a wrong picture of their rights and of yours.

For an ordinary new letting, the document the law asks for is the written statement of terms, given before the tenancy is entered into.

What should I change if my letting checklist still lists How to Rent?

Replace the line. For a new private assured tenancy, the item is the written statement of terms under section 16D, and in the ordinary case it comes before the tenancy is entered into, not on the day of move in. Our guide to the documents landlords need before letting covers the rest of the set.

Keep a dated record of when you gave the statement, and how. A council needs to be satisfied beyond reasonable doubt before it can impose a penalty (section 16I(1)), and a dated record is the plainest way to show what happened. For a tenancy that already existed on 1 May 2026, keep the same kind of record for the information sheet or the written statement that was due for it.

VEYLO X is a software platform for renting and letting in England. Landlords can use it to keep dated records of documents like these. It does not give legal advice, and it does not decide whether a landlord has complied.

Common questions

Do landlords have to provide the How to Rent guide now?

Not for a new private assured tenancy in England. Regulation 10 of SI 2026/325 revoked the 2015 Regulations that required it, from 1 May 2026, and GOV.UK withdrew the guide the same day. The requirement can still apply to a tenancy where a valid section 8 notice was given before 1 May 2026, until that notice stops being valid or the proceedings end.

What replaced the How to Rent guide?

For a new private assured tenancy, a written statement of the tenancy's terms, in the ordinary case given before the tenancy is entered into (Housing Act 1988, section 16D). For a written tenancy that already existed on 1 May 2026, the landlord had to give The Renters' Rights Act Information Sheet 2026, by 31 May 2026 in most cases.

Can a landlord be fined for not giving a written statement of terms?

Yes. A local housing authority may impose a financial penalty of up to £7,000 per penalty if it is satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that the landlord contravened section 16D of the Housing Act 1988 (section 16I). The same power applies to a missed information sheet for an existing written tenancy. Continuing or repeated breaches can also be an offence under section 16J, with a penalty of up to £40,000 as an alternative to prosecution (section 16K).

Who wrote this

VEYLO X is a software platform for renting and letting in England. VEYLO X does not give legal advice, does not prepare tenancy agreements or written statements, and does not decide whether any landlord has met a legal duty.

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 states the position in England as at 19 October 2026, when the Housing Act 1988 sections 16D, 16I, 16J, 16K and 21B, Schedule 6 to the Renters' Rights Act 2025, SI 2015/1646, SI 2026/324, SI 2026/325 and SI 2026/421 were read on legislation.gov.uk, and the GOV.UK How to Rent page was read the same day. If your situation involves a notice given before 1 May 2026, take advice on your own case.