Statutory guidance

Asking for rent in advance: guidance for local authorities

Published 13 November 2025

Applies to England

This guidance covers sections 8 and 9 of the Renters’ Rights Act 2025. 

These rules will apply to assured periodic tenancies in the private rented sector starting on 1 May 2026.  

The rules will not apply to:  

• tenancy agreements that were signed before 1 May 2026

• payments of rent in advance that were made before 1 May 2026

This guidance will help local authorities understand when it is illegal for a landlord or letting agent to ask for rent in advance. Rent in advance is when a landlord or letting agent asks a tenant to pay rent before it is due. This includes paying rent before the tenancy starts or before it is due as agreed in the tenancy agreement. 

Under the Renters’ Rights Act 2025, a landlord cannot ask for, encourage or accept rent before a tenancy agreement has been signed by them or their letting agent and the tenant. 

If a tenant pays their rent monthly, then a landlord can ask them to pay their first month’s rent at any time between signing the tenancy agreement and the tenancy starting. This is also known as the pre-tenancy period. If the tenant is paying rent more frequently than monthly, for example, weekly, the landlord can ask the tenant to pay up to the first 28 days’ rent during the pre-tenancy period. 

Once the pre-tenancy period has ended and the tenancy has started, rent payments will be payable on the rent due date agreed in the tenancy agreement. A landlord will not be able to require the tenant to make their rent payment before that date, regardless of what the tenancy agreement says. However, the tenant may choose to pay their rent early to help them budget. Once the tenancy has started the tenant can choose to pay any amount of rent early. 

Your responsibilities  

Local Weights and Measures Authorities are responsible for enforcement where a landlord or letting agent has asked for, accepted or encouraged a tenant to pay rent before the tenancy agreement has been signed. If you are a council that is not a local weights and measures authority, you may enforce rent in advance in your area. 

To take enforcement action against landlords asking for rent before a tenancy is signed, you will use the same process as set out in the Tenant Fees Act 2019 for prohibited payments. 

Local weights and measures authorities in England can investigate and issue civil penalties if landlords or agents have breached the rules. There is more information about enforcement duties and procedures in the civil penalty notice guidance. You can also find more information on investigating and gathering evidence in the investigatory powers guidance. 

These rules apply to all landlords or agents who provide assured periodic tenancies in England. This includes tenancies that come under the Crown Estate, but not the Parliamentary Estate. Further information  about different types of tenancies can be found in the tenancy types guidance. 

Rules on asking for rent 

There are rules about when a landlord or letting agent can ask a tenant to pay rent during the tenancy process. 

However, they can request other types of payments at certain stages — such as holding deposits, tenancy deposits, or other payments permitted under the Tenant Fees Act 2019.

Before a landlord and tenant sign the tenancy agreement 

A landlord or a letting agent can ask the tenant to pay deposits before the tenancy agreement is signed.  

However, they cannot ask a tenant to pay rent. If they do that, you can investigate them and issue a civil penalty if they have broken the rules.  

If a tenant offers a landlord or agent rent before all parties have signed the tenancy agreement, the landlord or agent must not accept it. If they accept the rent, you can also investigate them and issue a civil penalty. 

This also applies to social and supported housing. 

Deposits 

Landlords or a letting agent can ask a prospective tenant to pay a holding deposit to reserve the property. This cannot be more than a week’s rent. They can also ask a tenant to pay a tenancy deposit. This must be protected by the landlord or agent using a government approved tenancy deposit protection scheme. The maximum tenancy deposit the landlord can ask for is 5 weeks’ rent if the rent for the year is less than £50,000. If the rent is over £50,000 the landlord can ask for up to 6 weeks’ rent. 

When a tenancy agreement has been signed 

Pre-tenancy period 

This is the period of time from when the contract is signed until the start date of the tenancy.  

If a tenant will be paying rent monthly, landlords or agents can ask them to pay their first month’s rent at any time during the pre-tenancy period.  

If a tenant is paying rent more frequently than monthly, for example, weekly, then they can ask for rent covering up to the first 28 days of the tenancy. 

Landlords must not demand more than this. If they do, the tenant can refuse to pay. 

The rules of the pre-tenancy period do not apply to social and supported housing or when the tenancy was agreed a local council to meet a homelessness duty. 

Tenancy starts 

A landlord can ask for rent based on what is agreed in the tenancy agreement. This is usually weekly or monthly, but it could cover another period of time depending on how often the tenant pays rent. 

Any terms in the tenancy agreement requiring the tenant to pay rent in advance will not be valid. 

The rules for when a tenancy starts do not apply to social and supported housing.  

Complaints against a landlord or agent 

If a person has reported a landlord or agent for asking for rent before the tenancy agreement has been signed, you can investigate the landlord or agent.  

If you investigate the landlord or agent and have found that they asked for or accepted an illegal payment of rent in advance, you can issue a civil penalty notice. Where a civil penalty has been issued, you can also require the landlord or agent to repay the amount of the illegal payment to the tenant.   

Enforcement 

You may take enforcement action when a landlord or letting agent has asked for, encouraged or accepted rent in advance before the tenancy agreement has been signed.  You can issue a civil penalty against the prospective landlord or agent if you are sure that the breach was either: 

• committed with their consent or knowledge 

• due to their neglect 

More information on issuing financial penalties can be found in the civil penalty notices guidance. You can also find more information on the enforcement process in the Tenant Fees Act guidance. 

First breach 

You can issue a civil penalty of up to £5,000 if you find a landlord or agent has asked for, encouraged or accepted rent before a tenancy agreement is signed.   

Repeat breaches 

You can fine or prosecute a landlord or letting agent if they commit the same breach within 5 years. The fine for a repeat breach can be up to £30,000. 

For more information on first or repeated breaches, refer to the Tenant Fees Act enforcement guidance. 

Gathering evidence  

You will need to decide what evidence you need to investigate the case. If you need more information on gathering evidence, you can refer to the guidance on the Tenant Fees Act 2019 and the investigatory powers guidance.

You should get a witness statement from the person who made the complaint and gather the evidence they gave you. This evidence should be shared with the landlord or agent so they can give evidence in their defence. 

You have powers to request information and enter a business as part of your investigations.  

When a person has reported a landlord or agent for asking, inviting or encouraging them to pay rent in advance they should provide:  

• records or evidence of payment of rent in advance 

• records or evidence of encouraging and accepting rent in advance such as text messages, voicemails, or emails 

When defending themselves, landlords or anyone acting on their behalf should provide all relevant documentation including: 

• a copy of the tenancy agreement 

• records of payments from the tenant 

• steps to repay a payment of rent before it is due 

• records or evidence of communication with the person 

Annex A - examples of breaches 

Requirement to pay rent before the tenancy is entered into 

A tenant has viewed a property and would like to proceed with the tenancy. On payment of the tenant’s holding deposit, the landlord asks them to pay the first month’s rent and tenancy deposit at the same time as the tenant signs the tenancy. The landlord and tenant agree that the landlord will sign the tenancy once the tenant’s funds have cleared into the landlord’s account.  

This would be a breach of the rules on rent in advance as the landlord has required the tenant to pay rent before the tenancy has been entered into by both parties.  

Accepting an offer of rent before the tenancy is entered into 

A tenant has viewed a property and would like to proceed with the tenancy. As the tenant wants to move quickly, they offer to pay 6 months’ rent in advance now to secure the property and enter into a contract. The landlord accepts this offer and once the payment of rent is received arranges for both parties to sign the tenancy agreement and for the tenant to move in.  

This would be a breach of the rules on rent in advance as the landlord has accepted an offer of rent before the tenancy is entered into. 

A landlord requiring rent in advance during a tenancy 

During a tenancy, a landlord requires the tenant to pay the rent before the day it is due and points to clauses in the tenancy agreement that allow this. This would be a breach as the landlord cannot require payment of rent before the payment date agreed in the tenancy agreement. Clauses of the tenancy agreement that allow the landlord to ask for payment early are of no effect and the tenant does not need to comply with this requirement.  

Annex B - examples that are not breaches 

A local authority paying rent on behalf of an individual 

A local authority agrees with the landlord to pay rent in advance in order to facilitate a let to someone who is homeless. They agree to pay 2 months’ rent in advance before the applicant signs and to pay an additional lump sum of rent every 6 months. The landlord accepts this and reflects this in the tenancy agreement.  

This is not a breach as a local authority is not a ‘relevant person’ in the Tenant Fees Act 2019 and is therefore exempt from the rules on rent being required prior to the tenancy being entered into. The landlord would also be able to require the agreed regular lump sum every 6 months, if the tenancy was agreed to meet the local authority’s homelessness duty.  

A tenant offering to pay rent before it is due 

During a tenancy, the tenant offers to pay the landlord the next 2 month’s rent in advance. The landlord agrees to this and accepts the payment. This would not be a breach as the tenant is free to pay rent before it is due, and a landlord can accept this.

You can contact us using this form if you have any questions. If there is a technical problem with the page, you can report it at the bottom of this page.