- The national landlord register (the PRS Database, branded “Register your rental property”) opens on 15 December 2026, region by region.
- For London properties the rules start on 15 July 2027, with a registration deadline of 14 October 2027. You can register early from December.
- The fee is £65 per property, per year. Failing to register can mean civil penalties of up to £7,000, with more for repeated breaches.
- Your gas safety, electrical (EICR) and EPC records will need to be in order to register, so it pays to tidy them now.
For decades, England has had no single list of who rents out what. Councils kept licensing registers for some properties, deposit schemes knew about others, and nobody had the full picture. The Renters' Rights Act changes that. A national Private Rented Sector Database is arriving, and every landlord letting in England will need to be on it.
What the PRS Database actually is
It is an online register of private landlords and the homes they let. The government service is called Register your rental property. Each landlord creates a record, then adds every property they let or advertise, together with key safety and compliance information. Councils will use it to target enforcement, and tenants will be able to look up information about a landlord before they sign.
Think of it as the rental equivalent of a company filing: a public-facing record that you exist, that you are accountable, and that your paperwork is in order.
The dates that matter
Registration opens on 15 December 2026, starting with the West Midlands, and the legal requirement then rolls out region by region. Each region gets roughly three months from its start date to register. The service accepts registrations from December regardless of where the property is, so London landlords can register early if they want it off their list.
| Region | Rules apply from | Register by |
|---|---|---|
| West Midlands | 15 December 2026 | 14 March 2027 |
| East of England | 15 January 2027 | 14 April 2027 |
| South East (including Surrey) | 15 March 2027 | 14 June 2027 |
| London | 15 July 2027 | 14 October 2027 |
| South West (last region) | 15 August 2027 | 14 November 2027 |
Two practical points. First, the deadline follows the property's location, not where you live, so a landlord based in Surrey with a flat in Ealing works to the London date for that flat and the South East date for anything in Woking or Epsom. Second, once the rules apply in an area, a property should be on the register before it is advertised to let, so anyone planning a relet in late 2027 should register first rather than in a rush at marketing stage.
What it costs
Creating a landlord account is free. Each property then costs £65 a year, renewed annually for as long as it is let or advertised. For a single flat that is a modest line in the accounts. For a portfolio of ten it is £650 a year, every year, and worth budgeting for now.
What happens if you do not register
Failing to register, or letting a registration lapse, can lead to a civil penalty from the council of up to £7,000, with higher penalties for repeated or continuing breaches. The bigger risk is indirect. The register gives councils a ready-made list of landlords to check against licensing records, safety certificates and complaints. A landlord who is not on it will stand out.
What you will need to hand
Expect to provide details of yourself (or your company), each property's address and type, and confirmation of its key safety and compliance documents. In practice that means having the following up to date and easy to find:
- A current gas safety certificate (renewed every 12 months) for any property with gas appliances.
- A valid Electrical Installation Condition Report (EICR), required at least every five years.
- A valid Energy Performance Certificate showing the property meets the minimum rating.
- Any property licence the council requires (HMO, additional or selective licensing).
- Proof that tenants' deposits are protected in a government-approved scheme.
If any of those are missing or expired, the register is the moment it becomes visible. Our London landlord compliance checklist walks through each one.
How it fits with the rest of the Renters' Rights Act
The register is phase two of the reforms. Phase one arrived on 1 May 2026, when Section 21 was abolished, tenancies became periodic and rent in advance was capped. A new Private Rented Sector Landlord Ombudsman is expected to follow the database, with timings still to be confirmed, and the Decent Homes Standard is due to be extended to private rentals later still. Each step adds paperwork and each step adds a penalty for getting it wrong.
What we recommend doing this year
- Audit your documents now, while there is no deadline pressure. Diarise every certificate's expiry date.
- Check licensing for every address. Many London boroughs run additional or selective schemes, and an unlicensed property will be hard to register cleanly. Our guide to London property licensing explains the three types.
- Budget £65 per property per year from 2027.
- Decide who registers. The legal duty sits with the landlord, but a managing agent can do the administration on your behalf.
For landlords under Morgan Prescott management, our team prepares the documents, handles the registration and keeps the record current as certificates renew, so the register becomes one more thing that simply happens in the background.
Dates and fees as published for the government's Register your rental property service at the time of writing. Always check GOV.UK for the latest position. This article is general information, not legal advice.