PRS landlord database 2026: what it is and how to register

A new national register of private landlords and rental properties is being introduced in England as part of the Renters’ Rights Act 2025. Called the Private Rented Sector (PRS) database, and presented to landlords through a new GOV.UK service named "Register your rental property", it will require every buy-to-let landlord to register themselves and each of their properties before they can legally let them. Failing to register will carry a civil penalty of up to £7,000, rising to £40,000 for serious or repeated breaches, and an unregistered landlord will be unable to obtain a possession order to reclaim their property, other than on the anti-social behaviour grounds. Scotland and Wales have run equivalent schemes for years, and England is now catching up. This article covers what the PRS database is, when it launches, what landlords must do, and how to prepare.

What is the Private Rented Sector database?

The Private Rented Sector database, commonly called the PRS database, is a mandatory national register established by the Renters’ Rights Act 2025. Its purpose is to create a publicly searchable record of every private landlord and every privately rented property in England, giving tenants, councils and other bodies access to verified information about who owns and manages rental homes.

The Act provides for a database operator to maintain the register, but the service landlords will actually use runs on GOV.UK and is accessed through a GOV.UK One Login, in the same way as other government services. During registration the system issues two reference numbers, a Landlord Registration Number for the landlord and a Property Registration Number for each let property, both of which must appear on any advert or listing once the system is fully in force. Registration fees will be set by regulations, and day-to-day enforcement sits with local councils rather than with the operator. The August landlord dictionary has a plain-English entry on the database if you want a quick definition before reading on.

When does the PRS database launch?

The Renters’ Rights Act 2025 brought its main tenancy provisions into force from May 2026, but the PRS database has a separate commencement timetable. The government has confirmed a phased rollout, with the database expected to become operational in late 2026 and registration being rolled out progressively through 2027 as the system beds in. The service, named "Register your rental property", was already beta-tested with a group of landlords in mid-2026, who registered real properties and were issued with a Landlord Registration Number and a Property Registration Number, so the shape of the live system is now reasonably clear.

This means that for many landlords the immediate priority after May 2026 is complying with the new tenancy rules, all tenancies becoming periodic, Section 21 abolished, new grounds for possession, while the database registration obligation follows once the service goes live and registration opens for your area, which the government has said will happen in phases by region. For the full picture of the changes from May 2026, see our Renters’ Rights Act post-commencement guide.

Key dates at a glance

• Late 2026: the "Register your rental property" service begins rolling out, in phases by region. Landlords register to obtain their Landlord Registration Number and a Property Registration Number for each property.
  2027: rollout widens across regions as the service beds in, with letting agents and portals required to include valid registration numbers on any advert or listing once the duty is in force in an area.
  2028: mandatory sign-up to the separate PRS Landlord Ombudsman is expected to take effect, according to the National Residential Landlords Association.

The precise dates will be confirmed by secondary legislation and government guidance, so monitor the government’s Renters’ Rights Act update pages and sign up to alerts so you know when registration opens for your area.

Who must register on the PRS database?

Registration is mandatory for every private landlord in England who lets a residential property under a private tenancy. That covers individual landlords, whether you have one property or a large portfolio, and company landlords, including limited companies and partnerships that own and let residential property. New landlords must register before advertising or letting once the database is live, while existing landlords will have a transition period to register once it is operational, with the exact window to be confirmed in regulations. Registration is one of several steps when you manage a rental property yourself.

Letting agents are not required to register as landlords, but the Act places a duty on them to check that their landlord clients are registered before accepting an instruction to market or manage a property, and an agent who acts for an unregistered landlord may themselves be liable for a penalty. Social landlords such as housing associations and local authorities, and licence holders under certain housing schemes, are generally outside the scope of mandatory registration, as they operate under separate regulatory frameworks.

What information do landlords need to register?

Landlords will need to provide information about themselves and their properties, including compliance with key legal requirements such as gas safety, electrical safety and energy performance, so that tenants can verify a landlord’s credentials and councils can identify non-compliant owners. Right to rent remains a separate obligation that sits alongside registration; see our guide to right to rent checks for how the two interact. The service was beta-tested with landlords in mid-2026, and a landlord who registered a property during the trial reported being asked for the information below. It is still subject to change before the full launch, but it is the clearest picture yet of what a first-wave registration will involve.

Landlord information

• Full legal name, or company name and registered number for corporate landlords

• Principal correspondence address

• Contact telephone number and email address

• National Insurance number or equivalent, for identity verification

• Details of any letting agent acting on the landlord’s behalf

Property information, for each property

• Full address of the rental property

• Number of households

• Number of occupants

• Current tenancy status, occupied or vacant

• The rent and how often it is charged

• Property type, whether detached, semi-detached, terraced, flat or other, and the number of bedrooms, excluding any room smaller than 4.64 square metres

• Whether the property is furnished

• EPC, which the service checks automatically against the national EPC register

• Whether the property requires an HMO licence, and if so the licence number

• Gas safety certificate, if the property has gas

• EICR reference number, if the property has gas, which must be uploaded within 28 days to keep the property registered

Landlords will be required to keep this information up to date. In the beta test the gas safety certificate had to be uploaded within 28 days to keep the property registered, and the Act gives landlords 28 days to put a breach right before it can become an offence, so a 28-day window is the best current guide.

What landlords cannot do without being registered

The database is designed with teeth, because the Act ties several key landlord actions to registration, so an unregistered owner loses important legal protections and abilities.

The most significant restriction is on possession. An unregistered landlord cannot obtain a Section 8 possession order, with the narrow exception of Ground 7A and Ground 14, the grounds for serious anti-social or criminal behaviour. Because Section 21 has already been abolished, that leaves an unregistered landlord with almost no route to regain possession. Outside those two anti-social behaviour grounds, the landlord cannot get a court order to recover the property. This makes registration a precondition for the entire process, as our guide to how long eviction takes in 2026 explains, since all of it begins with a valid Section 8 notice.

Letting agents are also prohibited from advertising or managing a property for an unregistered landlord, must verify registration before taking an instruction, and must stop acting if a registration lapses or is revoked. And local authorities will be required to check registration when processing HMO licence applications, so an unregistered landlord cannot obtain or renew a mandatory HMO licence. Since operating a licensable HMO without a licence is already a criminal offence, this compounds the risk for HMO landlords. Our mandatory HMO licensing guide explains the application process, and you can check whether your area has selective licensing using our tool.

How tenants and councils use the database

The government has said public access to the database will follow in a later stage of the rollout rather than at launch, and it has not yet confirmed exactly what tenants and members of the public will be able to see. The intention is that renters will eventually be able to check whether a landlord and property are registered before signing a tenancy or paying a deposit, and to see whether valid compliance certificates are on file. A tenant who discovers they are renting from an unregistered landlord can report it to the council, and may also apply to the First-tier Tribunal for a rent repayment order covering up to 24 months of rent paid while the landlord was unregistered.

Councils will have enhanced access, including compliance certificate details, tenancy information and registration history, which should help them target enforcement at landlords with poor records and identify unlicensed HMOs and properties with outstanding improvement notices. Those running selective licensing schemes will be able to cross-reference the database with their licensing records. Beyond maintaining the register and issuing the registration numbers, the enforcement of the rules sits with local councils, which investigate breaches and impose the civil penalties described below. Anonymised data from the database is also expected to help government monitor the sector over time, including by linking property records through their unique property reference numbers, or UPRNs.

How much will registration cost?

Fees will be set by regulations and confirmed closer to launch. No firm figure has been published, but the government has indicated fees should cover the cost of running the database without generating a profit. Comparable schemes give a rough sense of scale: Scotland’s landlord registration charges around £66 per landlord plus £11 per property, and Wales’s Rent Smart Wales charges around £33.50 for online self-registration per landlord, with England’s structure expected to be in a similar range. The government has confirmed in its Implementation Roadmap that this will be an annual fee rather than a one-off charge, and it has said the fee will be kept proportionate and good value. The fee is likely to be deductible as an allowable expense against rental income.

Penalties for failing to register

The Act applies its standard two-tier civil penalty to database breaches, and it is local councils that impose them. A first or less serious breach, such as marketing a property without active registration numbers or failing to keep your entries up to date, can attract a civil penalty of up to £7,000. Giving the database false or misleading information, or continuing to breach the rules after an earlier penalty, is treated as a database offence and can attract a civil penalty of up to £40,000 as an alternative to criminal prosecution. These figures mirror the penalty structure used across the Renters’ Rights Act, and the precise mechanics for the database will be confirmed in secondary legislation; the government’s guide to the Renters’ Rights Act sets out the framework.

On top of any civil penalty, tenants can apply to the First-tier Tribunal for a rent repayment order of up to 24 months’ rent where the landlord is unregistered, the same mechanism that applies to unlicensed HMOs and other serious housing offences. The Renters’ Rights Act doubled the maximum rent repayment order from 12 to 24 months as part of its reforms. A landlord unable to serve a valid possession notice because of a registration failure should take legal advice on next steps.

How to prepare before the database launches

The database is not yet live, but there are concrete steps you can take now to make registration smooth when it opens.

1. Gather your compliance certificates, since registration will require current EPC, EICR and gas safety details for every property; if any are due for renewal, schedule them now.

2. Prepare your property records, compiling accurate addresses, property types, room counts and tenancy statuses for the whole portfolio.

3. Confirm your company details if you let through a limited company, as the registration number and registered address must match Companies House.

4. Check your EPC ratings, since the minimum is currently E and the government has signalled future increases; see our MEES guide for the current and upcoming requirements.

5. Monitor government announcements, because the commencement date and fee structure will come through secondary legislation.

6. Talk to your letting agent, if you use one, since they will need to verify your registration status before they can act for you.

Adding a yearly reminder to review compliance certificates, for instance with the August landlord calendar, helps make sure nothing lapses when a renewal falls due.

How England compares to Scotland and Wales

England is following a path already taken by both devolved nations, where landlord registration has run in Scotland since 2006 and in Wales since 2015, so there is a substantial evidence base for how these schemes work. Scotland’s scheme is run by local councils, requires renewal every three years, and can refuse registration to a landlord found not to be a fit and proper person, which effectively prevents them letting legally. Wales’s Rent Smart Wales takes a similar approach but adds a mandatory training and licensing requirement for landlords who self-manage rather than using a licensed agent. England’s database does not currently include a training requirement, though one could be introduced in future regulations. For English landlords with properties in Scotland or Wales, registration on those schemes is already a legal requirement, and registrations are not transferable between the national schemes.

Frequently asked questions

Is the PRS database the same as an HMO licence?

No. The database is a register of all private landlords and properties, regardless of type, while an HMO licence is a property-specific licence issued by the council for houses in multiple occupation that meet the licensing threshold. A landlord with a licensable HMO will need both: registration on the database and a valid HMO licence.

Is the PRS database the same as landlord accreditation?

No. Registration on the database is mandatory and a landlord cannot lawfully let without it, whereas landlord accreditation is a voluntary scheme run by landlord associations and councils that certifies training and standards. Being accredited does not register you, and it will not exempt you from any of the database duties.

Will the database be publicly searchable?

Tenants and the public will be able to search for a specific landlord or property to confirm registration status, but sensitive details such as the landlord’s home address or National Insurance number will not be publicly visible. The level of public access to specific property data will be confirmed in the regulations governing the operator.

What happens if a landlord is not registered?

A landlord without active entries for themselves and the property cannot lawfully market or let it, and cannot obtain a Section 8 possession order except on the anti-social behaviour grounds, 7A and 14. Letting agents and portals must not advertise the property, and continuing to let in breach of the rules can lead to civil penalties of up to £7,000, rising to £40,000 for a database offence such as providing false information, alongside possible criminal prosecution.

Does registration apply to furnished holiday lets?

The database applies to assured tenancies, including the new assured periodic tenancy, and to regulated tenancies under the Rent Act 1977. Arrangements outside that framework are generally outside the scheme, including lodgers who share with a live-in landlord, and non-Housing Act tenancies such as high-rent tenancies above £100,000 a year. Furnished holiday lets let under licence usually fall outside the scheme too, though a landlord moving from holiday lets to longer-term tenancies should take advice on whether registration applies.

Can I be registered in England if my property is managed by an agent in Scotland?

Each nation has its own scheme. A property in England is registered on the English database, a property in Scotland on the Scottish scheme, and registrations are not transferable between them.

Key takeaways

• The PRS database is a new mandatory national register of private landlords and rental properties in England, introduced by the Renters’ Rights Act 2025.

• It has a separate, phased launch from the main Act, beginning in late 2026 and rolling out in stages by region, under the GOV.UK service "Register your rental property".

• An unregistered landlord cannot obtain a Section 8 possession order except on the anti-social behaviour grounds, cannot have the property advertised by an agent or portal, and cannot renew an HMO licence, making registration essential for lawful letting.

• Penalties follow the Act’s two-tier structure: up to £7,000 for a first or less serious breach and up to £40,000 for serious, repeated or fraudulent breaches, plus rent repayment orders of up to 24 months.

• Prepare now by consolidating compliance records, reviewing EPC ratings and monitoring secondary legislation for the commencement date and fees.

August keeps your compliance certificates, deadlines and property records in one place so you are ready to register the moment the database opens, and it is free for up to two properties.

This article is intended for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, financial, or professional advice. Landlord and tenant law is subject to change, and the information in this article reflects the position at the time of writing. You should always seek independent legal or professional advice before taking any action in relation to your property or tenancy.