Landlord certificates: what UK landlords need, how often, and where to keep them
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Gas safety, an electrical report, an EPC, deposit protection and the right alarms are the records landlords get asked for. How often, and what you hand the tenant, depends on the certificate and the nation. This is general information from official guidance, not legal advice.
The useful question is not "which PDF should I be scared of". It is "which file, for which property, by which date, and can I produce it". The panic is usually the search, not the rule.
Which certificates do UK landlords need?
It depends on the certificate and which nation the property is in. As of 2026, the intervals already in this table are the ones described on this page.
| Certificate | Who needs it | How often | Give to the tenant | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gas safety record (CP12) | Landlords who provide gas appliances or flues | At least every 12 months, by a Gas Safe registered engineer | Existing tenants within 28 days. New tenants before they move in | HSE gas safety for landlords |
| EICR | Landlords in England. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own electrical duties, in the nation table | England: at least every 5 years | England: copy to tenants. Detail in the EICR section | GOV.UK electrical safety standards guidance |
| EPC | You need a valid certificate when you let. England and Wales also have a minimum rating for homes the rules cover | Valid for up to 10 years | Give it when you market the property | GOV.UK Energy Performance Certificates |
| Deposit protection and prescribed information | England and Wales, when you take a deposit | Within 30 days of receiving it. It is not an annual certificate | The prescribed information, inside the same 30 days | GOV.UK tenancy deposit protection |
| Smoke and CO alarms | England has a specific set of alarm duties. Other nations differ | Alarms in place, and a check they work on the day a new England tenancy begins | The alarms themselves, not a certificate you post | GOV.UK smoke and CO alarm Q&A |
| How to Rent guide | England, and only in the limited way GOV.UK still describes | Withdrawn on 1 May 2026 | Do not treat the old PDF as current guidance | GOV.UK How to rent (withdrawn) |
| Right to Rent records | England | Before the tenancy starts, for adult occupiers | You keep the check, you do not hand over a certificate | GOV.UK right to rent checks |
| HMO or selective licence | Where that council's scheme applies | For the life of the licence. Renew before it ends | Depends on the scheme | Licensing by council |
If a cell says check your nation's guidance, that is deliberate. We would rather send you to the official page than invent a shared UK rule.
Gas safety record
People say gas safety certificate, CP12 or landlord gas safety record. HSE's landlord pages are the place to start: hse.gov.uk/gas/landlords. If you provide gas appliances or flues, a Gas Safe registered engineer checks them at least every 12 months. There is no grace period hiding in the diary. A late check is late.
Existing tenants get a copy within 28 days of the check. New tenants get a copy before they move in. You keep the record. The same duties show up on nidirect for Northern Ireland, and the Welsh Government checklist says a valid gas safety certificate goes to the contract-holder before occupation, with later certificates within 28 days. Scotland's repairing standard includes an annual Gas Safe check: mygov.scot landlord repairs.
The date that matters is the deadline, not only the day the engineer visited. Since the two-month window exists, you can book early and still keep the original renewal date. The worked example is on our gas safety certificate guide, and the gas safety expiry calculator does the window for you. HSE treats a breach as a priority.
File the PDF with the property and the deadline in the name. gas-safety-18-grove-2027-04.pdf beats scan.pdf. Put the deadline in the same place you open on a normal week.
Electrical installation condition report (EICR)
In England, the fixed wiring of a rented home is inspected and tested at least every 5 years, or sooner if the last report says so. The official write-up is the GOV.UK electrical safety standards guidance. Our EICR guide covers the report codes and the 28-day follow-up in England, which is where landlords get caught: the report exists, and the remedial note lives in a different email.
Wales requires periodic inspection at least every 5 years as part of fitness for human habitation, and the Renting Homes checklist says the contract-holder gets a copy of a valid electrical condition report within 14 days of occupation, and within 14 days of later inspections. Scotland requires a safety inspection by a registered electrician at least every 5 years, on mygov.scot. Northern Ireland's health and safety in rented accommodation page says the electrical system is inspected and tested by a qualified person at least every five years.
Keep the report and the evidence that any required work was finished. A quote is not a certificate. Five years is long enough to forget which electrician it was, so the PDF and the next date belong on the property record, not in a downloads folder.
Energy Performance Certificate
An EPC is valid for up to 10 years. GOV.UK explains the certificate here: Energy Performance Certificates. You can look an existing one up on the register. If it is not there, you may need a new one. Do not assume the one from the purchase is still in date.
In England and Wales, homes covered by the minimum standard need a rating of E or a registered exemption. The cost cap and the penalties are in our EPC rules guide, taken from GOV.UK's landlord guidance. Wales also lists a valid EPC on the Renting Homes checklist. Scotland requires an EPC: your responsibilities as a private landlord. For Northern Ireland, check your nation's guidance. A starting page is landlord and tenant obligations on nidirect.
The EPC is the certificate you only remember at a re-let. Write the expiry on the file name if that helps you, and keep any exemption paperwork with it.
Deposit protection and prescribed information
In England and Wales you protect the deposit and you give the prescribed information. GOV.UK's tenant guide is tenancy deposit protection, and the landlord page our deposit guide uses is linked below. The clock is 30 days from when you receive the money, not 30 days from when you get round to it. It is not an annual renewal. A new tenancy starts the question again.
The Welsh checklist states the same 30 days for a contract-holder's deposit, under the Renting Homes rules: gov.wales checklist. Our deposit protection guide walks through prescribed information for England and Wales.
Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own schemes. nidirect's landlord and tenant obligations say the landlord protects the deposit in a scheme. Check your nation's guidance.
What gets lost is the email that proves you did it: the scheme reference, the date, and the prescribed information you actually sent. Keep that pack with the tenancy, not only in the inbox you happened to use that year.
Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms
England's duties are in the smoke and carbon monoxide alarm Q&A. A smoke alarm on each storey where there is a room used as living accommodation. A carbon monoxide alarm in any room used as living accommodation that contains a fixed combustion appliance, other than a gas cooker. Check the alarms work on the day a new tenancy begins. If a tenant reports a fault from 1 October 2022 onwards, repair or replace it. The Q&A says a local authority can impose a fine of up to £5,000 where a landlord fails to comply with a remedial notice.
Wales does not use that England list unchanged. Fitness for human habitation includes smoke alarms and carbon monoxide alarms, and the Welsh checklist describes mains-wired smoke alarms as part of that duty. Read the checklist and the fitness guidance for landlords rather than copying the England sentence onto a Welsh contract.
Scotland: check the repairing standard on mygov.scot rather than assuming England's alarm counts. Northern Ireland: landlord and tenant obligations include installation and maintenance of smoke, heat and carbon monoxide alarms.
There often is no glossy certificate. Keep the date you checked them at the start of the tenancy, and the receipt if you bought new ones. A note with a date beats a memory.
How to Rent, and what replaced the habit
The How to Rent guide was the England checklist landlords and tenants used before a tenancy. GOV.UK withdrew it on 1 May 2026. The page says it is not up to date, that this was because of changes from the Renters' Rights Act, and that it is retained for tenancies where a section 21 notice was served before 1 May 2026. Do not hand a new tenant an old copy and call it current. Check GOV.UK for what applies to a new let now.
Wales has a different document: a written statement of the occupation contract, on the Renting Homes checklist. Scotland's list of what to give a tenant is on mygov.scot. Northern Ireland uses a tenancy information notice: see nidirect. Those are not the How to Rent guide under another name.
Right to Rent records
Right to Rent is an England duty. Before a new tenancy, check adult occupiers. GOV.UK's page is checking a tenant's right to rent documents. There are exceptions, and the guidance changes, so read it before each new letting rather than relying on this paragraph. You keep the record of the check.
This is not the rule in Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland. Check your nation's guidance before you run an England process on a home outside England.
HMO and selective licences
Some homes need a licence: mandatory HMO licensing, additional licensing, or a selective scheme that covers a whole area. Whether you need one is a council question, not a UK-wide certificate with a single renewal date. Our licensing pages collect the council pages, including Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
If you do hold a licence, treat it like the other documents: the PDF, the expiry, and the conditions, on that property. An HMO also multiplies the repairs. The filing habit is in HMO paperwork without an agency.
England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland
| Topic | England | Wales | Scotland | Northern Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gas safety | Annual Gas Safe check. Copy within 28 days, or before a new tenant moves in. HSE | Before occupation, then later certificates within 28 days. gov.wales checklist | Annual Gas Safe check under the repairing standard. mygov.scot | Annual check. Copy within 28 days, and before a new tenant moves in. nidirect |
| Electrical report | At least every 5 years. GOV.UK | At least every 5 years. Copy within 14 days. gov.wales checklist | At least every 5 years. mygov.scot | At least every 5 years. nidirect |
| EPC | Up to 10 years. Minimum E where MEES applies. GOV.UK | Valid EPC when you let, and the England and Wales minimum standard. gov.wales checklist | An EPC is required. Check mygov.scot for the rating rules. Responsibilities | Check your nation's guidance. nidirect obligations |
| Deposit | 30 days, plus prescribed information. GOV.UK | 30 days. gov.wales checklist | Check your nation's guidance | Protect the deposit. Check nidirect for the deadline. Obligations |
| Alarms | Smoke on each living storey. CO for fixed combustion appliances except gas cookers. GOV.UK Q&A | Fitness rules, not the England list. gov.wales | Check your nation's guidance. mygov.scot | Smoke, heat and CO alarms are a landlord duty. Check the detail. nidirect |
| Right to Rent | England. GOV.UK | Check your nation's guidance | Check your nation's guidance | Check your nation's guidance |
A renewal calendar, as an example
These dates are made up, for one imaginary flat, so you can see how the paperwork stacks. They are not your dates.
- Gas safety deadline: 12 April 2027. The early booking window opens on 12 February 2027 if you want to keep that anniversary.
- EICR next inspection: 3 November 2028.
- EPC expires: 19 June 2031.
- Deposit protected, and prescribed information sent: 2 March 2026. That is a one-off for that tenancy, not a yearly renewal.
- Alarms checked on the day the tenancy began: 1 March 2026.
Nothing in that list shares a month. A single "certificates" reminder in January will miss most of them. One date per document, on the property, is the calendar.
Where to keep them
Use one place per property, and names you can read later:
gas-safety/electrical/epc/deposit-tenancy/safety-checks/
Put the property and the deadline in the file name. Keep the remedial note with the EICR, and the scheme reference with the deposit. When you replace a certificate, do not leave the old one as the file you would grab in a hurry.
Gaffy is a document vault for this: each property's certificates, with expiry reminders, next to the repairs. It does not book the engineer. The short pages are gas safety certificate reminders, EICR reminders, EPC reminders and deposit protection reminders. The gas safety expiry calculator is free if you only want the gas date, including the two-month early window. The certificate due-date calculator adds the usual England periods for gas safety, an EICR and an EPC from the dates on the certificates. It runs in your browser and nothing is stored. The printable list of the England checks is the landlord compliance checklist. An interactive version that stays in your browser is the landlord compliance checklist tool. Official HSE and GOV.UK wording for gas safety, an EICR and an EPC is the certificate obligations note.
Related guides
- Gas safety certificate for landlords
- EICR for landlords
- EPC rules for landlords
- Deposit protection for landlords
- Landlord compliance checklist UK 2026
- Gas safety expiry calculator
- Certificate due-date calculator
- Landlord compliance checklist tool
- Certificate obligations and penalties
- Gas safety certificate reminders
- EICR reminders
- EPC reminders
- Deposit protection reminders
- Licensing by council
Landlord certificate FAQs
What certificates does a landlord need in the UK?
It depends on the nation and the property. The usual set is a gas safety record if there is gas, an electrical installation condition report, an EPC, proof the deposit was protected, and smoke and carbon monoxide alarms where the rules require them. England also has right to rent checks. HMOs and some other homes need a licence. The table on this page points at the official guidance.
How often does a landlord need a gas safety certificate?
At least every 12 months, done by a Gas Safe registered engineer, for appliances and flues you provide. Give existing tenants a copy within 28 days, and new tenants a copy before they move in. HSE sets this out at https://www.hse.gov.uk/gas/landlords/
How long is an EICR valid for rentals in England?
At least every 5 years, or sooner if the report says so. The GOV.UK electrical safety standards guidance is linked in Sources.
How long does an EPC last?
Up to 10 years. GOV.UK explains Energy Performance Certificates at https://www.gov.uk/buy-sell-your-home/energy-performance-certificates
Do I need to give tenants copies of certificates?
For gas safety, yes: existing tenants within 28 days, new tenants before move-in. In England, give tenants the EICR as well; the detail is in our EICR guide. Give the EPC when you market the home. Deposit prescribed information has its own 30-day rule in England and Wales. Other nations differ, so use the nation table.
What happens if a landlord certificate expires?
It depends on the certificate and where the property is. An expired gas safety check is a breach HSE treats as a priority. An expired EPC can block a legal let where a minimum rating applies. Electrical and alarm rules have their own timescales and council enforcement. Use the official links and, if you are unsure, check your nation's guidance.
Sources
Read on the official pages. This guide is general information, not legal advice. Last checked 19 October 2026.
- HSE, gas safety for landlords: https://www.hse.gov.uk/gas/landlords/
- HSE, landlords and letting agents FAQ: https://www.hse.gov.uk/gas/domestic/faqlandlord.htm
- GOV.UK, electrical safety standards guidance: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/electrical-safety-standards-in-the-private-and-social-rented-sectors-guidance/electrical-safety-standards-in-the-private-and-social-rented-sectors-guidance
- GOV.UK, Energy Performance Certificates: https://www.gov.uk/buy-sell-your-home/energy-performance-certificates
- GOV.UK, tenancy deposit protection: https://www.gov.uk/tenancy-deposit-protection
- GOV.UK, smoke and carbon monoxide alarm Q&A: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/smoke-and-carbon-monoxide-alarms-explanatory-booklet-for-landlords/the-smoke-and-carbon-monoxide-alarm-england-regulations-2015-qa-booklet-for-the-private-rented-sector-landlords-and-tenants
- GOV.UK, How to rent (withdrawn 1 May 2026): https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/how-to-rent
- GOV.UK, right to rent document checks: https://www.gov.uk/check-tenant-right-to-rent-documents
- Welsh Government, Renting Homes checklist: https://www.gov.wales/renting-homes-checklist-landlords-and-tenants-html
- Welsh Government, fitness of homes guidance for landlords: https://www.gov.wales/fitness-homes-human-habitation-guidance-landlords-html
- mygov.scot, repairs and maintenance as a private landlord: https://www.mygov.scot/landlord-repairs
- mygov.scot, what to give a tenant before they move in: https://www.mygov.scot/landlord-new-tenancy/property-information
- mygov.scot, responsibilities as a private landlord: https://www.mygov.scot/landlord-responsibilities
- nidirect, domestic gas installation and health and safety: https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/domestic-gas-installation-and-health-and-safety
- nidirect, health and safety in rented accommodation: https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/health-and-safety-rented-accommodation
- nidirect, landlord and tenant obligations: https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/landlord-and-tenant-obligations