How to Reference a Tenant in England: Step-by-Step for Landlords

Knowing how to reference a tenant properly is one of the most valuable skills a landlord in England can have in 2026. Since the Renters’ Rights Act 2025 came into force on 1 May 2026, there are no more fixed-term assured shorthold tenancies and no Section 21 “no-fault” route to fall back on. Every new let is a periodic assured tenancy, and ending one means proving a ground under Section 8, usually in front of a judge. That makes the work you do before a tenant moves in more important than it has ever been. Good referencing is now your first and best line of defence against arrears, damage and a possession claim you would rather never have to bring.

This guide walks you through the exact order of checks, documents and decisions a landlord should follow to reference an applicant fairly, lawfully and thoroughly, staying the right side of the Equality Act 2010, UK GDPR and the Tenant Fees Act 2019 as you do.

What tenant referencing actually is (and isn’t)

Referencing is the structured process of verifying that an applicant is who they say they are, has the legal right to rent in England, can afford the rent, and has a track record of being a reliable tenant. It is a risk assessment, not a guarantee, but a thorough one tells you whether the risk is acceptable and gives you defensible reasons for your decision.

Referencing is not the same as a Right to Rent check, though the two run alongside each other and are often confused. Right to Rent is a separate statutory immigration duty under the Immigration Act 2014; referencing is your commercial due diligence. You need both, and one does not satisfy the other.

A few ground rules before you start:

• Get written consent. Credit checks and reference requests require the applicant’s explicit permission. Keep a record, a signed application form or logged digital consent is fine.
• Be consistent. Apply the same criteria, in the same order, to every applicant. This is your single best protection against an Equality Act 2010 complaint: treat everyone identically and you have strong evidence you have not discriminated on the grounds of race, religion, sex, disability, age or any other protected characteristic.
• Handle data lawfully. You are processing personal data under UK GDPR. Collect only what you need, store it securely, and delete it when no longer needed (see the ICO guidance on data protection).
• Do not charge for it. Under the Tenant Fees Act 2019 you cannot pass the cost of referencing or credit checks on to the tenant.

Why referencing matters more under the Renters’ Rights Act

Before May 2026, a landlord who picked the wrong tenant had a backstop: serve a Section 21 notice and recover possession without proving fault. That backstop is gone. To regain possession now you must rely on a Section 8 ground, for serious rent arrears that means Ground 8, which requires at least three months’ (or 13 weeks’) arrears both when you serve notice and at the hearing. The process is slower, evidence-heavy and can be contested.

In short, the cost of getting referencing wrong has risen sharply. Choosing the right tenant up front is now far cheaper than ending a tenancy later. For the bigger picture, read our overview of tenant referencing in England and the routes to possession in how tenancies end in England in 2026.

How to reference a tenant: the step-by-step order

Work through these stages in sequence. Each builds on the last, and stopping early saves time on applicants who clearly will not qualify. Tell the applicant up front what the process involves and how long it will take.

Step 1, Verify identity

Before anything else, confirm the applicant is who they claim to be. Ask for a government-issued photo ID (passport or driving licence) and at least one recent proof of address, a utility bill, council tax statement or bank statement dated within the last three months. Cross-check the name, date of birth and address against the application form.

Identity verification underpins every other check: a credit search run against the wrong name or a fabricated identity returns a clean but worthless result. Watch for mismatched names, addresses absent from the credit file, or documents that look altered.

Step 2, Carry out the Right to Rent check

You must check that every adult (18 or over) who will live in the property as their only or main home has the legal right to rent in England. This is a duty under the Immigration Act 2014, and getting it wrong risks a civil penalty per occupier or, where you knowingly let to a disqualified person, a criminal offence.

• For most applicants you will either do an online check using a share code via the GOV.UK Right to Rent service, or a manual check of original documents in the applicant’s presence.
• Carry out the check before the tenancy begins, never after move-in.
• For people with time-limited permission to be in the UK, diarise a follow-up check before it expires.
• Keep a dated copy of the evidence for the tenancy and for one year after it ends.

Doing this for every adult occupier, not just the lead tenant, establishes your “statutory excuse” against a penalty.

Step 3, Run a credit check

A credit check shows County Court Judgments (CCJs), bankruptcies, Individual Voluntary Arrangements (IVAs), defaults and overall credit conduct. With written consent, run one through a tenant referencing agency or a credit reference provider.

Read the results in context rather than treating any adverse marker as an automatic rejection:

• A single old, satisfied default is very different from multiple recent CCJs.
• A “thin file” (little credit history) is common for young renters, students and people newly arrived in the UK, it is not the same as bad credit.
• An undischarged bankruptcy or recent IVA is a genuine red flag, usually warranting a guarantor or a decline.

For what each marker means and how to obtain consent correctly, see our guide to tenant credit checks in England.

Step 4, Assess affordability

Affordability is the single best predictor of reliable rent payment. The common rule of thumb is that gross annual income should be at least 2.5 to 3 times the annual rent (some landlords instead test that rent should not exceed roughly 30–35% of net monthly income). Pick one approach and apply it consistently.

Verify income with evidence rather than taking it on trust:

• Employed applicants: the last three months’ payslips plus an employer reference confirming salary, job title, start date and whether employment is permanent.
• Self-employed applicants: an SA302 / tax calculation and tax-year overview from HMRC, or accountant-certified accounts.
• Retired or other income: pension statements, benefit award letters, or proof of savings.
• Students: often have little income, so affordability is usually met through a guarantor.

Cross-reference the income evidence against bank statements where you can. If the threshold is not met on the applicant’s own income, a guarantor may bridge the gap, but only if the guarantor is referenced and affordable in their own right (see Step 6).

A note on rent in advance: the Renters’ Rights Act restricts demanding large amounts of rent up front. Do not treat advance rent as a substitute for referencing or use it to engineer a bidding situation. Check the current GOV.UK position before relying on it.

Step 5, Obtain references

Two references typically carry the most evidential weight:

• Previous landlord reference: did the applicant pay rent on time, look after the property, give proper notice, and were there any disputes or deposit deductions? Take reasonable steps to confirm the referee really is the landlord or managing agent rather than a friend posing as one. A current landlord keen to be rid of a problem tenant may give an over-generous reference, so a previous landlord is often more candid.
• Employer reference: confirms income, role and employment status (overlaps with Step 4).

A personal or “character” reference from a friend or relative adds little evidential weight and should never replace the two above.

Step 6, Decide on a guarantor (if needed)

If affordability is borderline, the applicant has a thin credit history (common with students or first-time renters), or they are new to the UK, a guarantor reduces your risk. A guarantor legally agrees to cover the rent, and sometimes damage, if the tenant does not.

Reference the guarantor exactly as you would a tenant: identity, credit and affordability. A guarantor should comfortably afford the rent on top of their own housing costs, so many landlords look for income of around three times the annual rent. Put the agreement in writing as a properly executed deed.

Our guides on whether you need a guarantor and what a guarantor agreement should include cover drafting and enforceability, including how guarantor liability works now that all tenancies are open-ended periodic ones rather than fixed terms.

Step 7, Make and record your decision

Weigh the evidence as a whole rather than fixating on a single data point. Document your reasoning in writing, particularly if you decline, so you can show the decision rested on consistent, lawful criteria (affordability, references, credit conduct) rather than any protected characteristic. Keep the file long enough to defend a complaint, then delete it.

If you accept the applicant, move promptly to the agreement, deposit protection and pre-tenancy paperwork. New landlords will find the first-time landlord checklist a useful next step.

Referencing checklist at a glance

A worked example

The applicant: Priya applies to rent a two-bedroom flat at £1,500 per month (£18,000 a year). She is employed full-time on a permanent contract earning £42,000 gross.

1. Identity, Priya provides a valid passport and a council tax statement dated last month; both match the application. Passed.
2. Right to Rent, As a British citizen she provides her passport; you complete and date the check before any tenancy starts. Passed.
3. Credit, Her report shows one satisfied default from four years ago and nothing since. In context, minor. Passed with note.
4. Affordability, Using a 2.5× rule, the minimum income needed is £18,000 × 2.5 = £45,000. Priya earns £42,000, so she falls slightly short on income alone. Flagged.
5. References, Her previous landlord confirms two years of on-time rent and a full deposit return; her employer confirms salary and permanent status. Strong.
6. Guarantor, As affordability is borderline, you ask for a guarantor. Priya’s father earns £60,000, passes his own checks (comfortably above 3× the rent), and signs a guarantee deed. Risk mitigated.
7. Decision, You accept Priya, supported by a guarantor, and write a short note recording the reasoning. You take a holding deposit of one week’s rent (£345.20, i.e. £1,500 × 12 ÷ 52) while finalising paperwork.

The lesson: a single weak metric does not have to mean rejection. A guarantor and a strong rental history together produced a sound, well-documented decision.

Common referencing mistakes to avoid

• Skipping the Right to Rent check because the applicant “seems fine”, the duty applies to every adult occupier, every time.
• Treating applicants inconsistently, which invites an Equality Act 2010 complaint.
• Accepting income claims without proof. Always verify against payslips, HMRC documents or bank statements.
• Relying on a current landlord’s glowing reference without checking a previous one.
• Charging prohibited fees. Under the Tenant Fees Act 2019 you cannot charge the tenant for referencing or credit checks. You may take a holding deposit capped at one week’s rent while referencing, see how that interacts with the five-week deposit cap.
• Forgetting data protection. Collect the minimum, store it securely, and delete referencing data you no longer need.
• Letting a follow-up Right to Rent date slip for tenants with time-limited permission.

Does the Renters’ Rights Act change referencing?

The Act does not abolish referencing, if anything it raises the stakes. With Section 21 gone and all tenancies periodic, recovering possession from a problem tenant now means a Section 8 ground and, often, the courts. The Act also bans rental bidding wars, so you must advertise at a set rent and cannot use referencing as cover for playing applicants off against each other.

Be clear about what referencing cannot do. It cannot let you impose a blanket ban on tenants with children or on benefits, discriminating against these groups is unlawful. It cannot justify a flat refusal of a tenant with a pet, because tenants now have a right to request one. And it cannot replace the formal compliance steps (deposit protection, gas safety, EPC, the prescribed information) that follow once you let. Always check the current position on GOV.UK and legislation.gov.uk.

Frequently asked questions

Can I charge a tenant for referencing in England?

No. The Tenant Fees Act 2019 bans charging tenants for referencing, credit checks, admin or inventory fees. The landlord (or agent) bears the cost. You may take a refundable holding deposit of up to one week’s rent to reserve the property while you reference, but it is not a fee and must be dealt with under the Act’s rules.

How long does tenant referencing take?

Anywhere from a few hours to about a week, depending on how quickly the applicant supplies documents and how responsive their employer and previous landlord are. Identity and Right to Rent checks can be near-instant with a share code; references are usually the slowest part.

Do I have to reference a tenant who has a guarantor?

Yes. A guarantor reduces your risk but does not remove the need to reference the tenant. You still need to verify identity, complete the Right to Rent check (which a guarantor cannot satisfy on the tenant’s behalf), and assess the tenant’s own conduct. You then reference the guarantor as well.

What is the difference between referencing and a Right to Rent check?

Right to Rent is a mandatory immigration check under the Immigration Act 2014 confirming a person can legally rent in England; it carries penalties if you skip it. Referencing is voluntary commercial due diligence, identity, credit, affordability and references, that protects your rental income. You should do both, but they are separate processes.

Can I refuse a tenant because of a poor credit score?

You can decline on objective, consistently applied financial grounds, including serious adverse credit such as recent CCJs or undischarged bankruptcy. What you must not do is reject someone because of a protected characteristic, or apply a blanket ban on benefit claimants or families with children. Record the financial reason in writing.

Should I reference every adult who will live in the property?

Yes. Carry out the Right to Rent check on every adult occupier and reference every adult who will be a named tenant. Each named tenant on a joint tenancy is usually jointly and severally liable for the full rent, so all of them need to be financially sound.

Coming soon

Tenancy Pilot is launching soon with a guided tenant referencing flow that walks you through every stage above in the right order, identity, Right to Rent, credit, affordability and references, with reference-request templates, holding-deposit calculations and a clear, recorded decision at the end. It turns this checklist into a repeatable, consistent screening process so nothing slips through, and it feeds straight into your tenancy agreement, deposit protection and compliance reminders. Join the waitlist to be first to use it when we go live.

This article is general information for England landlords, not legal advice. Rules change and individual circumstances vary, always check the current guidance on GOV.UK and legislation.gov.uk, and consult a qualified solicitor before acting.